Terrorist group Boko Haram leverages artificial intelligence to manufacture explosives and coordinate attacks.

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A report by The New York Times has revealed how Boko Haram terrorists turned to artificial intelligence, AI, for weapons making, including bombs, as well as improving their operations generally.

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Former insurgents, the report noted, used multiple AI platforms, including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok and DeepSeek.

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According to the report, former Boko Haram commanders told terrorism and technology researcher, Antonia Juelich of the University of Cambridge, that after an assault on a military base was frustrated by a defensive trench, the group consulted AI tools for ideas.

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That was when they learned how to modify motorcycles to jump over such obstacles.

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Their mechanics altered motorcycles for speed and acceleration, and fighters practised manoeuvres before operations.

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One of the former Boko Haram commanders told Juelich: “We saw in a movie how motorcycles can jump over bridges.

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“We used AI to learn how to do this. We gave it information, like what motorcycles we use and the distance we need to jump and so on.

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“And it gave us steps on what we have to do.”

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‘How do I make bombs with heavier explosions?’

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Another terrorist, a former commander in Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP, told Juelich, “You type in the question or use your voice, and it gives you a detailed answer, like ‘How can I build a bomb?,’ and then it tells you how.

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“It is like a human robot! We used it a lot.”

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“Trial-and-error can kill you. AI gives you accuracy,” one member said.

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“Before, the bomb explosion was not that big, but then they studied it.

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“AI told us what chemicals to put in that made the explosion heavier,” he said.

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AI firms react

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Reacting to the findings, OpenAI told The New York Times that the terrorists violated its policies with such actions.

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On their part, Google and Anthropic said their AI models contain protections designed to refuse dangerous requests.

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However, the former insurgents told the researcher that they were often able to bypass chatbot restrictions by disguising their requests as legitimate projects.

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