Machine learning is nowhere near AI. Yet. I took some AI classes from Prof Thrun at Stanford doing distance learning back in 2012 - he invented much of the machine learning and other tech that has given us "self driving cars" etc. Google him for the full story on his vehicles he's worked with. Anyhow, regarding defense applications, he's stated frequently that in his opinion we're a long way off from true AI or a singularity or whatever. Despite stories about Facebook AI systems having their plugs pulled in a panic due to them beginning to communicate in "their own" language and other sensationalist stories, it's going to be a long time, if ever, before "Skynet" is a concern. That said, machine learning is becoming more effective so far as applications all the time, and obviously military systems will continue to benefit from that.
As impressive as door opening dog robots look, to me, a self driving drone capable of air to air refueling is just as impressive, and that's been a reality for 5 years or more now.
