The report warns against the misuse of drones and other autonomous robots. But there may be bigger concerns in less obvious places, said Paul Scharre, another author of the report, who had helped set policy involving autonomous systems and emerging weapons technologies at the Defense Department and is now a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security.

“Drones have really captured the imagination,” he said. “But what is harder to anticipate — and wrap our heads around — is all the less tangible ways that A.I. is being integrated into our lives.”

The rapid evolution of A.I. is creating new security holes. If a computer-vision system can be fooled into seeing things that are not there, for example, miscreants can circumvent security cameras or compromise a driverless car.

Researchers are also developing A.I. systems that can find and exploit security holes in all sorts of other systems, Mr. Scharre said. These systems can be used for both defense and offense.

Automated techniques will make it easier to carry out attacks that now require extensive human labor, including “spear phishing,” which involves gathering and exploiting personal data of victims. In the years to come, the report said, machines will be more adept at collecting and deploying this data on their own.

A.I. systems are increasingly adept at generating believable audio and video on their own. This will accelerate the progress of virtual reality, online games and movie animation. It will also make it easier for bad actors to spread misinformation online, the report said.