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Fedorov Launches 'Army of Robots' to Robotize Warfare
Confirmed
In Short: Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has launched a new initiative called the 'Army of Robots' to further robotize warfare, aiming to reduce the need for human soldiers on the battlefield.
Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has launched a new initiative called the 'Army of Robots' to further robotize warfare, aiming to reduce the need for human soldiers on the battlefield.
Fedorov announced the initiative at the IT Arena conference in Lviv, emphasizing the use of robots for the most dangerous tasks, such as evacuating the wounded, laying and clearing mines, and engaging in combat.
The initiative builds on Fedorov's previous 'Army of Drones' program, which significantly contributed to Ukraine's battlefield successes.
Fedorov left his position as defense minister in July and is now focusing on defense technology from the private sector.
Fedorov's vision includes the development of humanoid robots to replace infantrymen in trenches and aims to achieve the first enemy soldier killed by a humanoid robot in six months.
Fedorov's latest move into defense tech comes after his dismissal from the post of Defense Minister and a period of uncertainty about his next steps.
Fedorov did not specify the organization behind the 'Army of Robots' initiative, and his press team did not respond to inquiries about the specific organization.
Fedorov emphasized that the Army of Robots is not one company but an ecosystem, and he is actively seeking companies and engineers working with robotic technologies.
What this adds
Fedorov's initiative is more of a vision than a fielded capability at this stage.
The sources have not established the exact timeline or specific organizations involved in the 'Army of Robots' initiative.
What's confirmed
- "We will invest in defense tech companies, launch our own technology projects, create R&D capabilities, test solutions together with the military, and scale up as quickly as possible the things that actually work on the battlefield," the minister said.
- After his dismissal from the post of Defense Minister, Fedorov did not initially make clear what his next move would be, as thousands of Ukrainians protested across the country for weeks, calling for the reinstatement of the popular tech-minded reformer.
- "Even outside government, now from the private sector, we are continuing to work on our vision of technological warfare — Air. Land. Economy. — and on our main mission: to create technologies that help Ukraine win and save the lives of our service members," Fedorov said.
- According to Ukrainian media watching his presentation at IT Arena in person, Fedorov said that the initiative aims to achieve the first enemy soldier killed by a humanoid robot in six months, and the first successful assault of an enemy position with no infantry involved in twelve months.
What's still developing
- Fedorov's Army of Drones, launched in 2022, helped make drones the weapon behind more than 95 percent of Ukraine's battlefield hits.
- Fedorov is running it from outside government, having left the defense ministry in July and started building a defense-tech company backed by Palantir chief Alex Karp.
- For now, it is a vision more than a fielded capability: Fedorov is describing where he wants the battlefield to go, not a robot force already in the fight.
- The aim, Fedorov says, is to gather the best engineers, combat experience, and capital and point them at one goal: making robots fight instead of people.
- After delivering a major challenge to Ukraine's wartime political order by calling for elections in mid-August, Fedorov has since turned his attention to defense tech.
- During a much-publicized trip to the United States at the end of August to meet with supporters, donors, and tech leaders, Fedorov announced the creation of a fund to help drive innovation and scale up production to meet Ukraine's most important defense needs.
- Just days later, the ex-minister said he would launch his own defense-tech company, one of the first investors of which would be Alex Karp, CEO of controversial tech company Palantir, whose products are used in the Ukrainian war effort.
- Asked by the Kyiv Independent to specify, Fedorov's press team did not reply at the time of publication.
- Fedorov unveiled the initiative on social media and during a presentation at the IT Arena conference in Lviv on September 26, marking his latest move into defence technology after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed him as Defence Minister in July, according to the report.
- The project is modelled on Fedorov’s “Army of Drones” programme, which he launched in 2022 while serving as digital transformation minister.
- During a high-profile visit to the United States in late August, Fedorov met supporters, donors and technology leaders and announced a fund intended to promote innovation and increase production to address Ukraine’s defence requirements.
- Mykhailo Fedorov stated that the next technological breakthrough will be the robotization of warfare (Photo: Video still of FEDOROV channel on Telegram) Former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov announced the launch of the Army of Robots project, aimed at scaling up the use of robotic systems on the front line and reducing risks to service members, according to his post on X on Sept. 26.