The robots are coming. How Ukraine became the testing ground for AI-powered combat. – POLITICO

It took about 20 minutes for Swarmer’s team of five engineers to prepare the drones for their mission: to find and destroy two targets hidden somewhere in the field. Usually, drones need pilots equipped with video-game-style controllers and goggles to see through their cameras. For this test, Yaroslav Sherstyuk, a former Ukrainian army officer, planned to run three reconnaissance drones and two larger bombers. “I will be in charge,” Sherstyuk said. “But that only takes pushing three buttons.”

He indicated the targets on a map, pushed start and leaned back in his chair. Two reconnaissance drones zoomed off. “Each of them decided on the best trajectory on their own, based on a possible terrain relief or other possible obstacles we pointed out on the map,” said Sherstyuk, watching their progress on his screen. The two bombers followed. Only the last, small drone stayed back.

The bombers found their targets. Sherstyuk approved the attack, then hopped on a phone call with his son while the drones carried out the strike. The last drone whirred forward. “It’s checking whether the bombers destroyed the target,” Sherstyuk said. “Command usually demands destruction or damage confirmation, so it’s doing that.”

Mission accomplished, the drones floated back to Sherstyuk. Swarmer’s team toasted the demo’s success with alcohol-free beer.

As its war against Russia drags on, Ukraine is emerging as a testing ground for cutting-edge warfare, including drones and other vehicles capable of carrying out parts of their mission on their own. Serhii Kuprienko, Swarmer’s 39-year-old founder and chief executive, thinks his swarms might be deployed this year. “We have already passed the first combat tests,” he said.

By allowing a single pilot to control multiple drones, Swarmer aims to alleviate the manpower shortages that have put Ukraine’s armed forces on the back foot in recent weeks. Using artificial intelligence, or AI, the company’s drones will react autonomously to changing circumstances and communicate with each other to orchestrate a sortie.