The war in Ukraine shows that combat drones are becoming increasingly intelligent, more autonomous and are being launched more frequently. The "Switchblade" kamikaze drone, made available to the Ukrainian military by the United States, has become well-known. Once this "loitering ammunition" finds a target, it will lunge and detonate an explosive warhead on impact. Research is also being carried out on entire swarms of drones, which are supposed to act like flying minefields. Sheer numbers alone could overwhelm the enemy and their anti-aircraft systems. How much autonomy do these systems already have? Will algorithms soon decide about life and death? One thing is certain: the development will be accelerated by artificial intelligence. It will change wars: From superpowers to small states, if one side has autonomous weapons, then the other side has to follow suit. The race to get there has begun.
The war in Ukraine shows that combat drones are becoming increasingly intelligent, more autonomous and are being launched more frequently. The "Switchblade" kamikaze drone, made available to the Ukrainian military by the United States, has become well-known. Once this "loitering ammunition" finds a target, it will lunge and detonate an explosive warhead on impact. Research is also being carried out on entire swarms of drones, which are supposed to act like flying minefields. Sheer numbers alone could overwhelm the enemy and their anti-aircraft systems. How much autonomy do these systems already have? Will algorithms soon decide about life and death? One thing is certain: the development will be accelerated by artificial intelligence. It will change wars: From superpowers to small states, if one side has autonomous weapons, then the other side has to follow suit. The race to get there has begun.
