Watch: Ukraine uses AI 'mother drone' in combat debut
Illustrative photo: Ukraine has used an AI-powered 'mother drone' for the first time (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
Ukraine has used an AI "mother drone" that increases the effectiveness of strikes for the first time. The drones are already operating on the battlefield, according to Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov.
“Drones based on artificial intelligence are already operating on the battlefield. The Ukrainian defense cluster Brave1 has created a new technological AI solution that increases the efficiency and accuracy of strikes against the enemy,” Fedorov said.
About the new Ukrainian drone
- The "mother drone" delivers two FPV strike drones at a distance of up to 300 km. They are capable of autonomously finding and hitting targets ranging from enemy aircraft to air defense and critical infrastructure.
- If the distance is less than 100 km, the drone is returned for reuse.
- The cost of one mission is $10,000. For comparison, launching a missile costs 300-500 times more.
As the minister wrote, the technology is GPS-free. The SmartPilot system uses visual-inertial navigation, guides with cameras, and LIDAR only enhances accuracy. The artificial intelligence recognizes and selects the target on its own.
“We continue to create Ukrainian products that change the rules of the game in the technological war,” Fedorov added.
Ukrainian-made drones
Ukrainian company DeepStrikeTech has launched the production of a new attack drone called Batyar, which visually resembles the Iranian Shahed drone. It can cover a distance of over 800 km.
Mykhailo Fedorov recently showed a new Ukrainian-made UAV system that carries 6 FPV drones at once and works as a repeater.
In early April, Ukraine tested fiber-optic FPV drones with a range of more than 20 km for the first time.
