UK and US to equip Ukraine with AI‑enabled drones in technological race against Russia

A global race is underway concerning the development of new technologies that could reshape the future of warfare. Russia is ramping up its domestic production of combat drones in support of its invasion of Ukraine, and it is receiving considerable supplies from its ally, Iran. Nonetheless, Ukraine is not without support.

Quoting anonymous sources, Bloomberg reports that the United Kingdom and the United States plan to provide Ukraine with thousands of new drones equipped with artificial intelligence.

Drones with artificial intelligence support will operate in large groups, communicating with each other to locate enemy positions. None of them will need human control. According to the sources, the drones could be dispatched to Ukraine within a few months, although they caution that this timeline might be pushed back.

They further add that while these new drone capabilities will not fill in for the urgent need for missiles, they might help alleviate some of these shortages and introduce a new dynamic on the battlefield.

Speaking in Munich on a Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged his allies to supply more weapons and long-range artillery. "Keeping Ukraine artificially short of artillery and long-range weaponry allows Putin to adjust to the current intensity of the war," he stated.