Rise Of The Robots: Russian Soldiers Surrender To Ukrainian Machine

Three Russian soldiers, one covered in blood, come out of a building and surrender to an armed ground robot. This is not the first such surrender, but it appears to be the first on video. Armed robots are becoming increasingly common as evidenced by a new report from the Jamestown FoundationUkraine is now the world leader in making and using it.

Robots are already indispensable for both frontline supplies and the evacuation of victims in Ukraine. This year they will increasingly be used for fire support, engaging in direct combat for both offensive and defensive operations with heavy machine guns and other weaponry.

Stepping up the robots

Remotely operated ground robots, known in the West as Uncrewed Ground Vehicles (UGVs) and in Ukraine as Ground Robotic Complexes (“Nazemnyi Robotychnyi Kompleksor NRC) have been present in small numbers since the start of the war. Initially many of these were imported models, but now the vast majority are made locally. According to the Jamestown Report, 99% of currently used UGVs are produced in Ukraine.

Production has been scaled up quickly. From hundreds of units in 2024, Ukraine aiming to produce 15,000 UGVs by 2025 and this year more than 20,000. There are at least 200 different models in use from about 40 Ukrainian manufacturers.

Much of the rapid progress in this field is due to close cooperation between robot manufacturers and frontline troops. The engineers strive to produce machines that precisely meet the requirements of the unit they are working with, and feedback from combat is incorporated into design changes and upgrades in a cycle usually lasting a matter of weeks.

It is also fast because, unlike other military vehicles, robots are small and can be easily assembled from commercial components. They typically range in size from a shopping cart to a golf cart. The armed versions, often made by attaching a turret to a logistics robot, usually carry a 7.62mm or .50 Cal machine gun. Some cost as little as $5,000, but price tags usually run into the tens of thousands. The DevDroid pictured above is quoted at $26-$29k depending on version.

This is in stark contrast to UGV development in the US, which has much larger budgets, a much deeper technology base and much longer time scales. Back in 1985 the US military tested a remote-controlled vehicle called Prowler, armed with machine guns, and in 1987 Teleoperable mobile anti-armor platform launched anti-tank missiles. However, these developments led to nothing.

Similarly, the armed robot US SWORDS made good progress and it was even deployed to Iraq in 2008, but never used in action. The US military also has many small robots remotely controlled weapon stations. Bringing the two together has been too much of a challenge so far.

The latest from the US military Robotic Combat Vehicle Programwhich has been making slow progress since 2019, was demolished last summer apparently because of the costs.

“We need robotic combat vehicles, but… we don’t want to select just one supplier and pay nearly $3 million per unit,” an Army official said. told Breaking Defense. Decades of research and development have come to nothing.

The military has one Request for information with a view to restarting the program, looking for an affordable, assignable UGV that can “fight alongside infantry and destroy enemy armored personnel carriers, trucks and troops.”

That is exactly what the Ukrainian UGVs are currently doing.

Fighting robots in action

Since the days of Prowler, there have been demonstration videos of armed robots rampaging with machine guns, and both Ukraine and Russia regularly produce footage of armed robots on testing grounds. But actual battle footage was virtually unknown until now.

In 2024 we saw the first video of an armed UGV leading an attack on Russian positions, and a few months later Ukraine carried out its first attack. once successful robots-only attack with a mix of drones and UGVs.

In November Ukraine released a first-person view video of an encounter between one of their UGVs and a Russian MT-LB personnel carrier; it seems the Russians never noticed the robot shooting at them. This month we saw what it appears to be first ever video of an operator attacking infantryusing a .50 Cal machine gun on a DevDroid UGV.

The robots also take over defensive tasks and hold the line in place of foot soldiers. In December, Ukraine’s 3rd Assault Brigade claimed that a DevDroid, rearmed with a .50 Cal, fought against Russian troops for 45 days. The machine was operated remotely from cover and returned every 48 hours to charge and reload. We don’t know how effective the fire was, but we do know that the position was held against multiple Russian attacks without causing any Ukrainian casualties.

“Only the UGV system was present at the position,” commander Mykola Zinkevych told Ukrainian media. “This was the core concept.”

The goal is to reduce casualties and ultimately reduce the need for foot soldiers. Of course it is lively debate on this issuewith some commentators declaring that robots will never replace boots on the ground. But while existing UGVs clearly have major limitations, it appears that they are already capable of performing some of the roles for which infantry were previously essential – such as taking prisoners.

Come with me if you want to live

The Russians who surrendered to a UGV seem somewhat confused. In another reported surrender, the Russians were said he was “very surprised”. when he is captured by a robot.

It makes perfect sense to have UGVs in the lead, especially when it comes to accepting surrender. Ukraine previously pioneered the drone surrender technique, using quadcopters with microphones to guide Russian soldiers to safe areas, ensure they were disarmed and capture them. In a face-to-face meeting there is a risk of a mock surrender, where someone waits for the kidnapper to get close before pulling a gun or grenade. happened in Ukraine. Remote surrender means there is no risk to the kidnappers and no one has to make split-second life or death decisions.

UGVs will also affect enemy morale. When your side is taking casualties, but your opponent literally doesn’t bleed or feel pain and can’t die, fighting can seem pointless. Especially if you are given the option of a safe and easy surrender.

The fighting between UGVs and ground forces has only just begun and it is impossible to predict how this type of warfare will evolve. It seems most UGVs are taken out by FPV drones., and many UGVs already have jammers. How robot combat robot technology plays out will likely be a major factor in shaping future wars.