Ukraine Turns Increasingly to Robots for Frontline Missions

Ukraine is increasingly turning to ground robots to perform dangerous frontline missions, shifting some of the riskiest work away from soldiers onto remotely operated, AI-supported unmanned vehicles.

According to the Ministry of Defense, the Ukrainian military has already carried out more than 50,000 logistics and evacuation missions using GRCs (Ground Robotic Complexes).

“Today, the GRC regularly performs logistics and evacuation missions in high-risk areas,” Ukrainian Minister of Defense Mykhailo Fedorov said. 

Ground robotic systems deliver supplies such as weapons and ammunition, provide logistics, and evacuate the wounded, where lingering “poses an additional threat,” Fedorov said, explaining that preserving soldiers’ lives is the highest priority.

Since January 2026, the Ukrainian military has carried out more than 50,000 logistics and evacuation missions with the help of GRCs. 

“Every month, the use of robots increases,” the Ministry of Defense reported, adding that the number of units using them “has increased from 117 to 230.”

“On the instructions of the president, we continue to ensure the technological superiority of Ukraine,” Fedorov added.

In April, President Volodymyr Zelensky ordered the armed forces to dramatically increase the number of ground robotic systems in service this year, aiming to drastically reduce the need for soldiers to be physically present in the most dangerous parts of the battlefield. 

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He has also called for close coordination among the government, the military, and various industries to scale up the production and integration of these systems.

“Everyone must understand,” Zelensky said, “this is about saving lives.” 

Zelensky said the use of Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) is expanding as fast as possible, with contracted volumes this year already more than double those of last year. 

As the war becomes more technology-driven, expanding robotic capabilities will be key to sustaining Ukraine’s defense while limiting troop casualties, the Ministry explained.

In May, Ukraine’s parliament, the  Verkhovna Rada, adopted a law that exempts transactions for the supply of GRC from value-added tax (VAT). The measure was intended to lower procurement costs for ground robots and to speed up their delivery to frontline units. 

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Fedorov said the technology, developed with support from the Brave1 defense innovation platform, has already passed combat testing in the Kharkiv region and is navigating the entire interception process automatically.

“Autonomy is one of the key directions for the development of modern air defense,” Fedorov said. “Such technologies make it possible to respond faster to large-scale attacks and protect Ukrainian cities more effectively.”