Chapter 1: What historical event marks the use of robots in warfare?
It's a scene reminiscent of a computer war game. Three soldiers dressed in white camouflage to blend into the snow emerge from a war-torn alley with their hands raised above their heads. They crouch down following the orders being blasted at them as they stare down the barrel of a machine gun mounted on a so-called ground robot. This footage, released by Ukraine, is said to show the moment
Russian soldiers were captured by a Ukrainian robot, a robot using artificial intelligence. The first time in history a country has apparently won a battle using only land-based robots without putting a soldier at risk on the ground. So what do Ukraine's robot soldiers mean for the future of warfare? Professor Alexandru Stanku is a specialist in robotics, AI and autonomous systems technology.
from the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering in Hereford in the UK. And he joins me on the line.
Chapter 2: How has drone warfare evolved in the context of the Ukraine conflict?
Alexandru, good morning.
Good morning. Good morning. Thank you very much for inviting me.
Well, thank you for talking to us. We have seen extraordinary strides in drone warfare in the war in Ukraine. Air-based drones, drones on sea and now ground-based robots. Their role has expanded rapidly. Can you tell us a little bit about how this all developed?
Yes, what we are seeing now, particularly in Ukraine, is a major shift towards greater autonomy.
Chapter 3: What advancements are being made in robot autonomy for military applications?
Instead of one soldier controlling one robot, we are moving towards systems where multiple robots can operate together with a human supervising rather than directly controlling every action. This is a significant advance because it makes operations faster, more scalable, and more effective in complex environments.
The human is still in the loop, but their role is changing from operator to supervisor. At the same time, drones have become a critical part of modern warfare. In many ways, they are now as essential as artillery was in the past so for instance during the second world war no army could operate effectively without artillery today the equivalent of artillery is drones so any military
don't use them effectively, risks falling behind.
And drones, apart from the ones that are actually used for offensive operations, they've become very, very important in terms of supplying the front lines, in terms of evacuating the wounded.
Yes, yes, indeed. And for this, we have to implement a high degree of autonomy of this.
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Chapter 4: How do humans maintain control in autonomous military operations?
And the soldier should be there to set up the mission, the goals, and the drone by itself should adapt and perform that mission.
Now, you mentioned that there's still a human involved in the loop and that obviously is important. But how much of the work is AI doing in terms of allowing the robot or the drone to adapt to the conditions they encounter?
Yes. So this raises very important questions. Technically, we are developing robots that can navigate complex environments, avoid obstacles, understand their surroundings and make decisions in real time. So they can operate in the dynamic and uncertain situations and even adapt to unexpected events. So, however, the key issue is not just what the technology can do, but what it should do as well.
Okay, and is that where the humans come into it?
So, the more autonomy we give to machines, the more important we have to define clear limits.
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Chapter 5: What ethical considerations arise from the use of AI in warfare?
So, in particular, decisions that involve human life must always remain under human responsibility. So this is not only a technical challenge, it is also an ethical and legal one. So as I said, even if we increase the level of autonomy and the level of AI, the human is still in the loop because the robots helps the humans.
So the human is still there to set up the mission and the human must be able at any point to stop the mission if something goes wrong.
And can they do that? They can do that pretty much immediately, can they? Or is that difficult if they're controlling a number of different robots?
They should be immediately, yeah. Okay.
Sorry to cut a question.
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Chapter 6: What international regulations exist for the use of military robots?
We know what Ukraine is doing by and large. Do we know what Russia is doing in terms of having humans still in the loop?
I'm not aware about what Russia is doing, but I'm sure that the robots are there to help humans. So I'm sure that the human is still in the loop. At this moment, you cannot leave the robots to do things by themselves.
Okay. And presumably, as you say, you can't allow a robot or artificial intelligence controlling a robot to make a decision about taking human life.
Of course, there should be their ethics and regulations.
But, I mean, are there any international rules on any of this?
Well, so...
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Chapter 7: How can countries enhance their robotic capabilities for future conflicts?
There is increasing international discussion around this, although approaches can vary between countries. What is widely accepted, however, is the principle that humans should remain in the loop. Robots are tools. They are designed to assist humans, especially in dangerous and complex environments, whether in military operations or industries such as nuclear or oil and gas.
The human defines the mission and is responsible for ensuring it complies with international laws. Just as important, humans must always have the ability to intervene or stop the system if something goes wrong.
And do you think eventually we'll have to come to some kind of an international agreement about how that is overseen?
Yes, yes. But You know, I believe the same is applying with AI and robotics. In fact, the discussions and frameworks are already developing and will continue to evolve as technology advances. However, it's also realistic to say that not all actors will follow these agreements, which remains an ongoing challenge.
For instance, from an academic perspective, we are working now not only on making robots more capable, but also on training engineers to think about ethics and responsibility.
At the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering, Hereford, for example, we are developing programs such as our MNG in autonomous robotics in partnership with the Ministry of Defense that place a strong emphasis on both technical capability and ethical awareness.
We've seen the importance of the advances Ukraine has made in airborne drone technology because after the war in the Middle East, Ukrainian expertise and equipment was very much in demand. Are they leading the field in ground-based robots as well? And where do you think those developments are likely to lead over the next few years?
Well, it's very important for every country to understand that bringing together academics, engineers and businesses is very important in order to advance in this sector. This is what in Ukraine they did. And this shows a very fast advance in this field. So we should follow their example. And I think we'll be... Okay.
Do you foresee a scenario, Alexandru, where the frontline is composed of or made up of robots from either side fighting each other with no human involvement at all?
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