What just happened? In yet another move highlighting the military's evolution toward a future in which machines do the fighting, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has announced the creation of a new military command designed to expand the use of autonomous and robotic capabilities across the US armed forces. It's called the Autonomous Warfare Command, or the slightly sinister AutoWarCom.
Hegseth announced the initiative during his September 30 State of the Force address at Quantico, Virginia. A four-star officer will lead the command, which would join the military's existing 11 combatant commands. The last addition was US Space Command in 2019.
"The pace of war is changing faster than the process to support it," Hegseth said (via Reuters) in a speech that also included the announcement of an office of religious affairs.
"Cheap compute, superintelligence, and advanced commercial manufacturing have enabled the proliferation of low-cost, high-precision strike," Hegseth added.
As is always the case, there's some bureaucracy to navigate before AutoWarCom becomes a reality. Air & Space Forces Magazine reports that the Pentagon aims to establish it by October 1, 2027, working with Congress on the necessary authorization. Its remit will cover drones, AI, and command and control systems, though its leadership and precise structure remain unclear.
The command is supposed to accelerate the development and deployment of autonomous and semi-autonomous systems. Hegseth also wants the services to introduce military specialties focused on autonomy, giving personnel dedicated career paths in this field.
War is expensive. It was reported in July that the US lost an estimated $1 billion worth of Reaper drones during its campaign against Iran. The Pentagon's Massed Modular Aircraft project seeks cheaper, modular aircraft that can be fielded in larger numbers, with losses expected. When drones are being shot down regularly, the military would prefer replacements that don't cost a small fortune.
"Today we need both quality and quantity," Hegseth said.
The announcement is another example of how humanoid robots are making their way into militaries. It was reported this week that the Army selected five winners in its xTechHumanoid competition, including Alex the robot from the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition. Despite the very ordinary name, it features ballistic protection and combines AI with human control for dangerous missions.
China doesn't want to be left behind in this race. The US rival has investigated military uses for humanoids, including reconnaissance, logistics, and potential building-clearing operations alongside troops.
AI's military role already extends beyond controlling machines to include intelligence analysis, logistics, and targeting. That also means a hallucination can have considerable consequences. It was recently reported that US forces nearly intercepted a Chinese vessel after an AI-assisted intelligence report falsely identified its cargo as materials for a nuclear weapons program. Personnel were preparing to board and aircraft were already airborne before officials scrutinized the report. A human review caught the error, but only after preparations were already underway.