Autonomous, AI-enabled drones that allow human operators to locate, disable, and destroy ground-based targets have been trialled by AUKUS, the trilateral defence and security partnership between the UK, US, and Australia.

The recent exercise has been cited as the first use of autonomy and AI sensing systems in a real-time military environment.

It took place as part of a series of trials named AUKUS Resilient and Autonomous Artificial Intelligence Technologies (RAAIT), and as part of the annual US-hosted multinational Project Convergence experimentation exercise.

The UK’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) said that AI and autonomous systems were used to reduce the time it takes to identify enemy targets and to operate with reduced risk to life.

This included several drones from each nation operating in the same airspace to achieve a “common outcome,” whilst being augmented by an AUKUS AI team, who retrained and deployed AI onto the platforms.

Dstl noted that the trial demonstrated the “significant” improvements AUKUS partners have made to the application and viability of RAAIT since the first UK trial in April 2023.

Further, Dstl said that, once proven, the technology will be incorporated into national platforms, providing the military with “operational advance through a quick response to current and future threats.”

“AUKUS continues to develop and deploy AI and autonomy technologies in a safe and responsible manner that ensures context-appropriate meaningful human control,” added Dstl.

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The recent exercise is just one of the latest examples where new technologies are being tested and developed for a military context.

For instance, back in April, DIGIT reported on how an energy laser weapon dubbed “Dragonfire,” which was trialled in the Hebrides, will be installed on Royal Navy warships for the first time from 2027.

Able to fire at any target visible in the air, and with an accuracy equivalent to hitting a pound coin from a kilometre away, the laser energy weapon uses an intense beam of light to engage targets like drones.

Also in the first half of this year, DIGIT wrote on how a “game-changing” weapon that uses radio waves to disable electronics and take down multiple drones at once is under development for the UK’s armed forces.

Known as a Radio Frequency Directed Energy Weapon (RFDEW), it beams radio waves to disrupt or damage the critical electronics components of enemy vehicles, causing them to stop in their tracks or fall out of the sky.

The system can detect, track, and engage a range of threats across land, air, and sea, and affect targets up to 1km away—with further development being undertaken to extend the range.