The US military’s extensive investments in unmanned systems could make a third of its total size robotic by 2039.
This is according to retired US Army Gen. Mark Milley during an event that tackled the inevitable role of defense technology in future warfare.
Milley, who served as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, noted that artificial intelligence-enabled systems could soon change the nature of war as they can enable militaries to make faster and smarter decisions.
He also floated the possibility of reduced troop size due to the existence of cutting-edge robotic systems.
“Ten to fifteen years from now, my guess is a third, maybe 25 percent to a third of the US military, will be robotic,” he stated.
‘A Fundamental Change’
The US military is making significant investments in robotic platforms to gain a tactical advantage in future warfare.
The army has been experimenting with human-machine integration, while the Air Force is on track to fielding its first collaborative combat aircraft with drones serving as “loyal wingmen.”
Meanwhile, the US Navy has pursued the deployment of a hybrid fleet that consists of unmanned surface vehicles and underwater drones.
Milley argued that the increasing use of robotic systems in the US armed forces will be a fundamental change that could fuel other nations’ militaries to do the same.
“The country that optimizes those technologies for military use is going to have a very significant — and potentially decisive — advantage in an armed conflict,” he said.
Rivaling China
China is apparently America’s biggest rival in defense tech development.
In 2022, the Chinese Navy said it had developed extra-large unmanned underwater vehicles to be a key part of its future naval fleet.
Beijing also recently demonstrated rifle-toting robot dogs, which caused serious concerns among American legislators.