The Ministry of Defence will purchase several times more ground robotic systems than last year, which will give a significant boost to the development of the technological cluster.

Hlib Kanievskyi, the Director of the Procurement Department at the Ministry of Defence, shared this information with the Economichna Pravda.

This year, the government has set a goal to supply 15,000 ground robotic systems to the military and has already started contracting for them. Almost all of the ordered models will be produced in Ukraine, as foreign samples are much more expensive.

Already now, the orders for ground drones have exceeded last year’s figures by several times: in the second half of last year, the Ministry signed six contracts worth UAH 100 million, while in the first quarter of 2025, it signed 31 contracts worth UAH 6 billion.

Contracting for robotic systems remains a specific process, where the high demand in the military conflicts with the imperfections of the technology, even among the best Ukrainian models. The Ministry of Defence has set requirements for defense companies to improve their products during the execution of the contracts.

Imperfection of advanced technologies

Journalists from Economichna Pravda sought insights from the commanders of ground robotic system units to evaluate the technological maturity of various types of ground robots. The commanders hailed from the 13th Khartiia Brigade, the 108th Separate Mechanized Battalion “Da Vinci Wolves” named after Dmytro Kotsiubaylo, and the 3rd Assault Brigade.

On a ten-point scale, the military rated kamikaze drones and logistics systems at a solid 5/10. However, combat robotic systems with turrets, drones for evacuating the wounded, and special equipment carriers received a lower rating of 3/10. GRCs designed for mine clearance fared slightly better, with a score of 4.5/10. These assessments reflect both the progress and the ongoing challenges in refining cutting-edge military technology.

However, according to the military, the immaturity of the technologies should be addressed through their active involvement in combat operations at the front, where key issues will quickly be identified and subsequently corrected by the manufacturer.

“The best investment in the development of ground robotic systems is to fund the purchase of robots for the army. Because it is the military that will examine each product, improve it, and work on its shortcomings. The more robots there are on the front lines, the more feedback the military will provide, and the manufacturer will become more competitive,” said Oleksandr Yabchanka, the Commander of the Honor Company of the 108th Separate Mechanized Battalion “Da Vinci Wolves” named after Dmytro Kotsiubaylo.

The Brave1 technology cluster said that 50 models of ground robots had been approved for use in the army so far. Meanwhile, only 20-30% of them are consistently used at the front, as most are not technically ready for real combat conditions or have a narrow specialization.

A total of 250 models of the ground robotic systems are registered on the Brave1 platform, so many prototypes are being sent to the front line.

“60% of what is on the market is a raw product. Manufacturers often do not understand what characteristics robots should have at the front,” a platoon commander of the 13th Khartiia Brigade, callsign Happy, told Economichna Pravda.

The military is solving the problem of “crude” ground robotic systems on its own thanks to frontline workshops, a large decentralized network of workshops where mechanics, engineers, and operators bring robots to combat readiness, experiment with their design, and generate new ideas for manufacturers.

At Brave1, they believe that in the future, the technology will move towards greater autonomy, meaning independence from direct operator control. Developers will improve navigation, integrate artificial intelligence, and implement combat management systems, so that one person can control several robots simultaneously.

Another area of development is automated turrets, which are operated by a soldier from cover. The biggest challenge here is creating a stabilization system for use on ground or sea platforms, developing a high-quality targeting system, and possibly adapting the complex for use as a short-range air defense system.