AUTOWAR25 No. 28P · Afternoon Edition
NATO's transformation chief says the alliance has hidden Ukrainian forces and Ukrainian-made drone boats in its drills as a red team to force faster adaptation. The Army starts testing self-driving shuttles at Fort Benning, Ukrainian units have ordered more than 1.5 million drones through an online marketplace, and the Royal Navy puts counter-drone radars on Kraken drone boats.
1. NATO's transformation chief says the alliance hid Ukrainian forces and Ukrainian-made drone boats in its drills as a "red team" to force NATO to adapt faster
Adm. Pierre Vandier, Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, told Breaking Defense that NATO has hidden Ukrainian forces and Ukrainian-made uncrewed surface vessels in exercises as the red team against NATO's blue force, to "trigger an adaptation cycle" in the alliance.
- Ukraine's Defense Ministry has said its red team beat NATO members at sea in five of five scenarios at REPMUS 2025 off Portugal, reportedly using uncrewed surface vessels.
- Vandier: amphibious operations now face naval and aerial drones alike, so "you cannot envisage any kind of operations without counter-drone" defenses.
- NATO's "Fight Club" at the Joint Warfare Centre builds vignettes to test, for example, how many drones in a swarm it takes to overwhelm a navy.
Sources: Breaking Defense2. The Army begins testing self-driving cars and vans at Fort Benning and Fort Hood, aiming to replace part of the Pentagon's 150,000-vehicle non-tactical fleet
Five autonomous vehicles from the Army–Defense Innovation Unit ROADS prize challenge arrived at Fort Benning Nov. 4 to test self-driving passenger shuttles on post, part of a push to replace some of the department's non-tactical vehicles, the Army and Task & Purpose report.
- Fort Benning will run six vehicles, four electric and two hybrid, from Applied Intuition, Forterra/May Mobility and Perrone Robotics.
- Human drivers first map approved paved routes for two to three weeks; phased demonstrations run through late 2026, with safety drivers before any driverless runs.
- ROADS, launched in May, offers up to $30 million in prizes; the department runs more than 150,000 non-tactical vehicles.
- Army chief of staff CTO Alex Miller told Task & Purpose the goal is to free soldiers from "driving water and MREs around post."
Sources: U.S. Army · Task & Purpose3. Ukrainian units have ordered more than 1.5 million drones worth over $2 billion through the DOT-Chain Defence online marketplace, the Defense Ministry says
Since DOT-Chain Defence opened in July 2025, Ukrainian combat units have bought more than 1.5 million drones worth over $2 billion from a catalog of more than 1,800 items from 300 Ukrainian makers, the Defense Ministry said, as reported by Euromaidan Press.
- Top sellers: fiber-optic and radio FPV drones, interceptor drones, and heavy bomber and fixed-wing drones, then ground robots, EW systems and drone munitions.
- In-stock items reach units in about eight days on average; pre-orders take about a month and a half.
- Units choose and order the gear themselves with state funds, pushing weapon choice down to the users.
Sources: Euromaidan Press4. The Royal Navy orders Saab Sea Giraffe 1X radars for Kraken K3 Scout drone boats in a £15 million deal, giving its uncrewed surface vessels a counter-drone air picture
The Royal Navy has awarded Saab a £15 million contract for several Sea Giraffe 1X radars to be integrated on Kraken Technology Group's K3 Scout uncrewed surface vessel for maritime surveillance and counter-drone early warning, Unmanned Airspace reports.
- The pairing was shown at the commissioning of the Royal Navy's first Autonomous Squadron, part of its Hybrid Fleet.
- It falls under Project BEEHIVE, the Navy's payload-integration effort for uncrewed surface vessels.
- Capt. Adam Ballard, deputy commander of the Surface Flotilla: it will give an air picture for early detection of hostile air tracks "for subsequent engagement."
Sources: Unmanned Airspace5. U.S. Africa Command will test an autonomous Cessna Caravan air ambulance in Morocco, flying a full casualty-evacuation mission with an AI copilot
AFRICOM is set to demonstrate autonomous casualty evacuation in Morocco with a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan flown by Merlin Labs' AI "copilot," under its Autonomous CASEVAC Industry Technology Challenge, TWZ's Joseph Trevithick reports.
- The demo covers the full mission: tasking, flight planning, autonomous departure, flight to an austere casualty collection site and the return.
- It is scheduled for early fiscal 2027, which began Oct. 1.
- AFRICOM awarded a small $500,000 contract for the demonstration.
- TWZ notes autonomous CASEVAC could matter for dispersed island operations in the Pacific too.
Sources: TWZ6. Ukraine's SBU says its drone pilots hit the Russian Baltic Fleet missile ship Naro-Fominsk during the overnight drone attack on the Ust-Luga port
The Security Service of Ukraine said its drone pilots struck the Buyan-M-class small missile ship Naro-Fominsk, a Kalibr and Oniks carrier commissioned in 2022, on the night of Nov. 10–11 during the operation against oil infrastructure at Ust-Luga, Ukrainska Pravda reports.
- The SBU said the strike on the ship was planned in advance.
- It said it is still verifying reports that Russian combat helicopters were destroyed during the overnight operation.
- No independent damage assessment has been published.
Sources: Ukrainska Pravda7. China's GJ-11 stealth combat drone enters PLA Air Force service at the "system level" after its first live precision-guided bomb drop
The PLA Air Force has disclosed that the Hongdu GJ-11 uncrewed combat air vehicle conducted its first live precision-guided munition drop as the aircraft enters service at the "system level," Aviation Week's Chen Chuanren reports.
- What's new: the PLAAF now describes the GJ-11 as entering service, not just in testing.
- Earlier state TV footage showed the drone teamed with J-20 and J-16 fighters and its internal weapons bays.
Sources: Aviation Week8. CSET's "The PLA's Push for Military Robotics" analyzes 2,000+ Chinese military robotics solicitations, from robot dogs to undersea demolition and satellite capture
A new CSET issue brief by Sam Bresnick, "The PLA's Push for Military Robotics," analyzes more than 2,000 open-source People's Liberation Army robotics requests for proposal published from October 2022 to December 2025 across the ground, maritime and space domains.
- Quadrupeds (from firms such as Unitree and DEEP Robotics) far outnumber humanoids, though humanoid and exoskeleton requests rose in 2025.
- Most requests are for human-controlled systems, but many seek SLAM, autonomous path planning and GPS-denied navigation.
- Eye-catching asks include laser ordnance disposal, attaching explosives to undersea targets and capturing satellites on orbit.
- Mostly small contracts suggest R&D and learning rather than mass fielding, with commercial firms feeding in through military-civil fusion.
Sources: CSET9. India's Army begins field trials of jet-powered kamikaze drones from 11 Indian firms, its first buy of high-speed one-way attack drones with 540 units planned
The Indian Army is starting field trials at Pokhran, Rajasthan, of indigenous jet-powered kamikaze drones from 11 shortlisted companies in a program estimated at Rs 2,000 crore, Chakra News reports.
- The Army plans 540 units under Fast Track Procurement, its first program for high-speed kamikaze attack drones.
- About 60 firms answered the July RFI; 18 bid and 11 qualified, including Bharat Forge with VEDA Aeronautics, Adani Defence, Tonbo and Munitions India.
- The drones should fly around 450 km/h, versus 150–200 km/h for propeller loitering munitions.
- Vendors must show a full package, including transport vehicles and mission-planning vehicles.
Sources: Chakra News10. Helsing launches Clarity, a military AI platform of hundreds of AI agents pitched as a sovereign European alternative to Palantir
German defense tech firm Helsing on Nov. 11 unveiled Clarity, which uses hundreds of specialized AI agents to analyze satellite imagery, drone video, signals and reports in parallel and prepare targeting information, the Kyiv Independent's Jakub Laichter reports.
- Human operators approve every target and handover to weapons, Helsing said.
- It promises militaries control of their data, models and operations, running on customer-owned infrastructure.
- NATO already uses Palantir's Maven Smart System; Ukraine's Avengers Labs holds more than 5 million annotated battlefield frames.
Sources: Kyiv Independent11. Zaluzhnyi says drones have brought naval warfare its biggest change since the torpedo, pitching Ukraine's "hybrid mosquito fleet" to allies
Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine's ambassador to the UK and former commander-in-chief, told the Atlantic Future Forum aboard HMS Prince of Wales in Oslo that ship tonnage and gun caliber no longer define sea power, Euromaidan Press reports.
- He said Ukrainian uncrewed boats destroyed at least a third of Russia's pre-war Black Sea Fleet and pushed it back to Novorossiysk.
- Ukraine's "hybrid mosquito fleet" concept could help allies defend coastal waters, he said.
- Of 131 Russian hits on civilian ships, he said 55 were on NATO-flagged vessels.
Sources: Euromaidan Press12. A PLA brigade makes counter-drone training mandatory after a thermal-camera drone spotted troops hidden under jungle cover in an exercise
A brigade of the PLA's 75th Group Army introduced compulsory counter-drone training after a thermal-imaging drone found soldiers under jungle vegetation and cued artillery in an exercise, Unmanned Airspace reports, citing China Military Online.
- The brigade added new manuals, tactical drills and dedicated counter-drone training facilities.
- Training covers detecting and disrupting drones, using specialized equipment and coordinated infantry responses.
- Former U.S. Army attaché Dennis Blasko told the South China Morning Post unit-level experiments risk duplication without standard procedures.
Sources: Unmanned Airspace13. Drones hit Russia's largest oil refinery in Omsk, about 2,500 km from Ukraine, for the third time since summer
Drones attacked Gazprom Neft's Omsk refinery, Russia's largest, on the evening of Nov. 11, with explosions continuing for more than two hours, Ukrainska Pravda reports, citing The Moscow Times and local residents.
- The refinery sits about 2,500 km from Ukraine's border.
- Mobile internet was restricted and Omsk airport halted flights, the governor's spokesperson said.
- Drones previously hit the refinery on July 6 and Oct. 8.
Sources: Ukrainska Pravda14. The Air Force seeks gear to run DroneShield counter-drone kits at Joint Base San Antonio
The 502nd Contracting Squadron posted a brand-name-only request for quotes on Nov. 10 for equipment to operate DroneShield Immediate Response Kits at Joint Base San Antonio, with offers due Nov. 17, The Defence Blog's Colton Jones reports.
- Each kit pairs a DroneGun Mk4 rifle-style jammer with an RfPatrol Mk2 body-worn detector.
- The buy is set aside for small businesses, so resellers rather than DroneShield are expected to bid.
- The notice does not list quantities or which units will use the kits.
Sources: The Defence Blog15. Ukrainian missile and drone maker Fire Point asks for Starshield coverage 200–300 km beyond Ukraine's borders to hunt ballistic missile launchers
Fire Point CEO Iryna Terekh told Breaking Defense's Jonas Olsson that extending Starshield licenses 200 to 300 km into Russia "could dramatically impact" how Ukraine counters ballistic missile attacks, ahead of talks on renewing Kyiv's contract.
- Coverage is now limited to Ukrainian territory, including occupied areas, Terekh said.
- Most ballistic launchers fire from the short range just across the border, she said.
- Ukraine's Starshield contract expires in mid-2027, a senior official said.
Sources: Breaking Defense16. UK minister Luke Pollard drives STARK's missile-armed Vanta 12 drone boat in Oslo during a Joint Expeditionary Force meeting
British defence readiness minister Luke Pollard took the controls of STARK's 12-meter Vanta 12 uncrewed boat, which can carry MBDA's Sea Venom anti-ship missile, during a demonstration in Oslo this week, The Defence Blog's Emily Ryan Miller reports.
- The boat was built in Devon and developed in Plymouth; it carries up to 2 tonnes of payload and a radar for air and surface targets.
- It is pitched for shadowing suspect tankers and guarding undersea cables in the Baltic, Channel and North Sea.
- No navy order or price has been announced.
Sources: The Defence Blog17. Hegseth issues a corrected counter-drone memo ordering commanders to log any delay or denial in using counter-drone tools as a "risk of inaction" and report it to JIATF-401
A five-page "corrected copy" of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth's Nov. 5 counter-drone memorandum, viewed by DefenseScoop's Brandi Vincent, lays out policies to cut the department's lengthy approval process for buying and fielding weapons that take down unauthorized drones.
- "Protection against the threat of drones will not be delayed by self-imposed restrictions," Hegseth wrote, calling small unmanned systems "the defining threat of our time."
- Delays or denials of requests to use counter-drone capabilities are to be recorded as a "risk of inaction" and reported to Joint Interagency Task Force 401.
- The correction removes language saying JIATF-401 is part of the unmanned systems DRPM and drops a planned Deputy General Counsel for DRPM programs; legal reviews now go through JIATF-401's legal advisor.
- The memo updates late-September guidance as agencies respond to a surge of drone incursions over U.S. bases.
Sources: DefenseScoop18. JIATF-401 hires DroneSec to supply intelligence on adversary drones, from emerging technology to procurement networks and tactics
The Department of War, through Joint Interagency Task Force 401, has awarded DroneSec a contract to provide intelligence products and threat analysis on adversary unmanned systems, the Army announced Nov. 10.
- The work covers emerging drone technologies, procurement networks, and the tactics used to build and employ weaponized drones.
- JIATF-401 will also draw on DroneSec's open-source intelligence to shape counter-drone capability development and planning.
- Director Brig. Gen. Matt Ross: the job requires "understanding how unmanned systems are developed" and making sure warfighters can defeat them.
- The contract value was not disclosed.
Sources: U.S. Army19. Germany's armed forces stop using Chinese-made drones, even for training and target practice, and will replace them with German or European models
Germany's Defense Ministry said Nov. 11 that Chinese-made drones will no longer be used for target or training purposes and that existing systems will be replaced by domestic or European products, citing military, data and IT security.
- Der Spiegel first reported the order, citing fears the drones could send data on exercises, bases or weapons to Chinese intelligence.
- Under a 2024 drone strategy, local commanders could buy off-the-shelf models from a "white list" that included DJI drones, with no central record of purchases.
- Insiders estimate units bought several thousand such drones, Anadolu reports; the ministry declined to give a number.
- The ministry says it is not a blanket ban by country but the result of a risk assessment.
20. Zelensky says Ukraine and its partners are working on drone escorts to protect ships in the Black Sea from Russian attacks
Speaking alongside Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Nov. 11, President Volodymyr Zelensky said ships carrying Ukraine's agricultural exports will need escorts and that Kyiv is working with partners on projects using different types of drones, The New Voice of Ukraine reports.
- Zelensky said Russia is trying to destroy ships "regardless of which country they belong to" with drones, including Iranian-made ones, and missiles.
- He did not say which drones or partners are involved.
- Denmark announced a DKK 4.8 billion (€643 million) military aid package for Ukraine on Nov. 10.
Sources: The New Voice of Ukraine21. The Army wants palletized short-range air defenses that can ride on light vehicles or robots and stop drone swarms in service by the end of 2029
Newly released industry-day slides for the Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense Increment 4 program set a first-unit-equipped goal of October–December 2029, with initial operational capability in fiscal 2030, TWZ's Joseph Trevithick reports.
- The system must defeat everything from small quadcopters to Shahed-type one-way attack drones, singly or in swarms, plus helicopters and attack aircraft.
- It comes as a vehicle-agnostic pallet for JLTVs, Infantry Squad Vehicles or uncrewed ground vehicles, and can be offloaded for static defense.
- The Army wants it to run for 72 hours on its own and also have a secondary direct-fire capability against ground targets.
Sources: TWZ22. Stray drones trigger red air alerts across Lithuania and warnings in Latvia and Estonia; NATO jets scramble but do not fire
Overnight into Nov. 11, at least one drone entered Lithuania from Belarus, briefly crossed into Poland, then flew north across the country into Latvia, prompting yellow and red alerts and NATO fighter scrambles, Lithuanian officials told LRT.
- Fighter jets detected the drone but did not shoot it down, possibly because of poor weather or populated areas below, crisis center chief Vilmantas Vitkauskas said.
- Defense Minister Robertas Kaunas said the drones were most likely Ukrainian, aimed at Russia's Ust-Luga port and other targets, and drifted off course.
- Vilnius and Kaunas airports restricted operations; Latvia activated drone interceptors, air defense units and NATO jets.
- Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius said four drones disrupted the region's airspace.
Sources: LRT · Daily Baltic23. Ukraine's TENCORE scales up an AI autonomy kit that lets ground robots keep driving their missions after losing all communications and navigation
TENCORE CEO Maksym Vasylichenko told Militarnyi at the European Defence Innovation Forum in the Netherlands that the company has 210 AI KIT modules scheduled for delivery after more than 20 went to combat units.
- The module lets a UGV detect loss of signal and positioning and continue its pre-programmed mission under full jamming.
- Its first combat mission came this summer; an Unmanned Systems Regiment commander credits it with saving more than 30% of assets, the CEO says.
- Engineers are now training it to classify objects and flag obstacles, including possible mines.
Sources: Militarnyi24. Satellite images show Russia building at least 82 garages and shelters for Geran attack drones at Hvardiiske airbase in occupied Crimea
Imagery published by the Strategic Aviation monitoring resource shows construction of at least 82 garages since early autumn at the Hvardiiske drone hub, 10 of them reinforced with earthen berms, Militarnyi reports.
- Plans call for six to eight more garages at two new storage sites, plus a fabric drone-assembly structure near a large hangar.
- Jet-powered Gerans are launched from modified pickup trucks at the airfield.
- The buildup follows Ukrainian strikes on drone storage there in July and August; Russia also built a Geran-5 launch hub near Millerovo in October.
Sources: Militarnyi25. Ukraine's former PM argues drone forces are winning a new contest: time
Oleksiy Honcharuk, who advised the first commander of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, argues in War on the Rocks that the war's decisive dimension is how fast each side adapts, which he calls the "Time Domain."
- A branch with about 2.5 percent of Ukraine's military personnel has accounted for roughly a third of Russian losses this past year, he writes.
- He describes a "Combat Hub" model that fuses fighting, analysis, research and development, and production in one unit.
- He urges NATO to buy adaptation cycles, not just systems.
Sources: War on the Rocks
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How AUTOWAR25 ranks
Every edition, we scan official channels, news, industry, research, and social posts for the 25 most important developments in autonomous warfare: drones, counter-drone systems, uncrewed vessels and vehicles, and military AI.
Stories rank by source first:
- Official means governments, militaries, and their leaders speaking on the record.
- Premium/Press means established news outlets.
- Industry/Research means companies, think tanks, and published research.
- Social means notable posts from analysts, reporters, and practitioners.
Within each group, newer stories rank higher and engagement breaks ties. A company press release stays out of the top 10 until someone else reports on it. Ongoing marks a developing story with new information. Repeat stories keep a First reported date and edition instead of a separate label. Claims from warring parties are labeled as claims, and anything we couldn't independently confirm is marked unverified.
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