China announces AI boost to radar as drone swarms confound detectors in Iran war

Technology allows radar to observe moving targets from multiple angles, gain dynamic information – and even identify potential decoy drones3-MIN READ3-MIN15 ListenPublished: 5:01pm, 13 Mar 2026Updated: 6:45pm, 13 Mar 2026China is using AI to help its radars better detect low-altitude drones, according to a top Chinese military scientist who said drone swarm tactics – as used in the US’ ongoing attack on Iran – were an emerging challenge for radar systems.Xu Jin, a leading air-defence radar expert and a member of China’s top political advisory body, the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, revealed the AI initiative in an interview with the China-morning-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="12558" data-entity-type="organization">South China Morning Post on Wednesday.In tests, the Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithm showed an “unexpected boost” to the radar’s target detection capabilities, especially against large numbers of low-altitude drones, Xu said on the sidelines of Beijing’s “two sessions” annual legislative and political advisory meetings.01:22Oil tankers set ablaze by Iranian drones as shipping vessels targeted in Middle East warOil tankers set ablaze by Iranian drones as shipping vessels targeted in Middle East warXu serves as chief engineer for early warning and detection at the 38th Research Institute of the state-owned China-electronics-technology-group-corporation" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="43750" data-entity-type="organization">China Electronics Technology Group Corporation. He has worked for years on the research and development of air-defence radar systems and led the development of multiple types of air-defence radars.The institute is a major research and development body supporting China’s air-defence radar technology, and developed the country’s first low-altitude early warning and detection radar.“When inexpensive suicide drones are deployed, their numbers are usually quite large, making them difficult to distinguish and completely detect,” Xu said.“Some of them may also have the ability to coordinate and divide tasks. This puts enormous processing pressure on traditional radar detection.”He was referring to the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran, which began at the end of last month and has seen both sides deploy large numbers of low-cost suicide drones in attacks.