Robot wars - what an operation in Ukraine tells us about the battlefield of the near future

Similarly, a UFORCE representative would not comment on the robotic battle described in Zelensky's video, but said UFORCE's air, land and sea drones are currently being used in combat operations."I can't go into specifics about the operation or how UFORCE was involved, but we've conducted more than 150,000 successful combat missions since the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022," said Rhiannon Padley, the firm's UK director of strategic partnerships.What is clear though is that robotic weapon systems are big business.The company has expanded rapidly and recently achieved "unicorn" status - a valuation of more than $1bn (£730m).United24Ukraine-made drones and weaponry were on display in the president's videoShe added that the phenomenon of robots fighting robots was likely to become more common, with unmanned systems even outnumbering human soldiers. Russia is also deploying robots designed to deliver explosives into Ukrainian positions, and analysts say advances in this technology are likely to reshape how future wars are fought. "I really consider Ukraine to be a major teacher in the future of national defence and armaments," said Melanie Sisson, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "It's an impressive case study in how necessity drives invention."