Ukraine’s AI-powered ‘mother drone’ sees first combat use, minister says

Ukraine has deployed a new artificial intelligence-powered "mother drone" for the first time, marking a major step in the country's expanding use of autonomous battlefield technology, Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov announced on May 29.

The drone system, developed by Ukraine's defense tech cluster Brave1, can deliver two AI-guided FPV (first-person view) strike drones up to 300 kilometers (186 miles) behind enemy lines, according to Fedorov. Once released, the smaller drones can autonomously locate and hit high-value targets, including aircraft, air defense systems, and critical infrastructure — all without using GPS.

"The system uses visual-inertial navigation with cameras and LiDAR to guide the drones, while AI independently identifies and selects targets," Fedorov said.

The system, called SmartPilot, allows the carrier drone to return and be reused for missions within a 100-kilometer range. Each operation costs around $10,000 — hundreds of times cheaper than a conventional missile strike, Fedorov said.

The development comes as Ukraine continues to ramp up domestic drone production. On April 7, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the country would scale up production of unmanned systems "to the maximum," including long-range, ground-based, and fiber-optic drones, which are resistant to electronic warfare.

Ukraine has leaned heavily on technological innovation to offset its disadvantages in manpower and firepower since Russia's full-scale invasion began in 2022. The use of drones, aerial, naval, and ground-based, has become a central feature of both sides' strategies in the war.

Fedorov said Ukraine will continue investing in Ukrainian systems that "change the rules of the game in technological warfare."