BRINGING THE SWARM TO LIFE: ROLES, MISSIONS, AND CAMPAIGNS FOR THE REPLICATOR INITIATIVE

Published on February 13, 2024

7942898

Can you kill a bear with a thousand paper cuts or slay a dragon with an armada of toy boats? Many a wargame I have participated in suggests you can. Beyond rolling dice and questioning salvo exchange models, the challenge is understanding the types of battles and larger campaigns where swarms make a difference.

From debates about the viability of Project Replicator to the Ukrainian calls to build a million first person view drones in 2024, there is a rising tide of interest in low-cost, attritable battlefield effects. The swarm is now a “new” theory of victory. Yet, what roles and missions will these swarms make possible? Tactical adaption and the unforgiving feedback loop of the battlefield are helping Ukraine answer these questions. What is missing in the Replicator discussion in U.S. national security community is a tangible set of scenarios that support strategic analysis.

Read Full Article

Other news

Ethical constraints the biggest challenge for AI in defence – survey

February 13, 2024
Defence industry concerns over AI ‘hallucinations’ are not as pressing as the technology’s ethical and legal constraints.Ethical and legal constraints will be the biggest challenge for the implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) in defence over the next five years, industry experts believe.An ongoing survey by GlobalData has found that, when asked what the biggest challenge for AI in defenc

Franchetti confident prototypes will usher in manned-unmanned fleet

February 14, 2024
SAN DIEGO — The chief of naval operations is bullish on the Navy’s ability to operate a manned-unmanned fleet within the next decade or so, thanks to the prototyping and learning happening today.“The promise of unmanned is actually here,” as the Navy today experiments with unmanned systems in U.S. 5th Fleet in the Middle East, U.S. 4th Fleet in Central and South America, and U.S. 7th Fleet in the