Forterra, a US company that builds autonomous vehicles, says more than 100 of its self-driving ATVs have been operating in Ukraine for the past nine months. It’s the largest deployment of autonomous ground vehicles in combat by any US defense tech company.
The vehicles are based on Polaris ATVs, modified with Forterra’s sensor and compute stack. They’re gas-powered and can carry 750 kilograms. That’s a big step up from Ukraine’s homegrown battery-powered UGVs, which max out at around 250 kilos.
A Ukrainian soldier working with the vehicles didn’t hold back. “It’s fucking fantastic, and we are dying to get more,” he told TechCrunch. The vehicles haul supplies, move munitions, and evacuate wounded soldiers. So far they’ve completed over 1,100 missions, driven more than 2,500 miles, and carried nearly 780,000 pounds of cargo. Fifty-two casualty evacuations.
But the Ukrainians weren’t sold at first. The early versions felt too tailored to the US Army’s high-end specs. What turned things around? Adding a Starlink antenna. That made them work in real battlefield conditions.
There are limits though. Soldiers mostly teleoperate the vehicles in combat zones. They’re too valuable to lose, and the autonomy just isn’t ready for everything. The vehicles can navigate rough terrain on their own, but they can’t yet spot enemy threats and react appropriately in real time.
Forterra’s been at this for 20 years. They’re now trying to merge classical robotics with newer generative AI to help the vehicles handle unexpected situations. Think navigating minefields or operating weapons.
One big ask from the Ukrainians: make them cheaper. Attrition is part of the battlefield. They’ve already lost some vehicles. They need more, and that means lower cost per unit.
Forterra has raised over $500 million in VC funding and is now competing for major national security contracts. The US military is convinced. “Ground autonomy is achievable now and we’ve seen it,” said Sergeant Major Corey Wilkens, who leads a US Army program in this space.
