US sends 33K smart 'strike kits' to Ukraine for deadlier drones
The United States has awarded a $50 million contract to defense software firm Auterion for the supply of 33,000 AI-powered “strike kits” to Ukraine. These kits are designed to enhance the capabilities of Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and bolster their effectiveness on the front lines, reflecting the increasingly drone-centric nature of the conflict.
The “strike kits” feature a circuit board built around Auterion’s Skynode S system, which incorporates custom software to counter electronic jamming and provide a degree of autonomy to drones. Auterion CEO Lorenz Meier explained that the system utilizes a proprietary software-defined radio controller with a rapid, encrypted frequency-hopping link. This advanced communication method offers a significant advantage over traditional analog systems.
Meier elaborated that while many drone systems require constant line-of-sight control, limiting their operational altitude, the Skynode-equipped drones can ascend higher. This allows operators to identify targets from a safer distance before sending the drone on its final approach without continuous operator control for the “last mile.” This capability is crucial, as many Russian jamming systems are range-limited and primarily effective only in the immediate vicinity of the target. By enabling drones to complete their mission autonomously after target lock, the system nullifies such jamming efforts.
Ukrainian forces have already successfully tested approximately 3,000 drones integrated with these circuit boards and software, adding them to readily available commercial hardware. While Ukraine reportedly manufactured around two million drones last year and aims for four million this year, the initial supply of 33,000 advanced kits represents a limited, though significant, augmentation. The kits are designed for straightforward integration into domestically produced Ukrainian drones via standard connection ports. They also enable the use of Auterion’s AI vision systems for advanced targeting and navigation, an area Meier has researched for many years.
Drones have proven highly effective for Ukrainian forces, notably in operations like “Operation Spiderweb,” where over 100 drones were reportedly used in an ambush attack thousands of miles from the front line, allegedly destroying or damaging more than 40 Russian aircraft at five airbases. Meier declined to comment on whether Auterion’s software was involved in these specific attacks.
On the opposing side, Russia has significantly ramped up its drone production after initially underestimating their utility in combat. Russia has secured manufacturing rights for Iran’s Shahed 136 drone, rebranding it as the Geran-2, and enhancing its flight capabilities. Recent footage has shown a Russian drone factory where teenagers are involved in building Geran-2s, which can be launched from modified pickup trucks. Some Russian drones have also been observed equipped with Starlink antennas for command and control. Furthermore, a report by the Russian publication-in-exile The Insider claims that state-backed games, such as the “Berloga” platform, are being used to guide over 600,000 students towards real-world drone development and warfare.
However, Meier believes that certain approaches, such as reliance on first-person view (FPV) drones where an operator wears a helmet for visual control, are becoming obsolete. He argues that the Western military doctrine prioritizes minimizing soldier casualties and reducing their proximity to the front line, a luxury not afforded to forces that rely on large numbers of personnel. Meier anticipates that future mass-drone swarms will overwhelm human operators due to the sheer volume of targets.
“We want to have as much automation as possible,” Meier stated, emphasizing that the goal is to counter all-manual control drone systems with units possessing high levels of automation, if not full autonomy. He highlighted the speed differential, noting that while slow-flying Shahed or ISR drones might be intercepted by human pilots (at speeds comparable to World War Two aircraft), head-on engagements at several hundred miles per hour would be beyond human capabilities.
The cost-effectiveness of these drone operations is striking. A Russian T-90 tank or an American M1A1 unit costs around $4.5 million to manufacture, yet both are highly vulnerable to top-down drone strikes where their armor is thinnest. In contrast, Auterion’s kit costs approximately $1,000 per unit for the circuit board, making drone-based attacks highly cost-effective.
Meier affirmed that NATO allies are recognizing this shift. The UK, Germany, and the Netherlands are significantly investing in drone capabilities, not solely through Auterion’s technology. The future of warfare, he suggests, is moving away from large battalions of expensive hardware and complex logistical supply lines, towards cheaper, more agile drone systems that are less dependent on vulnerable supply chains.
As both sides continue to advance their offensive drone capabilities, they are also developing counter-drone measures. This includes deploying physical barriers like fishing nets over key supply routes, reminiscent of World War Two barrage balloons. This ongoing cycle of innovation and counter-innovation, where each advance necessitates a responsive development from the opposing side, is likened by evolutionary scientists to a “red queen race” – a continuous need to adapt and innovate simply to maintain parity.