‘Like the movies’: How Ukraine’s ground robots are changing rules of war

What Happened

In Ukraine, ground robots like the Murakha—produced by Robotic Complexes in Ternopil—are being used for frontline logistics, rescue, and combat missions. An officer with the call sign Maska recounted how his team used one Murakha to rescue another stuck in a trench near the northeastern front, avoiding risking human lives. In April, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that two ground robots captured a Russian position in the Kharkiv region: one blew open a bunker entrance, the second blocked it, leading two Russian soldiers to surrender. The Murakha robots, which can carry hundreds of kilograms of supplies or wounded soldiers in an armored module, move at up to 12 km/h on tank-like tracks and use electric engines, GPS, Starlink, and frequency-hopping algorithms to avoid detection and jamming.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The deployment of ground robots like Murakha signals a shift in modern warfare—replacing human soldiers on the front line with machines to reduce casualties, mitigate Ukraine's conscription crisis, and counter pervasive Russian drone surveillance. The April operation marks the first recorded instance of ground robots capturing an enemy position. Ukraine's bottom-up, startup-driven innovation contrasts with Russia's slower, centralized approach, potentially giving Ukraine an asymmetric advantage in the conflict.

Watch For

Increased integration of ground robots with aerial drones in combat operations, particularly around Pokrovsk and Kharkiv. Monitor further official endorsements or funding for ground robotics from the Zelenskyy administration, and any Russian countermeasures—such as electronic warfare or their own unmanned ground vehicle deployments.