Inside the IDF push to deploy smarter, faster robots across the frontlines

Three years into its longest and most complex war, the IDF is accelerating the deployment of unmanned ground robots across multiple fronts as battlefield threats intensify. As troops encounter more areas saturated with improvised explosive devices and explosive drones, units are requesting faster, more autonomous platforms capable of operating in dense urban terrain, under fire.

“Every robotic system established during the war starts here,” said Maj. A, who oversees the development hub responsible for turning urgent operational needs into fielded systems. “We understand the look and feel of the system before going to the battlefield.”

Requests from the field shift constantly as units encounter new threats.

“Days are intense, but we need to deploy as fast as we can,” he said. “We need to save lives. Time to market is important so we are constantly thinking, developing, testing and deploying for the troops.”

When a request arrives, engineers gather to find a solution – manufacturing parts, procuring components or bringing in outside companies. They then run full safety and usability tests to ensure troops can operate the systems under pressure.

“Some work fine in a civilian environment but don’t work on the battlefield,” Maj. A said, explaining that while some defense-tech companies have been able to prove themselves, others have not been able to make the switch from fully civilian to a dual-use or defense platform.

Occasionally, units arrive with their own ideas. “One unit came to us with a problem and a solution. It doesn’t happen a lot,” he said. “They told us, ‘I know it works, now just integrate it.’”

“We have soldiers who are 18 – they know robots,” he said. “They grew up with them, so when they meet these robots for the first time they know how to use them. Many reservists can learn how to use them too. AI and autonomy help them in complicated and complex situations to successfully carry out the mission.”

The IDF fields a growing array of unmanned platforms, many of which have been adapted repeatedly during the past three years of war-from Gaza, Lebanon and, according to some reports, even far from Israel’s borders.

The D9 Panda, a fully robotic and autonomous bulldozer, has been operational since 2022 and heavily used throughout the past three years of fighting. Defense & Tech understands that it was recently modified to allow operators to control it from tens of kilometers away, instead of the previous 3-5 km.

The Iron Beast- a modified M113 armored personnel carrier- has become one of the most requested platforms.

Before the war that broke out on October 7, thousands of these antiquated Vietnam-era platforms were set to be sold for scrap, but the military understood that the small, slow, and vulnerable platforms could be upgraded and used to perform logistical support missions for frontlines forces.

“We didn’t know what to do with them,” Maj. A said. “Now we took the garbage and made them gold.”

One of the biggest challenges, the commander said, was the surge in demand for the Iron Beast as troops faced widespread IED threats

“Troops were out in the open,” he said. “They needed protection. Instead of sending soldiers, they are sending robotic platforms. They don’t have mothers opening doors to hear that their son was killed.”

The army has several hundred in service and thousands still waiting to be upgraded to autonomous platforms – a process that takes several weeks to complete. Yet scaling production remains a constant struggle. “We face this issue every day,” Maj. A said. “The time to market is critical.”

The Ronnie RT‑20 (MTGR), a small robot used for observation and explosive‑ordnance disposal, has been deployed widely, though several have been destroyed by hostile fire.

A number of offensive robotic platforms produced by Roboteam are also in use by battalions, alongside systems designed to detect and destroy threats – from RF and electro‑optical sensors to improvised solutions involving soccer and fishing nets.

According to the company, Rooster is a robotic hybrid drone with a “combination of ground robot and airborne drone capabilities” that can transition between flying in the air and rolling on the ground. The platform has up to 15 minutes of flying time, 40 minutes of rolling time, and an average working time of up to 90 minutes.

These platforms join other IDF ground robots already known to be in service. Together, they form the backbone of a rapidly expanding robotic ground corps.

“These are the necessities of our reality,” Maj. A said.

As the IDF expands its ground robotics fleet, defense officials and industry engineers are increasingly focused on multi‑robot teaming, the ability for several unmanned platforms to operate together, share data and divide tasks.

Golan Malca, VP Sales and Business Development at the Israeli defense-tech company TSG, says that the company is working closely with the IDF, MAFAT as well as the three large Israeli defense companies- IAI, Elbit and Rafael- to provide mature components and systems to support modern battlefield operations.

“The modern battlefield contains a lot of robotic platforms,” Malca said. “We provide the brain to help complete the mission. It detects the threats and provides different priorities to different threats that the robot has to handle.”

“The modern battlefield is leading us to use robots for different types of scenarios, and the swarm situation is the next generation that will be relevant for the modern battlefield,” he said. “There is a growing trend of using robotic platforms instead of soldiers to complete the mission and even provide Battlefield Damage Assessment (BDA) reports.

Ground robotic swarms are expected to support missions such as route clearance, tunnel detection, perimeter defense, logistics resupply and close‑range reconnaissance.

The IDF has already tested coordinated operations between small EOD robots, unmanned bulldozers and sensor‑laden platforms, allowing them to map areas, identify threats and relay information to troops before they enter.

The concept mirrors the IDF’s growing use of aerial drone swarms, but adapted for the slower, more complex terrain of urban combat. Engineers say the combination of autonomy, AI‑assisted navigation and human oversight will allow multiple robots to operate in areas too dangerous for soldiers.

Despite increasing autonomy, Maj. A emphasized that the IDF maintains strict human control. “We always have a human operator in the loop, especially when pulling the trigger,” he said.

The conference was led by the IDF’s Technology and Logistics Directorate (ATAL), the Israeli Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Defense Research and Development (MAFAT) and the Israel Innovation Institute. Senior officials from MAFAT and the IDF took part, including MAFAT head  Brig.-Gen. Dr.Danny Gold, Financial Advisor to the Chief of Staff and head of the Budget Department Brig.-Gen. Nir Weingold and others.

The Innotal program is in the midst of its second cohort of civilian projects, developed in cooperation with the IDF, quickly and able to handle the ongoing operational challenges faced by troops. Hundreds of candidates; 11 projects were chosen to move forward with the program. The projects-which handled issues in the field of medicine, robotics, energy, and others – included one that originated in Taiwan. The emphasis of this cohort was on AI development that would make the scaling of processes within the military more effective in addressing challenges in the field.