Pentagon Creates Autonomous Warfare Command to Expand AI and Drone Capabilities

The command will be led by a four-star officer, Hegseth said. He described the move as a response to the rapidly changing nature of warfare and to the need to make progress on systems such as drones and the use of artificial intelligence.

Hegseth made the announcement at Quantico, Virginia, in a speech titled "State of the Force" delivered before hundreds of junior officers and enlisted personnel. Reuters described the address as peppered with attacks on the media. In the same speech, Hegseth announced other changes, including the creation of an office of religious affairs.

"The pace of war is changing faster than the process to support it," Hegseth said. He added that "cheap compute, superintelligence, and advanced commercial manufacturing have enabled the proliferation of low-cost, high-precision strike."

The new command touches on a long-running tension in U.S. defense planning. The United States has long relied on its vast military budget to field some of the world's most expensive weapons systems, but there is an increasing realization within the Pentagon that this approach is not sustainable. "Today we need both quality and quantity," Hegseth said.

The report was carried by Reuters and circulated on Slashdot.