A German and a Ukrainian defence company have tested an armed ground robot for use by Ukrainian forces, with the first systems due to be integrated and delivered by the end of 2026.
The cooperation agreement was signed in early October during German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's state visit to Kyiv, in the presence of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Before the end of 2026, the first robotic vehicles fitted with the new weapons modules are expected to be ready for deployment and delivered in line with the needs of Ukraine's armed forces.
The stakes are plain: Ukraine has been relying on unmanned ground vehicles for supply runs, casualty evacuation, and reconnaissance for years, and adding remotely operated fire support means fewer soldiers in the direct line of fire. It also means one more step toward a battlefield where machines carry the risk and humans sit further back.
How the GEREON system works
It's known as GEREON. Built by ARX Robotics, the unmanned vehicle provides mobility and power and can carry out reconnaissance using cameras and sensors.
It can be fitted with the SABER weapons module, built by Ukrainian company ROBONEERS, which is mounted on top and provides remotely operated fire support for attack and defence capabilities. The companies say this allows soldiers to operate the system from a safer distance.
Unarmed versions of GEREON are already being used in Ukraine. They can transport supplies, evacuate wounded personnel, support electronic warfare, carry out reconnaissance and counter drones. The platform can also be adapted for combat missions.
The companies say the aim is to create one flexible robotic system that can be quickly adapted for different frontline missions. The SABER weapons module is also customisable, allowing soldiers to fit different weapons depending on the mission, from rifles to grenade launchers.
ARX says GEREON is the largest fleet of Western-built unmanned ground vehicles currently being used in Ukraine. That scale matters because a single platform doing reconnaissance, logistics, evacuation, and now fire support cuts training time and spare parts.
Maximilian Wied, CFO and co-founder of ARX Robotics, said: "Modern land forces need combat platforms that can be quickly adapted to different missions, integrate new technologies and work seamlessly with existing systems."
ROBONEERS says its robotic systems have already been used in more than 15,000 frontline missions since 2014. That number is the company's own figure, and it hasn't been independently verified, but it frames how long Ukrainian firms have been building combat robots.
The two companies are already cooperating in other areas. They have set up a joint venture to expand production of another unmanned ground vehicle, the Rys Pro, in Germany and Ukraine. The companies are targeting production of more than 1,000 units in its first year.
The sensor suite on the GEREON platform is designed for day and night operations, with thermal imaging and optical cameras feeding a remote operator's display. That operator can be positioned in a bunker or command post kilometres away, which is the practical difference between a robot that scouts and one that fights.
Germany's wider bet on defence AI
Artificial intelligence is also a focus for German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius, who is visiting defence technology company Helsing at its headquarters in Munich.
The visit will focus on the company's latest products and AI capabilities, alongside meetings with management, employees and the works council. Helsing was founded in 2021 and has grown rapidly into one of Europe's most prominent defence technology companies.
It develops artificial intelligence and software for military systems, including technology designed to add AI capabilities to existing platforms such as tanks, submarines and fighter jets.
Helsing's pitch is to make existing hardware smarter rather than replace it. That approach appeals to defence ministries facing tight budgets and long procurement timelines, since software upgrades can move faster than new vehicle programmes.
The company has also drawn attention for its focus on real-time battlefield data processing, which matters when decisions must be made in seconds rather than minutes. For a country like Germany, which is rebuilding its defence industrial base after decades of underinvestment, partnerships with Ukrainian firms offer combat-tested feedback loops that domestic testing ranges cannot replicate.
What comes next
The GEREON deal is small in unit terms and large in signal. A European defence firm and a Ukrainian firm are building weapons-carrying robots together, on a schedule measured in weeks rather than years, and Germany's defence minister is touring an AI company in the same news cycle. It's not clear the production target of 1,000 Rys Pro units in the first year will hold, given supply chains and wartime demand, but the direction is set: more robots, more AI, fewer humans in the direct line of fire.
The broader pattern is worth noting. Ukraine has become a live test range for unmanned systems, from cheap FPV drones to ground robots, because necessity compresses the usual years-long procurement cycle. Western firms that want to stay relevant in land warfare have to adapt to that pace, and ARX Robotics is one of them. Whether the GEREON platform proves durable under sustained fire is a question that only the front line can answer.
There is also the question of control. Remotely operated fire support still requires a human operator, but the distance between decision and consequence keeps growing. That distance is where both the tactical benefit and the ethical risk live, and policymakers in Berlin and Kyiv will have to manage it as these systems scale.
For readers following the wider robotics market, the same logic shows up outside defence. Logistics firms and manufacturers are pushing ground robots into warehouses and factories for the same reason: repeatable, dangerous, or tedious tasks move to machines, and humans move to oversight. The hardware is converging even if the rules around it are not.
The GEREON tests this autumn will tell us whether the platform can survive real combat conditions, and the answer will shape how quickly other Western armies adopt armed ground robots of their own.
For more on this story, see Euronews coverage of the GEREON test.
More robotics coverage on our robotics and drones desk.