The Army plans to choose next spring one winner out of four vendors competing to build the base platform for its Robotic Combat Vehicle (RCV). The Army selected McQ, Textron Systems, General Dynamics Land Systems, and Oshkosh Defense a year ago to design and build prototypes for the system. Each vendor delivered two prototypes in August, and all are now at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.
The chosen vendor will deliver eight prototypes for the next phase. The Army has settled on the Armored Multipurpose Vehicle (AMPV) as the designated control vehicle for the robots, with first fielding expected in fiscal 2028. While the RCV base platform prototyping and control vehicle effort are moving smoothly, developing off-road autonomy software is proving challenging.
Three companies – Forterra, Kodiak Robotics, and Overland AI – are working directly with the Army on autonomy capability. Challenges include building algorithms that can detect a wide range of obstacles. Evaluations in June were not truly off-road, showing the need for further development.
Overall, robots have provided benefits in reconnaissance and security roles, but tradeoffs with power, range, decision-making abilities, and control are still being worked through. Ethical considerations, bandwidth limitations, and control impact how far robots can go and their ability to make decisions.
