Overview
- Footage circulated in late January appears to show three Russian soldiers in the Lyman area yielding to a remotely operated ground vehicle while a drone observes overhead.
- Reports identify the system as DevDroid’s Droid TW-7.62 on a NUMO tracked platform, equipped with a remotely operated 7.62mm turret and target-detection capabilities.
- Forbes reports this seems to be the first publicly released video of troops surrendering to a ground combat robot.
- Ukraine has become a leader in UGV production with roughly 99% of systems made domestically and output scaling from hundreds in 2024 to planned tens of thousands through 2026, according to Jamestown-cited figures.
- Ukrainian units employ UGVs for resupply, casualty evacuation, reconnaissance and growing fire-support roles, though operators note vulnerabilities to FPV drones and the increasing use of onboard jammers as a counter.