The General Staff reported on hundreds of innovative projects for the Armed Forces of Ukraine
In the first half of 2026, as part of its innovation efforts, the Armed Forces of Ukraine evaluated nearly 600 projects aimed at developing high-tech weapons and military equipment.
More than 40 of them received government funding. Promising developments include drones, robotic systems, and other modern technologies for the Ukrainian Army’s needs.
“The innovation system is like a production line that must operate dynamically. That is to say... it involves constant research—essentially, the real-time formulation of requirements, a prioritized list of technical specifications, and operational-technical requirements for creating new capabilities. The next step is the development of modern systems and weapons, which has also been a priority area. This includes drones, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and the systems that control them, as well as information systems and new weapons—including futuristic ones that are already in use today—and laser weapons,” Lebedenko said.
It was noted that during the first half of the year, as part of innovation activities within the Armed Forces of Ukraine, nearly 600 innovative projects were evaluated for the development of high-tech weapons and military equipment. Of these, more than 40 projects received state financial support in the form of grants from the Innovation Development Fund of the Ministry of Digital Transformation. The largest number of projects were submitted in the “Unmanned Aerial Vehicles” category—160—followed by the “Weapons Models and Systems (Complexes)” category—107; “Robotic and remotely controlled systems (complexes)” – 56.
The Central Directorate for Innovation noted that, to create favorable conditions for domestic developers and manufacturers, it has been collaborating with the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Digital Transformation, and other agencies.
Air defense remains a priority in the search for innovative solutions. In particular, efforts are underway to find effective solutions to counter enemy UAVs and to develop an unmanned aerial system for intercepting drones. There are plans to expand the network of companies participating in the private air defense sector and to intensify the search for means to counter guided aerial bombs and carrier aircraft.
Unmanned aerial systems remain an important area of innovation for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In this context, emphasis was placed on the creation of jam-resistant navigation systems and the development of UAVs controlled via fiber-optic links with a range exceeding 50 km; the implementation of “friend-or-foe” UAV identification technology; the development of strike UAVs, including carriers for single-use strike UAVs, increasing their autonomy, and the implementation of artificial intelligence and swarm technologies; and the creation of new developments in the areas of middle and deep strike.
According to Lebedenko, ongoing work is being conducted to integrate artificial intelligence technologies into various aspects of combat operations. Specifically, this involves creating specialized software for processing raw radar data using AI elements; integrating such elements into unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs); and developing innovative solutions for logistics planning.
“We have created a special system that allows for continuous operation within the troops and our combat units. This is carried out by teams formed by experts who work on a cyclical basis with our combat brigades to gather up-to-date information—including both their problems and their suggestions,” Lebedenko noted.
In addition, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are conducting systematic work to support manufacturers and users of innovative weapons systems. In particular, the “Zalizny Poligon” testing ecosystem has been created; through its web portal, nearly 250 requests from manufacturers have been processed. A technical support system for unmanned systems (for combat units that use them) and an information support system for manufacturers have also been implemented, through which 457 and 330 requests, respectively, have been processed.
The General Staff reported that 433 tests of the latest military equipment models were conducted during the first half of the year—an increase of more than 20% compared to last year. In particular, as part of the “Iron Range” project, nearly 150 experimental studies and tests of promising models were conducted (including those involving experimental combat units), of which 113 were tests of unmanned aerial systems, 15 involved unmanned ground systems, and 21 were tests in other areas.
This was announced by Andriy Lebedenko, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, during a briefing at Ukrinform titled “Military Innovations: Key Achievements in the First Half of 2026.”
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