Press release from coalition member Drone Wars.
Drone Wars UK reveals today that as public concern about the use of AI for war-fighting grows in the aftermath of Israel’s war on Gaza and US strikes on Iran, the UK is quietly pressing ahead with development of a new AI-based military targeting system.
In a little-noticed contract award in January, the MoD named a group of 26 companies who have won a tender to develop “advanced digital decision-supporting capabilities” for the UK military as part of the ASGARD programme. The group includes specialised US military AI company Anduril and Germany-based Helsing, traditional military tech companies like QinetiQ and Leonardo and a host of smaller niche companies focused on the use of AI.
First announced in October 2024, the MoD says ASGARD will “exploit AI and novel communications networks” to provide “rapid targeting and decision-support to personnel.”
The new contact notice states:
“This Open Framework will focus on the ‘Decide’ element of the target acquisition cycle (Sense-Decide-Effect); supporting ASGARD’s goal of reinventing, and transforming, how land forces deliver operational decision-support and decision-making software via the use of modern Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning (AI/ML) technologies.”
While militaries are keen to use AI to speed up decision making around lethal strikes, there are serious ethical and legal concerns about these developments, with increasing evidence that ratcheting up the number of strikes leads to greater danger for civilians.
Chris Cole, Director of Drone Wars said:
“Advocates of AI for military targeting argue that the ‘need’ for speed means that AI can brings enormous benefits in the ‘kill chain’. But while computer algorithms can process data much faster than humans, speeding up targeting decisions significantly erodes human oversight and accountability and will inevitably mean more civilian casualties.”
Further details together with a list of the companies involved is available at: https://dronewars.net/2026/03/12/uk-ai-targeting-system-contract/