[Mentalist]

Until they come up with vodka-proof electronics, we're probably safe. You won't get sober operators for these killing machines, and the first thing the AI will learn will be the locations of all the local liquor stores. /s

Problem is, your sentient machines can't occupy and hold territory. And if you pour all your shrinking resources into this hi-tech robotics, it'll be at the expense of basic infrastructure that's currently still holding the country in place.


You're not going to have robots building roads in Russia- because robots might actually do a good job, and the road won't need yearly repairs. And if it doesn't need yearly repairs, how are the officials supposed to embezzle money? And if they can't embezzle money, why should they support the government? If the whole point of being a part of the government is to get rich by being corrupt?

The Muscovite "Deep State" will fiercely resist the attempts to make things more efficient and practical- because it's going to destroy their privileged status. There's a reason Z-heads are spending most of their time complaining about how inefficient and incompetent the MoD is- because promoting mediocrity is not a bug, it's a feature of the system. And Putler relies on it functioning this way, because that's what keeps them loyal to him.

This post has been edited by Mentalist: 01 March 2025 - 06:26 PM

[Chance]

The main reason we won't see entire robot armies any time soon (and possibly ever) is that average joe is a lot cheaper most of the time. There is no way to get a working military robot replacing a rifleman for the cost of a rifleman in the russian army. Might be possible for one in the western armies but probably not even there yet and that is without going into the questions of robot maintenance (as a professional in that field) I can tell you robots don't just work...they need a lot of help surviving the hazards of constant breakdown of all kinds without people actually trying to destroy them. Now unmanned vehicles and drones piloted from elsewhere that is obviously part of the current and close future.

This post has been edited by Chance: 01 March 2025 - 07:09 PM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Mentalist, on 01 March 2025 - 06:25 PM, said:

Problem is, your sentient machines can't occupy and hold territory.

Why not? A few humans might currently still be needed for maintenance of the robots, but it seems like they could do most of the necessary tasks for holding territory. Fortifying barricades, sensing intruders and responding to them, etc. And eventually maintenance robots will render those humans unnecessary.

Quote

You're not going to have robots building roads in Russia- because robots might actually do a good job, and the road won't need yearly repairs. And if it doesn't need yearly repairs, how are the officials supposed to embezzle money? And if they can't embezzle money, why should they support the government? If the whole point of being a part of the government is to get rich by being corrupt?

The Muscovite "Deep State" will fiercely resist the attempts to make things more efficient and practical- because it's going to destroy their privileged status. There's a reason Z-heads are spending most of their time complaining about how inefficient and incompetent the MoD is- because promoting mediocrity is not a bug, it's a feature of the system. And Putler relies on it functioning this way, because that's what keeps them loyal to him.

Robots can be much more loyal, and I imagine Putler would prefer them over most of his underlings. They're much less likely to betray him.

And with AI and robotics doing most of the work, he can promote even more incompetent people who are thereby even more obviously dependent on him, and not any competence of their own, for their positions and salaries.

Chance, on 01 March 2025 - 06:57 PM, said:

The main reason we won't see entire robot armies any time soon (and possibly ever) is that average joe is a lot cheaper most of the time. There is no way to get a working military robot replacing a rifleman for the cost of a rifleman in the russian army. Might be possible for one in the western armies but probably not even there yet and that is without going into the questions of robot maintenance (as a professional in that field) I can tell you robots don't just work...they need a lot of help surviving the hazards of constant breakdown of all kinds without people actually trying to destroy them. Now unmanned vehicles and drones piloted from elsewhere that is obviously part of the current and close future.

Soldiers with rifles are getting massacred by drones and tanks when they try to advance. If it isn't already, then it will probably soon be cheaper to just send autonomous tanks and drones. And rocket-launching Shahed drones cost about $35,000 each, while the starting salary for a Russian soldier is apparently about $21,504 a year. If both survive for two years, the drone costs 2*21504-35000 = $8008 less. Granted that's not taking into account the respective costs of rockets, rifles, supplies, etc.

Humanoids will be expensive at first, but the cost will dramatically diminish with mass production. But their overall usefulness for warfare vs other robotic forms is an open question. Snake-worms (or wyrms) designed for tunneling that can avoid being targeted by drones or tanks might be more effective. Then there's the question of what types of robots might be most effective for door-to-door warfare in densely populated urban areas; obviously one major advantage in densely populated areas is the ability to use certain bioweapons without being negatively impacted.

[Chance]

Azath Vitr (D, on 01 March 2025 - 07:59 PM, said:

And eventually maintenance robots will render those humans unnecessary.

Yeah we would love those maintenance robots at work but it ain't happening any time soon.

Azath Vitr (D, on 01 March 2025 - 07:59 PM, said:

'
Soldiers with rifles are getting massacred by drones and tanks when they try to advance. If it isn't already, then it will probably soon be cheaper to just send autonomous tanks and drones. And rocket-launching Shahed drones cost about $35,000 each, while the starting salary for a Russian soldier is apparently about $21,504 a year. If both survive for two years, the drone costs 2*21504-35000 = $8008 less. Granted that's not taking into account the respective costs of rockets, rifles, supplies, etc.

Shahed drones are one use loitering munitions, they are literately fancy guided bombs.

There is no drone currently in production that does the job of a soldier, thought the wheeled/tracked machine gun thingies Ukraine have tested are going in that direction but as mentioned above way too expensive. Not least because they require a machine, an operator and like all other vehicles a maintenance crew.

Will advanced armies start using robots in combat, for sure in specialist roles. But russia isn't going to field robot armies in the next few decades.

This post has been edited by Chance: 01 March 2025 - 08:35 PM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Chance, on 01 March 2025 - 08:18 PM, said:

Azath Vitr (D, on 01 March 2025 - 07:59 PM, said:

And eventually maintenance robots will render those humans unnecessary.

Yeah we would love those maintenance robots at work but it ain't happening any time soon.

There is no drone currently in production that does the job of a soldier, thought the wheeled/tracked machine gun thingies Ukraine have tested are going in that direction but as mentioned above way too expensive. Not least because they require a machine, an operator and like all other vehicles a maintenance crew.

Will advanced armies start using robots in combat, for sure in specialist roles. But russia isn't going to field robot armies in the next few decades.

Fwiw:

Quote

Robots Will Replace Soldiers In Combat, Says Russia

For Russia, the question of robots taking over the role of soldiers on the battlefield is a matter of when, not if. [...]

"There is a still-classified Russia's military robotics road-map that sketches out various stages of Russian unnamed military developments" [...]

At the center of this design is the Marker UGV, or uncrewed ground vehicle. Resembling a miniature tank with treads and turrets [...] "As envisioned, it will be able to launch swarms of UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] or loitering munitions, making it a truly versatile robotic platform."

[...] Part of Davydov's argument for military robots is that they will, simultaneously, be faster, more discriminating in target selection, and more accurate than people.

Robots Will Replace Soldiers In Combat, Says Russia - Forbes

One maintenance crew can service many robotic vehicles. No need for a crew for each autonomous tank or Marker UGV.

Soldiers with rifles aren't being very effective anyway in Ukraine, so they'd probably be better off sending in drones and autonomous tanks or artillery batteries.

And we'll see how quickly the cost and effectiveness of humanoids improves.

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 01 March 2025 - 08:59 PM

[Garak]

If the Russians claim they will have a robot army .... you can ignore them. They've been bragging about having almost power armor for every soldier a few years ago. And that the T-14 Armata will sweep everything before it yadda yadda. If the Russian state is breathing, they are lying.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Garak, on 01 March 2025 - 11:02 PM, said:

If the Russians claim they will have a robot army .... you can ignore them. They've been bragging about having almost power armor for every soldier a few years ago. And that the T-14 Armata will sweep everything before it yadda yadda. If the Russian state is breathing, they are lying.

As the Forbes article points out the description is apparently very similar to what the US military has been developing, which makes its feasibility seem more plausible.

[the broken]

The article is from 2020 and has nothing at all concrete in it, it's just 'we're kind of testing this out, maybe, at some point in the future'. It says they were about to test swarms of robots in 2020, so what happened with those tests?

[Werthead]

The Russian position in Toretsk seems to be collapsing faster than JD Vance's dignity in a furniture store. One Russian position looks like it's about to get completely encircled and the rest of the town looks like it could fall back into Ukrainian hands. Impressive going.

[Mentalist]

Azath Vitr (D, on 01 March 2025 - 08:58 PM, said:

Chance, on 01 March 2025 - 08:18 PM, said:

Azath Vitr (D, on 01 March 2025 - 07:59 PM, said:

And eventually maintenance robots will render those humans unnecessary.

Yeah we would love those maintenance robots at work but it ain't happening any time soon.

There is no drone currently in production that does the job of a soldier, thought the wheeled/tracked machine gun thingies Ukraine have tested are going in that direction but as mentioned above way too expensive. Not least because they require a machine, an operator and like all other vehicles a maintenance crew.

Will advanced armies start using robots in combat, for sure in specialist roles. But russia isn't going to field robot armies in the next few decades.

Fwiw:

Quote

Robots Will Replace Soldiers In Combat, Says Russia

For Russia, the question of robots taking over the role of soldiers on the battlefield is a matter of when, not if. [...]

"There is a still-classified Russia's military robotics road-map that sketches out various stages of Russian unnamed military developments" [...]

At the center of this design is the Marker UGV, or uncrewed ground vehicle. Resembling a miniature tank with treads and turrets [...] "As envisioned, it will be able to launch swarms of UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] or loitering munitions, making it a truly versatile robotic platform."

[...] Part of Davydov's argument for military robots is that they will, simultaneously, be faster, more discriminating in target selection, and more accurate than people.

Robots Will Replace Soldiers In Combat, Says Russia - Forbes

One maintenance crew can service many robotic vehicles. No need for a crew for each autonomous tank or Marker UGV.

Soldiers with rifles aren't being very effective anyway in Ukraine, so they'd probably be better off sending in drones and autonomous tanks or artillery batteries.

And we'll see how quickly the cost and effectiveness of humanoids improves.

Azath, I say this with the greatest respect.

Muscoviotes say loads of things.

Most of them are not true, and intended to justify creating large budgets that can then be embezzled . If they had even a quarter of the things they were supposedly investing into in 2016, we wouldn't be here in year 4 of the war, watching videos of donkeys and horses carrying ammo to the trenches.

Putler would never agree to have robots in all the key roles, because he is paranoid aboiut technology. He doesn't understand it, he doesn't trust it, and he would never create a a system of perfectly loyal servants that is run by someone other than him . Because whomever holds that remote, stops needing him.

[Chance]

Mentalist, on 02 March 2025 - 02:13 AM, said:

Azath, I say this with the greatest respect.

Muscoviotes say loads of things.

Most of them are not true, and intended to justify creating large budgets that can then be embezzled . If they had even a quarter of the things they were supposedly investing into in 2016, we wouldn't be here in year 4 of the war, watching videos of donkeys and horses carrying ammo to the trenches.

Putler would never agree to have robots in all the key roles, because he is paranoid aboiut technology. He doesn't understand it, he doesn't trust it, and he would never create a a system of perfectly loyal servants that is run by someone other than him . Because whomever holds that remote, stops needing him.

The best evidence is the US can't field anything much better than a mobility aid in the robotic field, russia does not have the expertise or money to make anything better. So when the us marine corps is made up of robots we can start worrying about russia.

All major powers say they will have robotic planes in production sometime within a few decades and that is vastly and I mean orders of magnitudes easier than a robotic soldier that works. Robotic airforces are coming and not that far into the future, robotic brown-water navies are partially here already with Ukraine driving development but robotic armies or even worse security forces that is vaporware right now. Much of it is the same problem self driving cars have but multiplied by infinite possibilities not just avoiding objects on the road and keeping to the lane.

This post has been edited by Chance: Yesterday, 07:44 AM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Chance, on 02 March 2025 - 07:31 AM, said:

The best evidence is the US can't field anything much better than a mobility aid in the robotic field, russia does not have the expertise or money to make anything better. So when the us marine corps is made up of robots we can start worrying about russia.

All major powers say they will have robotic planes in production sometime within a few decades and that is vastly and I mean orders of magnitudes easier than a robotic soldier that works. Robotic airforces are coming and not that far into the future, robotic brown-water navies are partially here already with Ukraine driving development but robotic armies or even worse security forces that is vaporware right now. Much of it is the same problem self driving cars have but multiplied by infinite possibilities not just avoiding objects on the road and keeping to the lane.

There are several examples of actual, confirmed Russian military technology outpacing the United States. Hypersonic missiles being the most obvious. Same goes for China, which also seems to be outpacing the United States in the adoption of robotics.

We'll see how fast the technology actually advances. Nvidia and other tech companies are optimistic about autonomous humanoids. Embodied AI has been advancing rapidly. (As I mentioned before, if there's a "truce", some of Trump's tech backers may be eager to experiment in Russia---testing robots on prisoners or soldiers---while probably being able to blame it on Russia and perhaps rogue employees "misusing" the technology if word got out. An "unethical" mature authoritarian regime may have a significant advantage in training autonomous combat robots to kill people.) And relative to self-driving cars (which are already operating commercially in China and the United States, though on pretrained roads), autonomous tanks should have an easier time just running over minor obstacles (especially for an army that doesn't care much about unnecessary destruction) and be able to carry more sensors (particularly for mine detection, if that wouldn't better be accomplished by small drones) or deployable drones.

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: Yesterday, 10:35 AM

[Werthead]

Russia's hypersonic missiles are generally overhyped. When you actually look at them, they're air-launched ballistic missiles that only become hypersonic in the terminal descent phase, exactly like standard ballistic missiles which the USA has had for decades.

The Chinese hypersonic missiles may be genuinely hypersonic weapons, and the US ones that have been in tested for the last three or four years certainly are, Russia's are a bit of a cheat. Still somewhat effective though. They can evade AA defences, but not perfectly: multiple Russian and Russian-derived Iranian hypersonic missiles have been shot down by Patriot and even lesser AA systems over both Ukraine and Israel in the last two years.

Robot ground armies are simply not going to be a thing at large scale, they are far too expensive and far too impractical compared to cheap meatbags. The Ukrainian exercise with a ground robot assault force sounded good, but ultimately it involved 1 operator = 1 robot (so there's no scaling advantage), many of the expensive drones were destroyed or damaged and the cost of the exercise was extreme. There's also been some arguing over whether they deliberately chose an exposed Russian target which had been heavily softened up by artillery and the Russians were considering fleeing anyway.

Robot "special forces" could very much become a thing though, depending on various factors. They could prove to be very useful for risky behind-the-lines operations, or even operations on foreign home soil with a degree of deniability, where a small number of expensive units could get the job done better than human operators.

If ground robot armies do ever become a thing, it won't be the Russian "our logistics run on carrots" Federation leading the way. Russia is significantly behind Ukraine in the robots race in this war.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Werthead, on 02 March 2025 - 12:10 PM, said:

Russia's hypersonic missiles are generally overhyped. When you actually look at them, they're air-launched ballistic missiles that only become hypersonic in the terminal descent phase, exactly like standard ballistic missiles which the USA has had for decades.

For the Kinzhal and the Oreshnik the major difference from the older ballistic missiles you're referring to is that they're maneuverable during that hypersonic descent phase. But the Zircon is hypersonic in the midcourse of its flight:

Quote

Two 3М22 Zircon at once were intercepted on March 25, 2024, during another attempt to strike Kyiv, and their remnants revealed an extremely important detail. Turns out, Zircon really has a supersonic combustion ramjet engine that provides a stable speed of Mach 5.5 during the midcourse of flight, proving in practice that it indeed can overcome the hypersonic speed barrier starting at Mach 5.

But, first of all, all of that happens while it's cruising through the atmosphere at high altitudes. When the descent begins and it enters the terminal phase of flight, Zircon slows down to a still extremely dangerous yet not hypersonic Mach 4.5.

https://en.defence-u...d_for-9980.html

lol

Werthead, on 02 March 2025 - 12:10 PM, said:

Robot ground armies are simply not going to be a thing at large scale, they are far too expensive and far too impractical compared to cheap meatbags.

Prototypes and early models are generally much more expensive. Once they enter mass production the price should decline precipitously.

For example, for humanoid robots:

Quote

There are signs that robot components, from high-precision gears to actuators, could also cost less than previously expected, leading to faster commercialization. The manufacturing cost of humanoid robots has dropped — from a range that ran between an estimated $50,000 (for lower-end models) and $250,000 (for state-of-the art versions) per unit last year, to a range of between $30,000 and $150,000 now.

"We continue to expect further cost reduction in the coming years,"

The global market for humanoid robots could reach $38 billion by 2035 - Goldman Sachs

Quote

manufacturing costs tend to plummet with scale:

For solar energy, every doubling of production was associated with a 20% decline in costs. In other industries, we see estimates ranging from 5-40%, so 20% seems a reasonable middle point.

That means a 1000x increase in production (10 doublings), should decrease costs 10x to $10,000/unit. That's around the cost of manufacturing a car.

However, humanoid robots only use about 10% the materials of a car, so it's plausible they could eventually become another 10x cheaper, or $1000 each.

How quickly could robots scale up?

They're also likely to be more durable, faster and more precise than human soldiers. Of course the tricky part is training them and estimates vary wildly on when general purpose, sort of open world ready adaptable humanoids will be available (though in certain combat situations they might not need to be all that adaptable, especially if they're only semi-autonomous and remote operators can take partial control and help them switch between contexts).

And while 200+ isn't necessarily "large scale" it's substantial:

Quote

Ukraine is building a robotic army, aiming to have more than 200 uncrewed ground vehicles (UGVs) in operation by the end of the year. As it continues deploying these robots, it is gathering valuable data and insights that will shape the development of future autonomous systems. This experience positions Ukraine to train AI models and lead the way in deploying next-generation autonomous robots when the time comes.

Ukraine's Robotic Army Is Bringing the Fight to Russia - The Kyiv Independent

Werthead, on 02 March 2025 - 12:10 PM, said:

The Ukrainian exercise with a ground robot assault force sounded good, but ultimately it involved 1 operator = 1 robot (so there's no scaling advantage),

That's why semi-autonomous UGV's are probably the next step (so one operator can oversee multiple UGV's), and then fully autonomous. But even at one operator per UGV you have a partial scaling advantage insofar as the operator does not become incapacitated if the UGV does, and could switch to controlling another UGV or UAV etc.

Of course drones are already well-established and autonomous drones are already proving effective. How much Russia could rely on semi-autonomous or autonomous drones, perhaps with some autonomous tanks to deploy them, to make up for demography or invade or occupy territories is an open question.

[Mentalist]

UA is using UGVs for logistics only.
That's all they've been approving.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Mentalist, on 02 March 2025 - 06:40 PM, said:

UA is using UGVs for logistics only.
That's all they've been approving.

For at least some of these UGV's,

Quote

Weapons [...] can be added later.

[...] The prototype acts as a rescue-and-supply platform but can be modified to carry a remotely operated heavy machine gun or sling mine-clearing charges.

"Squads of robots … will become logistics devices, tow trucks, minelayers and deminers, as well as self-destructive robots," a government fundraising page said after the launch of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces. "The first robots are already proving their effectiveness on the battlefield."

Associated Press

I was wrong about the scale of Ukraine's burgeoning robot army (for logistics, mine-laying, and perhaps self-destruction---is that a traditional part of logistics?---IDK what % of these can also be outfitted with weapons (other than themselves, if they can injure people by ramming into them / running them over) and aimed effectively with present technology---but theoretically all they need is a decent camera on the gun and good enough AI):

Quote

Ukraine will need tens of thousands of uncrewed robotic ground vehicles next year to shuttle ammunition and supplies to infantry in the trenches and evacuate wounded soldiers, a senior government minister told Reuters.

"This year we purchased several thousand ground platforms, and next year, I believe, we need tens of thousands," the minister, who has overseen drone procurement for most of the war, said in an interview.

[...] Ukraine has also been using dozens of domestically made artificial intelligence-augmented systems for its drones to reach targets on the battlefield without being piloted, allowing it to remain effective in areas protected by extensive jamming.

"I think next year will significantly increase the percentage of autonomous drones with targeting," he said. "We might see the first real drone swarm uses, though not on a massive scale. The first steps will happen."

Ukraine sees use of uncrewed ground vehicles, AI-targeting drones surging next year - Reuters

[Mentalist]

Well, yeah, have you seen the size of Ukraine compared to Muscovy? We can't raise as many donkeys to supply the frontlines. And cars and trucks are becoming equally dangerous for both sides to use in logistics.

So they're switching to animals, we're switching to drone supply carts.

[Werthead]

Perun's analysis of NATO's capabilities without the United States.

European military capabilities are still pretty massive. Having the United States on hand is obviously massively preferrable, but in a pinch the non-US component of NATO could still defeat Russia without too much trouble, at least in a conventional war.

[Chance]

Werthead, on 02 March 2025 - 07:56 PM, said:

Perun's analysis of NATO's capabilities without the United States.

European military capabilities are still pretty massive. Having the United States on hand is obviously massively preferrable, but in a pinch the non-US component of NATO could still defeat Russia without too much trouble, at least in a conventional war.

Perun is a legend, some good levelheaded and knowledgeable analysis good for anyone who wants a clue. A must watch each sunday

Azath Vitr (D, on 02 March 2025 - 02:31 PM, said:

However, humanoid robots only use about 10% the materials of a car, so it's plausible they could eventually become another 10x cheaper, or $1000 each.

I'd agree for civilian robots, those will eventually move into homes. Probably fairly soon as novelty items and not in the too distant future helping with simple tasks and taking over unskilled work on mass.

But a military robot needs hardened electronics, rugged computers, stronger actuators and motors to handle recoil and other stresses, they are probably not built in cheap plastic, limited protection equal to a bullet proof vest at a minimum, dust, liquid and dirt proofing, redundant sensors so that the robot isn't disabled by one iced up or malfunctioning camera, bigger batteries for longer operations, secure data connections that are at least somewhat jamming proof and the software development will be insane. Gods these things will be expensive so damned expensive that tech firm boards are orgasmic at the thought of selling them in the future.

This post has been edited by Chance: Yesterday, 08:25 PM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Chance, on 02 March 2025 - 08:00 PM, said:

Azath Vitr (D, on 02 March 2025 - 02:31 PM, said:

However, humanoid robots only use about 10% the materials of a car, so it's plausible they could eventually become another 10x cheaper, or $1000 each.

I'd agree for civilian robots, those will eventually move into homes. Probably fairly soon as novelty items and not in the too distant future helping with simple tasks and taking over unskilled work on mass.

But a military robot needs hardened electronics, rugged computers, stronger actuators and motors to handle recoil and other stresses, they are probably not built in cheap plastic, dust, liquid and dirt proofing, redundant sensors so that the robot isn't disabled by one iced up or malfunctioning camera, bigger batteries for longer operations, secure data connections that are at least somewhat jamming proof and the software development will be insane. Gods these things will be expensive so damned expensive that tech firm boards are orgasmic at the thought of selling them in the future.

The robot dogs being used by the Ukrainian military only cost $4,400-$8,800---and that's as of last August, so the price may have already come down and is likely to drop further in the future.

Quote

Ukraine is now using robotic dogs on the battlefield, the first known combat deployment of such machines.

"Every unit should have one of these dogs," says Kurt, a commander in the 28th Mechanized Brigade, in an X/Twitter post on the official Ministry of Defense account.

Video of Ukrainian operations in the Donetsk region shows the robot dog covered by a camouflage blanket [...] which makes it difficult to detect both visually and with thermal imaging. As soon as the robot stops moving it merges into the background vegetation.

What We Know About Ukraine's Army Of Robot Dogs - Forbes

#NinjaRobotDog

Granted, those dogs aren't carrying weapons... however the Chinese military has demonstrated that the even cheaper, "non-military" robot dogs can effectively carry automatic rifles that can be fired remotely:

Quote

China shows off mechanical canine with an automatic rifle on its back at joint military drills [...]

While they may be technologically advanced, the killer robots are hardly sleek pieces of military hardware; both dog and drone appear to be off-the-shelf pieces of consumer technology with a conventional rifle bolted on top. The brand name of the Chinese company that built the dog, Unitree Robotics, is clearly visible on the side.

Prices for the company's Go2 robot dog start at $1,600 (£1,300), according to Unitree's website.

The Guardian - May 2024

Similarly, the US Marines demonstrated back in 2023 that the (also cheap) earlier "non-military" Unitree model, the Go1,can effectively be used to carry and fire a rocket launcher attached:

Quote

U.S. Marines Test Robot Dog Armed With A Rocket Launcher

[...] firing an M72 rocket launcher[...] "The Marine could be behind cover and concealment, the weapon system could go forward, and the Marine could manipulate the safeties from a safe place while allowing that weapon system to get closer to its target." The Unitree Go1 robot was probably chosen because it is cheap and easily available. You can buy one online for under $3,000 plus shipping, making it more expensive than most drones but with a heavier payload.

Forbes - November 2023

Granted, those are just testing their ability to carry and fire effective weapons, not their ability to withstand harsh conditions, enemy fire, or prolonged travel. But as I noted at the beginning the robot dogs being used in combat settings by the Ukrainian military are only slightly more expensive.

OTOH humanoids will generally use more material than dogs (unless they're dwarves or gnomes or tiny faery-like humanoids I'd suppose), and bipedalism may require more reinforcement. Still I haven't seen any good evidence that this will necessarily be very expensive once mass industrial production and economies of scale come into play.

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: Yesterday, 08:53 PM