Russia is developing AI-powered air defense systems to counter Ukrainian drones, Belousov says

Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov has said that Moscow is developing artificial intelligence-based air defence systems and has been building a unified digital information environment for troop command and control since April.

According to him, the measures are being taken amid an increase in Ukrainian drone attacks.

Speaking at a meeting with military correspondents, as reported by TASS, Belousov said that AI-powered air defence is among seven priority Defence Ministry projects scheduled for completion by the end of the year. The first results are expected to be presented in November.

“We are actively working on this, I mean air defence,” the minister said. According to him, the situation on the front changes approximately every two to three months, requiring constant adaptation of weapons and tactics.

Belousov also announced the creation of a unified information environment linking command posts, radar systems, units and servicemen at the tactical level. Tablets connected to the system provide platoon commanders and combat vehicle crews with data for target detection and coordination of operations.

According to the Defence Minister, layered air-defence systems have already been established across all Russian force groupings to counter drone attacks. He added that artificial intelligence is also being used in Russian drones for image recognition, automatic target acquisition and navigation.

The reorganisation is taking place amid Ukraine’s active use of drones, including systems with machine-vision capabilities, to strike Russian military logistics. Ukrainian medium-range drones are targeting transport routes linking Russia with occupied territories.

As one countermeasure, Russia has begun using high-contrast black-and-white camouflage with zebra-like stripes on military equipment. Such patterns are believed to hinder computer-vision algorithms used for target recognition.

Belousov also announced the formation of mobile air-defence groups equipped with FPV interceptor drones.

Russia is also continuing to establish its drone forces, whose creation was announced at the end of 2024. Specialised regiments are expected to be deployed in every military district.