Russia is ahead of Ukraine in the use of artificial intelligence in drones and already has autonomous UAVs controlled by neural networks, according to Ukrainian presidential adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov. He acknowledged that Ukraine has yet to deploy comparable technologies on a large scale.

Beskrestnov cited Russia’s V2U drones and the new Molniya as examples. According to him, the neural networks used in these drones have been trained to identify specific types of targets, including tanks, vehicles, railway tracks, locomotives and Nova Post buildings. He also suggested that Russian Shahed drones could eventually be equipped with AI-based target recognition systems.

In an interview with a Ukrainian media outlet, Beskrestnov explained that such a drone can be assigned an area of operation and a specific task in advance. Once launched, it can navigate autonomously using visual imagery without relying on satellite navigation signals. For example, a drone can be instructed to locate a railway, identify a train traveling along it and attack the locomotive.

Beskrestnov also claimed that Russian neural networks are capable of identifying military personnel by detecting whether they are carrying weapons. He said he had personally seen Russian models with this capability.

At the same time, Beskrestnov acknowledged that Ukraine is not yet using such technologies on a large scale. He expressed particular concern about the further development of electronic warfare systems, saying they could eventually cover all of Russia and make satellite-based drone navigation impossible.

Beskrestnov therefore acknowledged that Ukraine is lagging behind Russia in autonomous UAVs and neural-network technology. In his assessment, Russia is already actively deploying these technologies and gaining an advantage on the battlefield, while Ukraine has yet to field comparable systems on a similar scale.