• Militaries like the US, China, and Russia are building robot dogs to employ in security and combat operations.
• Some of these remote-controlled canines feature guns, rocket launchers, and flamethrowers
• These robotic dogs can fill a variety of jobs, from scouting to counter-drone roles.

Militaries, law enforcement, and more around the world are increasingly turning to robot dogs — which, if we’re being honest, look like something straight out of a science-fiction nightmare — for a variety of missions ranging from security patrol to combat.

Robot dogs first really came on the scene in the early 2000s with Boston Dynamics’ “BigDog” design. They are becoming increasingly prolific with improved designs, and they have been used in both military and security activities. In November, for instance, it was reported that robot dogs had been added to President-elect Donald Trump’s security detail and were on patrol at his home in Mar-a-Lago.

Some of the remote-controlled canines are equipped with sensor systems, while others have been equipped with rifles and other weapons. One Ohio company made one with a flamethrower.

Some of these designs not only look eerily similar to real dogs but also act like them, which can be unsettling. Their emergence comes as uncrewed systems take on greater roles, from the civilian sector to the armed forces, and amid growing competition in this emerging technology space prompted by the great realization of what they could do in future wars.

Militaries have been incorporating robot dogs into operations for a few years now. They’ve performed scouting and security missions and explosive ordnance disposal, relying on sensing systems and advanced surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.

By joining manned formations, the quadrupedal unmanned systems can assist their human companions and complete functions that may be too dangerous or impossible for them. But that doesn’t mean some of these military robot dogs aren’t a little disconcerting. It’s kind of weird that they can jump, roll, and play like dogs.

In the US

Across the US military, the services are experimenting with robot dogs. The Marine Corps has tested its systems with remote assault rifles and anti-armor rocket launchers. In some cases, these robots are designed specifically for counter-drone operations — in other words, putting a drone up against another drone.

The Army has also conducted urban assault drills alongside robot dogs. In March, it deployed one of the systems in a training environment as part of Project Convergence, a series of exercises and experiments focused on future war-fighting, at Fort Irwin in California. The quadruped was there to “provide enhanced situational awareness and support for frontline soldiers, acting as their eyes and ears,” the Army said.

Then, in August, the Army and its industry partners tested one armed with a service rifle as part of Fort Drum’s “Operation Hard Kill,” which tests counter-drone systems they’re working on. The dog is remotely controlled, meaning an operator can remain a safe distance away from it while testing it.

The rifle was also enhanced with artificial intelligence, suggesting automated targeting. The Marine Corps, too, has been experimenting with AI-enabled weapons on its robot dogs.

US defense officials have long considered the development of weaponized robot dogs experimental, exploring what might be possible in future conflicts.

Efforts to adopt robot dogs really ramped up in 2020 when the Air Force began integrating robot dogs into an exercise securing an airfield against a simulated attack. Other Air Force efforts have seen robot dogs helping airmen respond to nuclear and chemical threats.

And at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, for example, autonomous canines have been assisting with base security, a first for the US military.

One video showed these drones sitting and rolling around like they were actual dogs. One of the biggest players in this space is Ghost Robotics, which develops Q-UGVs, quadrupedal unmanned ground vehicles, for the US military. Ghost Robotics describes one of its Q-UGVs, Vision 60, as “a mid-sized high-endurance, agile, and durable all-weather drone for use in a broad range of unstructured urban and natural environments for defense, homeland, and enterprise applications.

In China

The US isn’t alone in its robot dog research endeavors; rivals are also interested in these unusual capabilities. China’s advancements with robot dogs have often mirrored US efforts and raised some concerns in Washington.

Earlier this year, Chinese state-run media showed off one of Beijing’s developments in this space — a robot dog running around a testing range and shooting an automatic rifle.

Footage of the system prompted US lawmakers to raise concerns with the Pentagon on “the threat of rifle-toting robot dogs used by China.”

China has also shown off its robot dogs at military exercises, including a joint one with Cambodia and other militaries last year. And at a defense trade show, a Chinese defense company, Kestrel Defense, shared footage of one of the drone systems carrying guns and smoke grenades.

In Russia

Russia, too, has been working on integrating robot dogs into its military. Its most prominent exhibition came in 2022 during a Russian army trade show, when a robot dog wrapped in an odd black coverall and carrying an anti-tank weapon walked around the exhibit.

Video footage showed the dog even acting like a real dog — stomping and spinning around as if excited and lying down. Imagine something like that on the battlefield.

At the time of the reveal, observers said that the dog looked to be a commercially available one from Chinese company Unitree, or at least included some similar parts and functions. The Russian company responsible for the system, Machine Intellect, said it’s useful for transporting supplies, attacking targets, and scouting.

In actual combat

In the Ukraine war, robot dogs have seen use on the battlefield, the first known combat deployment of these machines. Built by British company Robot Alliance, the systems aren’t autonomous, instead being operated by remote control. They are capable of doing many of the things other drones in Ukraine have done, including reconnaissance and attacking unsuspecting troops.

The dogs have also been useful for scouting out the insides of buildings and trenches, particularly smaller areas where operators have trouble flying an aerial drone.

“Such a dog should be in every unit,” Kurt, a commander in the 28th Mechanized Brigade, said, per a post from the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.