Axios Future of Defense Thought Bubble

October 15, 2025
πͺ Here's an inbox double-tap. Why? Because I've escaped the Walter E. Washington Convention Center basement and have some thoughts.
- Autonomous launchers, anyone?
Smart Brevityβ’ count: 282 words, 1 min.
1 big thing: Launchers galore
Counter-drone weaponry dominated displays at last year's Association of the U.S. Army get-together in Washington. This year, it's autonomous launchers stealing the spotlight.
Why it matters: Militaries worldwide are trying to strike a balance between manpower and firepower as conversations about automation and AI-powered targeting hit the mainstream.
State of play: The cockpits may be empty or missing entirely, but the missiles sure aren't.
- Oshkosh Defense rolled out its Family of Multi-Mission Autonomous Vehicles, which includes the Tomahawk-toting X-MAV.
- DeepFires, a system that can shoot AIM-9X and Patriot GEM-T missiles, is on display at the RTX booth. (Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George was seen huddling near it this morning.)
- And there are whispers of the Army's Common Autonomous Multi-Domain Launcher project, which also piqued interest at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Alabama in August.
What they're saying: "We're clearly to a point where it's technologically feasible β and reasonable β to build an autonomous launcher and save the manpower," Tim Cahill, the missiles and fire control president at Lockheed Martin, told me.
- The company in December tested an uncrewed High Mobility Artillery Rocket System.
Zoom out: The Army has for years sought robots and other smart machinery to augment its soldiers.
- Implementing them effectively has proven tricky. Consider the physical and digital chaos of war.
Go deeper: Ship-killing NMESIS heads to Philippines as China protests Typhon
π© What was your brain-blast moment at AUSA?
- Reply to this email and let me know!
ποΈ Thanks to David Lawler and Matt Piper for the edits.
Sign up for Axios Future of Defense Thought Bubble


