Drones piloted by artificial intelligence are now being deployed on the Ukrainian front lines, and while there has been much talk about them, there is still much that remains unknown. The US-made Hornet Drone, which is partially guided by AI, is at the centre of a new Ukrainian strategy to target Russian logistics.
For the past few months, a drone has been prowling Russian logistics routes. The Hornet, which the Russians call the "Martian-2", is a mid-range kamikaze drone partially piloted by artificial intelligence.
The drone – which is built of polystyrene, has a 2-metre wingspan and a range of more than 100 km – costs $6,000 USD. It can hit a target at a speed of 200 km/h and can carry a 4.5kg payload. After the drone is launched using a catapult, it flies using an electric propeller motor, which means that it is nearly silent, according to Russian sources. It is piloted using two cameras.
The US-designed Hornet was developed by the American company Perennial Autonomy, which was founded and financed by former Google CEO, Eric Schmidt. This drone is frequently used in US Army training exercises. However, in July 2025, Perennial Autonomy – then called Swift Beat – made a deal to supply Ukraine with drones. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on May 5 that Ukraine had quadrupled its number of mid-range strikes, meaning those beyond 20 kilometres, between February and April 2026.
Once the drone is in Russian-occupied territory, it can apparently pilot itself using artificial intelligence, a system that makes it less vulnerable to Russian signal jamming.
The drone is said to be able to automatically identify its targets before striking. It is, however, very difficult to know the precise role played by artificial intelligence in the decision taken to strike. Our team contacted Perennial Autonomy, who did not want to comment on the drone’s piloting system. The Ukrainian Army did not respond to our questions.
Elite Ukrainian units like the Azov and Khartia Brigades have been posting images of Hornet drones striking Russian supply convoys. On his Telegram channel, Russian military blogger Alexander Kharchenko admitted that Russian “logistics is seriously disrupted”. He said that the Hornet is allowing Ukrainians to strike at an unprecedented distance: “Until recently, the guys were easily carrying out patrols 50 kilometres from the frontlines. But now, this area is under fire by the Hornets.”
‘The drone approaches its target silently, we don’t have time to react’
In video after video, the same scene repeats over and over. The drone flies over the area, spots a Russian truck or another piece of equipment and marks its target with a red square. Then, it hurtles toward its target to detonate.
On Telegram, another Russian military blogger described how Hornet drones work: “In most cases, the drone flies at a low altitude (around 200 m) all along our roads. It identifies its target and attacks. The drone approaches its target silently, most of the time, we don’t have time to react.”
A drone striking behind the lines
On May 8, the Azov Brigade deployed a Hornet drone in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, which is occupied by the Russians. They flew over the edges of the city, which is more than 100 kilometres from any Ukrainian positions.
It’s not the first time that a Hornet has flown so far: according to an analysis by the FRANCE 24 Observers, out of 13 videos of drone strikes posted online by different Ukrainian units, nine of them took place more than 80 kilometres from the front line.
George Barros, director of innovation at the Institute for the Study of War, says that the Hornet is partially guided using artificial intelligence:
"Once the Hornet enters Russian territory, its partial AI guidance allows it to independently select its target. Even without a connection to the pilot, the drone can recognise a Russian truck or armoured vehicle. This makes it resistant to jamming, since it no longer depends entirely on the signal used by the pilot to guide it.
The Hornet is also capable of flying autonomously during the final meters of the attack thanks to artificial intelligence. This is particularly useful because some Russian vehicles are equipped with jammers. However, the precise role of AI in the drone’s operation remains unclear.“
According to the researcher, this system enables the drone to strike far behind Russian lines, most notably in the Mariupol region:
“Mariupol is a major logistical hub, with numerous highways connecting southern Ukraine to the Donetsk region. Large numbers of troops and significant quantities of ammunition transit through this area.
Using small FPV-type kamikaze drones, the Ukrainians were already able to strike Russian positions located up to 30 kilometres from the front line. With missiles and long-range drones, they can hit Russian refineries hundreds — even thousands — of kilometres away.
But there is an operational gap between 30 km and 120 km that allows the Russians to deploy their logistics and prepare their assaults. It is within this space, referred to as the ‘intermediate depth,’ that the Ukrainians are trying to operate.”
When a Russian organisation is able to study the drone
Russian Telegram channel Ghost_Malleus_Maleficarum, which specialises in the technical analysis of Ukrainian drones, reported that the Hornet has a “success rate above 80%”. Meaning that volunteers from the Coordination Centre for Assistance to Novorossiya (KCPN), an organisation that trains Russian soldiers in operating drones, were thrilled to get their hands on a downed drone that they could study. Volunteers from this organisation wrote a 100-page report on the components of a Hornet drone.
The document describes the drone’s ability to use artificial intelligence and mentions that they contain Qualcomm processors, a unit capable of processing data from several cameras present on the engine using artificial intelligence.
Russian military blogger UAVDEV reported that the signal enabling a pilot to remotely control the drone is hidden amongst civilian wifi traffic, which enables it to circumnavigate Russian electronic war systems that don’t jam non-military wifi.
Russian military bloggers admit that the drone detectors currently used by the Russian army have blind spots that include the radio frequencies used by the Hornet. KCPN reported that the Ukrainians obtained and analysed Russian detectors, enabling them to adapt this new wave of Ukrainian drones. The report castigates the designers of the Russian jammers, who aren’t admitting their failures to stop Ukrainian drones.
But Barros says that electronic warfare alone is not sufficient to counter the threat of drones.
“Jammers cannot be 100% effective against drones. They can only operate on limited frequencies — it is impossible to jam every frequency at once. A jammer can only disrupt signals within a limited geographical area determined by its range, so choices have to be made. These systems also cannot operate continuously around the clock because they need to be recharged.
There is no miracle solution. The Russians will have to adapt the entirety of their logistics and supply train if they want to protect the rear."
This article has been translated from the original in French by Brenna Daldorph.
