U.S., partners work to expand warfighter technologies

February 22, 2024

159 2 minute read

The U.S. Defense Department’s Replicator initiative calls for developing scalable, autonomous weapons systems to counter the Chinese Communist Party’s munitions buildup. IMAGE CREDIT: ISTOCK

United States Strategic Command

The United States Department of Defense (DOD) is working with international and industry partners to develop scalable, autonomous weapons systems aimed at countering the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) munitions buildup.

Announced by Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks in August 2023, the Replicator initiative will streamline and accelerate delivery of innovative technology at scale.

“Replicator is meant to help us overcome the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China] biggest advantage, which is mass,” Hicks said at a National Defense Industrial Association conference in Washington, D.C. “More ships. More missiles. More people.”

To lead the initiative, Hicks established the Deputy’s Innovation Steering Group, which she co-chairs with the vice chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The group is working with the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) to meet initiative goals. Replicator’s first iteration aims to develop, produce and deliver thousands of autonomous systems within 18 to 24 months.

Autonomous systems, including self-piloting ships and uncrewed aircraft, can be developed at lower costs than crewed platforms and “closer to the tactical edge,” Hicks said. The systems can be modified, updated or improved in less time, and commanders can tolerate a higher degree of risk in deploying them. The DIU and international partners met in October 2023 in Warsaw, Poland, to gain a greater understanding of uncrewed systems’ capabilities, spurred in part by Ukraine’s success using drones to thwart advances by Russian forces.

“Together these efforts are shaving three to six years off transition and delivery timelines for warfighter priorities,” including satellite communications and surveillance systems, and anti-jamming radio links, Hicks said. “This is about systematically tackling the highest barriers to enabling and unleashing the potential of U.S. and partner innovations.”

Replicator is part of a DOD initiative to speed the deployment of new weapons technologies from research lab to warfighter, Hicks said. It will leverage existing funding, programming and authority to accelerate production and delivery at scale. The steering group is working with the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command to analyze warfighter needs, she said. DIU also is looking beyond traditional defense companies for partners that are advancing innovative technologies in the commercial sector.

Capabilities will be prioritized for the initial delivery of Replicator, DefenseScoop reported in January 2024. “The department is preparing acquisition strategies for specific systems that meet those capabilities in the timelines required by Replicator,” DOD spokesman Eric Pahon said. “And we’ll work with private sector partners whose systems are part of the acquisition strategies to accelerate production and fielding at scale.”