In mid-April, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that for the first time in history, robotic systems had captured enemy positions without the presence of human soldiers. The conflict in Ukraine is significantly changing the way warfare is conducted. First and foremost, it is the massive deployment of flying drones, but in this case, it was ground robots. According to Zelensky, remote-controlled ground robotic systems have already participated in 22,000 combat operations in Ukraine. Some of these machines only require simple maintenance and recharging their batteries once every two days. According to CNN, the Ukrainian army wants to replace approximately a third of its infantry with robots this year. Other countries are also noticing developments on the Ukrainian battlefield. Robots may not only find application in armies, but also in rescue services or in securing buildings and infrastructure. Czech innovations in this field, increasingly equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) so that they can drive themselves, were presented this Tuesday at the Defence Research Day 2026 at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering (FEE) of the Czech Technical University. Independent, so far only in good weather The main attention at the event was focused on the autonomous robotic vehicle Taros 6×6. It is an unmanned ground platform (UGV) for use in environments that are too risky for humans. It has a load capacity of up to one ton and a maximum speed of 10 to 15 kilometers per hour depending on the terrain, while it is highly mobile even in poor terrain, including wading. A wide range of superstructures can be placed on it as needed. The development and production of the platform has been provided by VOP CZ for over ten years and it is used at the FEE of the Czech Technical University for research in the field of autonomous driving, navigation and decision-making algorithms. An older version of the vehicle has already been tested as part of NATO and Czech Ministry of Defense research projects. “It’s not just about the vehicle itself, but about the entire perception, decision-making and control system. We are aiming for the platform to be able to perform tasks with minimal dependence on humans,” says Jan Faigl, head of the Computational Robotics Laboratory (CRL) at the Department of Computer Science at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, CTU. According to Faigl, fully autonomous and reliable navigation of such vehicles can already be achieved today – with the help of cameras or LiDARs, typically with the help of satellite navigation (GNSS). However, these systems and technologies can usually only be used under very favorable weather conditions, and these do not always prevail. “We have been pursuing a solution without GNSS for a long time. Open challenges remain in cases where conditions are not favorable – for example, GNSS is not available, the image from the cameras is degraded by the weather, or the environment does not provide suitable structures for the use of LiDAR. This is the area we are focusing on: expanding the possibilities of operational deployment so that the system can operate in the widest possible range of scenarios,” adds Faigl. Cheaper robot not only for soldiers, but also for rescuers and security The Vision for Robots and Autonomous Systems (VRAS) group at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, CTU, also showed its own wheeled robot - specifically a tricycle - at the Defence Research Day 2026. The new tactical robot is called Helhest, after the three-legged horse from Danish mythology, and it is not just an experimental prototype. The scientists introduced it last year, when they also founded the first spin-off, i.e. a company spun off from CTU in the field of robotics, and headed to the market with it. Helhest is fast, durable, designed for demanding conditions and also cheap. It reaches speeds of up to 20 kilometers per hour, can carry 100 kilograms and overcome even half-meter obstacles, and thanks to its design, it can get back on its wheels and continue its mission if it overturns, which was also confirmed during the international Alpine exercise organized by the Austrian army. This robot is also modular and its autonomous navigation is based mainly on passive sensors - mainly cameras, which allows operation without GPS and reduces the threat of detection of the robot. Potential applications include military and rescue reconnaissance, transportation of sensors for detecting chemical substances, underground operations and assistance in difficult-to-access terrain. Helhest is currently offering the robot as an R&D platform for research and start-ups for 12 thousand euros, or almost 300 thousand crowns. Helhest is currently negotiating a joint project with G4S, which deals with the security of objects, and also cooperates with the University of Defence in research. Drones without GPS Czech scientists are also developing autonomous flying robots. The Multi-Robot Systems (MRS) group from the Department of Cybernetics is working on both safe machines for the protection of critical infrastructure and on swarms of drones inspired by the collective behavior of birds. Researchers at CTU are also focusing on ensuring that their technologies are not dependent on risky supply chains. Scientists are also working on autonomous control technologies for flying drones without the use of GNSS, and the robots are equipped with, for example, shooting nets to capture their airborne robotic enemies. Virtual training for pyrotechnicians and a holographic control room Defense Research Day 2026 also presented tools using artificial intelligence for analyzing the information space, technologies for testing and securing communication networks, systems for detecting gunfire, and augmented reality for intervention units.
For example, a virtual reality is being created at CTU for training pyrotechnicians, in which various situations related to the identification and disposal of unexploded ordnance can be safely simulated. The virtual environment allows for training in decision-making processes, work with detection tools and control of specialized robots to an extent that would be difficult to implement in real conditions with regard to time, finances and safety. Scientists from the CTU FEE have been collaborating on the project with the pyrotechnic battalion of the Czech Army from Bechyně since last year. Another project - Holo-Swarm - is being created in cooperation with the company QuaternAR. The so-called holographic control room uses augmented reality to display the situation in the field as an interactive 3D model, into which data on the movement of units - for example, swarms of drones, their status or planned routes - are projected. Users can share this data, analyze it and directly influence the course of the operation in real time. The researchers want to start offering the system by next spring at the latest. The AR Rescue project, which connects vital signs sensors, detection of hazardous substances and augmented reality to support emergency response units, has also attracted attention, and is being worked on by a team from the Intelligent Systems Testing Laboratory at the Department of Computer Science. The system is intended for firefighters, military units and other units responding to environments where there is a risk of chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear threats. It is intended to provide responders with key information in real time about their own condition, the condition of their colleagues and the dangers in the surroundings, without unnecessary overload or distraction. Important warnings are displayed in the augmented reality visor on the helmet, while the commander of the intervention can monitor more detailed data in a specialized application.