In October, EKTL visited the Association of the United States Army – AUSA conference in the United States, where both small and large US companies and the different branches of the US Army with their capabilities – from SOF to medicine and future technologies – were represented.
Talking to representatives of both the US Army and companies, it turned out that this year there was a big emphasis on robots and autonomous systems – this was also seen in the exhibits presented at the conference. Largely behind this push is the US Department of Defense and the Army’s desire to develop Human-Machine Integrated Formations to figure out how soldiers and robots work together on the battlefield. The goal is integrated formations, where robot systems are integrated into the composition of units with soldiers, with the aim that the robots make the first contact with the enemy.
What has been seen and experienced in America confirms that EKTL is moving in the right direction with its future focus. The companies in our cluster are working on a wide variety of high-tech future solutions, which make us a necessary partner for both the American and European defense industries. EKTL cluster manager Rene Ehasalu spoke about what was seen in US and future directions at Kuku studio Sihik show. Interview is available here.