Hegseth, service secretaries discuss ‘generational change’ of Autonomous Warfare Command

The Autonomous Warfare Command, or AUTOWARCOM, is a planned four-star combatant command for advancing autonomous warfare. It is intended to help the Defense Department develop, acquire, train with, and use autonomous systems more quickly. Its scheduled activation date is October 1, 2027.

The command would address more than buying equipment. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said it would also handle training and doctrine for unmanned systems. The Army has already renamed its Futures and Concepts Command as Futures and Autonomy Command, creating its planned service component.

The command’s exact structure and mission remain unclear. Officials provided few details at an AUSA panel. Hegseth described a process of repeated learning and adaptation over the next two years. The services are expected to build related commands, but only the Army has announced its component so far.

AUTOWARCOM is expected to sit above separate service component commands. Those components would connect the Army, Navy, Air Force, and other military services to the new combatant command. This structure could give each service a dedicated organization while keeping autonomous warfare efforts connected across the military.

The Army has taken the first visible step. It is renaming Futures and Concepts Command, led by Lt. Gen. Mac McCurry, as Futures and Autonomy Command. That organization will be the Army’s component nested under AUTOWARCOM.

The article does not name the other component commands. The Navy had not responded to questions about its plans, and the Air Force referred questions to Hegseth’s office. Therefore, four service components are expected based on the services discussed, but only one had been publicly identified.

Pete Hegseth believes a four-star combatant command could give autonomous warfare a senior leader with enough authority to push rapid change. He said rank should be placed where it is needed to get the job done. The goal is to avoid relying only on older formations and commands that have not led battlefield efforts.

A combatant command could focus attention across acquisition, training, doctrine, and operations. Hegseth said AUTOWARCOM should keep iterating, adapting, and learning. In his view, repeated efforts should make the Defense Department better and faster at developing autonomous capabilities.

This approach is still being formed. Hegseth did not identify a commander or explain what experience candidates would need. The article also provides few details about how the new command will work, so its practical effect remains uncertain.

AUTOWARCOM could change military practice by making autonomous warfare a coordinated effort. Hegseth said the command would cover procurement, training, and doctrine around unmanned systems. Connecting those areas could help the military buy systems that units can actually operate and integrate.

The mechanism would be repeated testing and adaptation. The Army is opening test ranges to private companies developing drones, counter-drone systems, and long-range fires solutions. Theater innovation labs would give operators abroad places to continue improving systems developed in the United States.

The change is not complete. AUTOWARCOM is scheduled to activate by October 1, 2027, and its design remains under development. Officials have described goals and current experiments, but they have not explained the command’s final organization or specific battlefield programs.

An unmanned system operates without a person physically inside the vehicle or platform. It may still be controlled remotely by a human operator. An autonomous system can function without a human operator directly controlling each action, making decisions or carrying out tasks through its own systems.

The article highlights this distinction because much of the military’s current activity involves unmanned platforms, not fully autonomous systems. Officials discussed drones, counter-drone systems, autonomous fighter aircraft, and systems designed to act at superhuman speed and scale.

AUTOWARCOM is intended to focus on autonomous capabilities, while also addressing unmanned systems. Army officials said humans should remain involved in important decisions. The planned command therefore sits between today’s remotely operated platforms and a future in which systems can handle more tasks independently.

Expanded test ranges could remove a major delay for companies developing drones, counter-drone systems, and long-range fires solutions. Instead of waiting for tightly controlled military testing opportunities, private firms could apply to use Army ranges and receive a response within four weeks.

The key mechanism is rapid iteration. Companies and operators can test a system, identify problems, make changes, and test again. Theater innovation labs would extend that process outside the United States, giving stateside operators places to continue working when they deploy abroad. SOCOM is helping launch those labs.

The effort is already underway, but its results are not yet described. The Army announced the Permissive Test Range Expansion effort in August. Anderson also said the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group would move into SOCOM’s Task Force Autonomous Warfare, linking innovation work with special operations.

Humans “on the loop” means people remain responsible for supervising autonomous systems and making or approving important decisions. They do not necessarily direct every movement or engagement manually. Instead, the system performs tasks while human operators monitor its behavior and retain judgment over critical actions.

The challenge is scale and speed. Army Chief Technology Officer Alex Miller cited counter-battery fire and air and missile defense as examples requiring superhuman speed. He said humans should stay involved in decisions, but cannot personally manage thousands of drones or hundreds of rounds.

The proposed solution is to let people act as crew chiefs for superintelligence and autonomy. That would preserve human judgment while allowing machines to handle more simultaneous activity. The article does not specify exactly how oversight will work, but it presents this balance as central to future autonomous warfare.