As the war in Ukraine evolves into the first comprehensive battlefield where algorithms, big data and AI-powered decision-making systems clash, we can also say that it has gone down in history as the largest conventional war Europe has seen since World War II.

The Delta system, developed by Ukraine, is one of the most striking examples of the digital transformation of warfare. Delta is an AI-powered battle management platform that integrates drone footage from the front line, satellite data, radar information, open-source intelligence and reports from troops onto a single digital map.

By analyzing thousands of different data sources in real time, the system provides commanders with situational awareness. Delta’s significance lies not merely in data collection. Thanks to computer vision algorithms, the system can automatically detect targets such as tanks, armored vehicles, artillery systems or logistics convoys in drone footage and flag them in order of priority. Consequently, Delta's systems have succeeded in reducing the time taken to identify targets from minutes to seconds; while in traditional warfare it takes time for information gathered by reconnaissance units to reach headquarters and be assessed, AI-powered systems have managed to significantly speed up this cycle.

At this stage, commanders are rapidly approaching a point where they base their decisions not only on human intelligence but also on the analyses provided by algorithms. Artificial intelligence is positioned here not as the "decision-maker" but as a decision-support element. This distinction is important because it is necessary to emphasize that the majority of systems currently in use on the battlefield are not fully autonomous, but rather semi-autonomous systems operating under human supervision.

Algorithms in drone warfare

The technology that has undoubtedly become a symbol of the Ukraine-Russia war is unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). However, as the war has progressed, drones have evolved from being merely remote-controlled platforms into AI-supported systems capable of carrying out missions involving image recognition, automatic tracking and electronic warfare. It can be said that some first-person view (FPV) drones developed by Ukraine are able to track targets via imagery thanks to computer vision. When the operator connection is lost, or the GPS signal is jammed, the drone is able to maintain its course using pre-loaded image-matching algorithms.

In particular, "Operation Spider Web," carried out in 2025, was regarded as one of the key examples demonstrating how these technologies can be utilized in practice. It is assessed that semi-autonomous navigation systems were used in long-range drone attacks targeting Russian strategic air bases during the operation.

Russia, too, has invested in similar AI-enabled drone technologies. The Lancet loitering munition and the more recently developed V2U systems are described as possessing the capability to home in on a target using image recognition in the terminal phase. These systems attempt to track the target via camera imagery even under electronic jamming.

What is particularly noteworthy here is the shift in warfare toward "cheap but smart” systems. To put it simply, electronic warfare drove the development of AI, and AI, in turn, transformed electronic warfare. Russia has long been one of the leading nations in terms of electronic warfare capabilities. GPS jamming, signal disruption and communication disruption techniques had a significant impact on Ukrainian drones in the early stages of the war. This, in turn, spurred the rapid development of AI technologies.

We know that computer vision is used in place of GPS in new-generation systems. Consequently, the drone attempts to determine its position by comparing the road network, building silhouettes, rivers, forest edges or terrain features it observes during flight with pre-loaded maps. This technology is defined as "GPS-free navigation" or "machine vision navigation."

This transformation sends a critical message regarding the wars of the future: while systems reliant on satellite signals become vulnerable to electronic warfare, AI-supported image processing systems enhance resilience. Consequently, we can state that AI has evolved into a technology that not only enhances offensive capabilities but also boosts the survivability of systems.

Expanded boundaries of war

At this stage, the development of drone technology in the Ukraine-Russia war has also altered the geographical boundaries of war. Initially used primarily for reconnaissance, target identification and attacks along the front line, drones have, as the war has progressed, evolved into strategic assets capable of targeting critical infrastructure facilities hundreds of kilometers away, including military installations, energy infrastructure, oil refineries and logistics centers.

Ukraine’s drone attacks on various regions of Russia and the vicinity of Moscow demonstrated that the war is now being waged not only on the front line but also in city centers housing critical infrastructure. One of the most recent examples of this shift is the intensified long-range drone attacks launched by Ukraine deep into Russian territory in September 2026.

In particular, the attack carried out by Ukraine against Russia on the night of Sept. 19 developed into a large-scale wave of attacks that also encompassed the Moscow area. While Russian authorities stated that more than 1,600 Ukrainian drones had been neutralized, with approximately 450 of these heading toward Moscow, the Ukrainian General Staff reported that the Gazprom Neft refinery in Moscow had been targeted. Following the attack, fires and damage occurred in some of the refinery’s main processing units; industry sources speaking to Reuters stated that the facility had halted its crude oil processing operations and that repairs could take weeks.

A capital city such as Moscow, located hundreds of kilometers away from the theater of war, as well as oil refineries, logistics centers and energy infrastructure are now within the scope of attack. Indeed, following another drone attack in early September on the Ryazan Oil Refinery, some of the facility’s main processing units were taken out of action. As the refinery is one of the key facilities supplying fuel to Moscow, the impact of the attack was not limited to the destruction of a military target.

Consequently, Ukraine’s recent attacks demonstrate that drone technology has evolved into a capability that provides access to strategic infrastructure behind the front lines. What is critical here is not merely that drones can cover longer distances. The real transformation lies in the fact that relatively low-cost unmanned systems can now threaten military, energy and logistical targets across a much wider geographical area. Thus, while the geography of the war expands horizontally, the range of targets is also broadening from the front line to strategic infrastructure.

Therefore, it is not sufficient to view the transformation brought about by AI-enabled drone technology in the Ukraine-Russia war merely as the "development of unmanned systems." The real change can be described as a shift in the strategic depth of warfare, resulting from the integration of sensing, navigation, resilience against electronic warfare and long-range strike capabilities onto a single platform.

New actors in war

Perhaps the most significant outcome of the Ukraine-Russia war is that it has demonstrated that warfare technologies are not developed solely by states. Company officials have stated that the analytics platforms developed by Palantir process satellite imagery, sensor data and field intelligence to support target prioritization and operational planning. Furthermore, we know that SpaceX’s Starlink system has provided significant support to Ukraine’s communications infrastructure, while Microsoft has supplied cloud infrastructure.

When these examples are considered together, it is possible to categorize the roles of private technology companies within the conflict into three main categories: infrastructure providers, data and intelligence providers, and decision-support actors. Starlink represents the connectivity infrastructure, Microsoft the cloud and cybersecurity capabilities, while Palantir represents data analysis and decision-support capabilities. Clearview’s AI-based image and facial recognition technologies, alongside Anduril’s technologies for defense and autonomous systems, also illustrate different dimensions of this ecosystem.

Technological capability on the battlefield is evolving from a closed system owned by a single state institution into a distributed technological architecture involving numerous actors, since private companies are no longer merely suppliers in warfare. While in the traditional model of warfare the state was the primary actor purchasing and utilizing technology, with new warfare technologies, companies are also playing a role in the processes of developing and updating technology, processing data and operating systems. The boundary between the state and companies is becoming increasingly complex.

This situation raises a more fundamental question in terms of international security: should a state’s capacity to wage war now be measured solely by the weapons and personnel possessed by its own armed forces? If a state’s communications become dependent on a private satellite network, its cyber defense on a private technology company, its intelligence analysis on a private AI system, and its operational decision support on a private data platform, then part of that state’s war-fighting capacity is effectively tied to infrastructure controlled by technological actors outside the state.

The Ukraine-Russia war clearly demonstrates that AI has altered the nature of warfare. It is not yet a fully autonomous actor in warfare that has replaced humans; however, it has become a key technology that is transforming the pace and scale of warfare. The most significant geopolitical consequence of this war is that military power is now being measured not only by the number of weapons, but also by data processing capacity, algorithmic development capability and dominance over digital infrastructure. Millions of drone images, satellite data and sensor recordings should now be regarded not merely as the memory of the war, but as strategic resources that train the AI models of the future. Consequently, the transformation taking place on the Ukrainian front demonstrates that data and computing power, as much as critical minerals, have become new geo-economic elements of international security.