Across the Ukrainian frontlines, a new kind of battlefield has emerged — one where drones, precision strikes, and electronic warfare have rendered traditional logistics nearly impossible. Alain Gavin explores how AI-driven Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) are redefining survivability, and why software-first autonomy could become Europe’s decisive edge in modern warfare.

Europe’s Armed Forces Face a 15km 'Death Zone' — Startups Could Be the Key to Surviving It 🚀
Europe’s militaries are confronting a new battlefield reality: a 15km "zone of total death" identified from the Ukrainian frontlines, where traditional logistics and manned operations have become lethal due to drones, electronic warfare, and precision strikes.
At the recent UK-Ukraine Defence Tech Forum, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi put it bluntly:
“Classical offensive operations are not just ineffective — they’re suicidal in these zones.”
This challenge demands a radical rethink of logistics at the tactical edge. Troops cannot risk driving trucks into these zones. Instead, quiet, electric Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) must be deployed to ferry ammunition, supplies, and even evacuate the wounded — taking humans out of harm’s way.
But here’s the breakthrough: AI-driven autonomy is making this possible.
Startups like TENCORE are scaling rapidly to meet this need, delivering modular UGVs capable of:
- Autonomous navigation in GPS- and comms-denied environments using AI-powered perception and route planning
- Real-time adaptation to battlefield threats without direct operator control
- Modular mission-switching — from logistics to mine-laying to fire support — on a single platform
These vehicles are engineered for extreme resilience and flexibility: battery swaps in under 10 seconds, lego-like repairability, and minimal human intervention.
But let’s be clear:
Hardware is now table stakes. It’s software that will win the wars of the future.
The edge lies in the software layer:
AI that can navigate and decide under electronic warfare and jamming
Swarming algorithms that enable distributed, coordinated missions
Autonomous decision-making at the tactical edge without waiting for command uplinks
The startup opportunity? Europe’s militaries urgently need:
AI-first, software-defined autonomy platforms
Interoperable software ecosystems across NATO forces
Rapid software iteration matching the speed of battlefield adaptation
In today’s wars, humans are the most expensive and vulnerable resource. AI-enabled autonomy isn’t just a buzzword it’s the frontline’s survival mechanism.
The future of defence will be fought in code, deployed on autonomous machines.
If you’re building robotics, AI, autonomy platforms, or distributed software systems, this is your moment.
Let’s connect: Europe’s defence ecosystem is ready for bold innovators.

