How US Special Operations Forces are using AI to transform modern warfare

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been reshaping warfare and guaranteeing its place in future special operations. Due to its capacity to process vast amounts of data, accelerate decision-making and improve situational awareness, US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) foresees a growing use of AI in the coming years.

USSOCOM has already been deploying AI tools and autonomous systems to expand the reach and lethality of military forces at the tactical edge and intends to rely more on this type of solution both as stand-alone capabilities and in human-machine teaming.

Speaking in a session last week at the SOF Week 2026 exhibition, in Tampa, Florida, USSOCOM acquisition executive Melissa A Johnson explained that the service seeks to use this technology “not just in new systems, but even integrating it into legacy systems”.

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“We need to make sure that those [in service capabilities] are modernised, not only to provide both kinetic and non-kinetic effects, but that they are survivable in highly contested environments,” Johnson added.

One of AI’s operational and tactical advantages is in reducing the cognitive burden on users, allowing them to conduct faster predictive assessments and supporting commanders to identify patterns that human operators might miss.

The Commander of the Task Force ABLE (a specialised SOF unit within the US Navy’s Naval Special Warfare Command), Capt James L Clark, told the SOF Week 2026 audience that this is a critical aspect because “speed is relevant to decision-makers”.

“If you can buy a decision-maker an hour, two hours, a day, a week, you have provided them with optionality, and that is what senior leadership is always looking for,” Clark remarked.

Meanwhile, for Maj Gen (Ret) Clay Hutmacher, adviser at Primer Technologies, the use of AI is “really a journey without a destination”. “You are going to continue to improve on that.”

USSOCOM has been prioritising the acquisition of EW-resistant drones, attritable and low-cost uncrewed aerial systems (UAS), counter-UAS capabilities, autonomous logistics and targeting tools.

“What we are trying to do is build different systems that will allow us to be able to fight in a way that we are seeing play out between Ukraine and Russia as we saw last year,” Clark stated.

Speaking to Shephard, Bryan Bockmon, CEO of AimLock, a US-based supplier of targeting and engagement systems for defence applications, remarked that the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and in the Middle East have been pushing military services across the globe towards investing in AI-enabled capabilities.

“The low-cost, high-volume solutions are absolutely dominating everything right now. It is an economic driver, a technology driver and a capacity driver,” Bockmon added.

From his perspective, those events “have driven a pretty incredible increase in demand”. “Systems and products that have been available for years are now being drawn into immediate action,” he said.

USSOCOM investments in AI in FY2027

Although the USSOCOM’s FY2027 budget proposal does not include a dedicated AI funding line, the nearly US$ 6 billion requested for intelligence, combat development, cyber and operational support provides resources for efforts associated with AI, autonomy and human-machine teaming.

It covers the acquisition and development of aerial, ground and maritime robotic capabilities for reconnaissance, logistics, electronic warfare and precision-strike missions and continues funding air vehicles, payloads, ground control stations, training systems and mission kits under the Multi-Mission Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems (MTUAS) programme.

Additionally, the funding will go towards the modernisation of Group 4 MQ-1C Gray Eagle and Group 3 ScanEagle UAVs and the purchase of expendable drones. For disposable capabilities, though, the branch has not specified what models it plans to procure.

The USSOCOM also pursues Group 3 signature-managed systems and swarm carrier platforms. This strategy involves turning the MQ-9 aircraft into a drone mothership to launch smaller UAVs.

Changing the AI acquisition course

Another interesting part of the FY2027 request is the shift in the branch’s approach from simply buying drones to building an autonomous warfare ecosystem tailored for Special Operations Forces (SOF) operations.

It includes investments in tactical and airborne mission networking as well as in alternative positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) technologies.

The service allocated funds to advance the development of onboard computing and AI tools for operations in contested or disrupted, degraded, intermittent and low bandwidth (DDIL) environments, where communications may be degraded or denied.

It will enable the USSOCOM to progress with the Mission Command System/Common Operational Picture (MCS/COP), Programme Number 841, which is a software acquisition pathway effort to provide shared situational awareness for SOF commanders across all domains at tactical, operational and strategic levels.

“The MCS/COP delivers a near real-time common operational picture for understanding of the intelligence and operational environment and support decision-making,” the branch stated in its FY2027 proposal papers.

According to the service’s justification documents, in FY2026, this initiative focuses on specific integration and data transport into the Joint Fires Network. For the next fiscal year, it will cover the procurement of additional equipment to increase processing power, enabling data-rich sensor integration and autonomous vehicle C2 applications. It will also fund advancements in generative AI enablement and data transport for the mesh network.

Moreover, in FY2027, the service intends to progress with the acquisition of small uncrewed multidomain systems (sUMS) and a microvisual positioning capability to allow continuous autonomous operations where GPS is blocked or unreliable.

Using AI to prepare “super soldiers”

Johnson remarked that “the human is more important than the hardware”, and increasing the cognitive and physical abilities is a priority for the service. For that matter, the FY2027 budget supports deepening the use of AI to prepare personnel to succeed in modern warfare environments.

USSOCOM outlined in its justification papers: “Future technology development will focus on creating artificial intelligence prototypes for scenario preparation and object control, streamlining mission planning and increasing adaptability for complex training scenarios.”

“Collectively, these upgrades enhance training realism, operational readiness and mission success while reducing risks and costs associated with live flight training,” the FY2027 budget documents added.

During a session at SOF Week 2026, Col Amanda Robbins, USSOCOM command psychologist and clinical psychology consultant to the Army Surgeon General, noted that AI can also enhance warfighters’ individual performance by providing and analysing training and health data.

In her opinion, it improves diagnostics and enables operators to have access to early treatment. “It means that that guy gets back on the line faster.”

Potential for development

Defence companies envision that there are still capability gaps across USSOCOM that can be plugged with the support of the defence industrial base.

“We see opportunities coming. We see a space in the market where [medium uncrewed surface vessels] fill a mission need,” Todd Greene, director of advanced technologies with the Maryland-based robotic maritime supplier BlackSea, explained to Shephard.

For Brett Melancon, Anduril’s chief solutions architect, there is room for improvement in connecting and networking solutions for operations DDIL environments.

“We foresee that we can reduce the amount of resources that are required [in deployments in DDIL scenarios],” Melancon told Shephard. “We can dial in [SOF teams] use cases, in their resource constraints, in the core customer set needs, and we can build it out completely from end to end.”

In a panel at SOF Week 2026, Capt (Ret) Eric Jabs, strategic integrator of the Commander, Submarine Forces (COMSUBFOR), with the Naval Sea Systems Command Warfare Centre, highlighted the need to involve the suppliers in the implementation of AI. “There are opportunities that we, at SUBFOR, really want industry support right now.”

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