According to New Scientist magazine, Oleksandr Kohanovsky, a Ukrainian drone manufacturer, has confirmed that the world witnessed the first instance of a fully autonomous AI drone carrying out lethal operations on the Russia-Ukraine battlefield in 2024. During this event, a swarm of 10 quadcopter drones, operating in what has been dubbed 'Terminator Mode,' autonomously located and engaged Russian soldiers without any human intervention. This development marked a historic milestone, as it was the first time that the ultimate decision-making authority for conducting killings on the battlefield was entirely delegated to artificial intelligence.

After traveling a distance of 3 to 5 kilometers, these drones seamlessly transitioned into autonomous mode, independently executing the tasks of target acquisition, identification, and subsequent attack. Following the operation, the Ukrainian military deployed reconnaissance drones to assess the outcome. Their findings confirmed that several Russian soldiers and a truck had been successfully neutralized.