Buzz
Warfare has dramatically advanced since the first time we faced off against another group and chose to engage in battle. We’ve evolved from reckless charges into calculated strategies with precise aim. In the past, superior numbers and tactics could guarantee victory, but today, a technologically superior but numerically smaller force can easily overcome a larger one on the battlefield.
Today, nearly all of the world’s most powerful nations are focused on securing this technological advantage, and some recent advancements in military technology seem like something straight out of science fiction. While we always knew these innovations would become standard in future warfare, we didn’t expect that future to arrive so quickly.
10. EMP
The concept of a superweapon capable of emitting a burst of electromagnetic radiation (like an electromagnetic pulse [EMP]) to disable all electronics in a given area has been a staple of science fiction for ages. An army equipped with such a weapon would have a significant upper hand in a battle, as even one operational weapon system is more valuable than thousands of disabled ones.
Numerous nations are working on developing such a weapon, but it seems the US Air Force is already ahead. Known as the Counter-electronics High-powered Microwave Advanced Missile Project (CHAMP), this weapon successfully disabled the electronics of seven separate buildings during a test in Utah. Fortunately, it’s designed to target specific systems, preventing unnecessary damage to civilians in live operations.
9. Hypersonic Missiles
The speed of sound is far slower than the speed of light, and claiming that surpassing it is a breakthrough in 2019 would be misleading. Many technologies, like military jets and missiles, can easily break the sound barrier, though they come with hefty costs. Hypersonic speed, however, is a different challenge—it’s at least five times the speed of sound and much harder to achieve.
We expected hypersonic technology to be a distant reality, but China has already tested successful hypersonic missiles. This development is troubling for China’s potential adversaries. The United States has made hypersonic missile development a key priority, so it will be fascinating to see how they respond now that China seems to have gained the lead in this arms race.
8. Micro-Drones
Three decades ago, it was hard to imagine unmanned aerial vehicles capable of carrying out military operations from a safe distance. Drones (or UAVs) have revolutionized not only warfare but also other aspects of life, such as news reporting and the occasional drunken challenge at tech school parties.
While drones are incredibly useful in combat, there are still some tasks they struggle with, like performing operations without detection. To achieve that, drones would need to be reduced to a nearly invisible size—something science fiction has often explored. While this concept might seem overly powerful and even terrifying, as tiny armed drones that no one can see could cause massive destruction in the wrong hands, the good news is that this technology is still far off in the distant future. Or is it?
In January 2017, the Pentagon revealed that it had successfully tested a swarm of 103 micro-drones, each about 16 centimeters (6 inches) long. These drones are largely autonomous, capable of collective decision-making, changing their formation based on the situation, and even 'healing' themselves. And that’s not all; there are plans to eventually fit advanced and potentially devastating technologies, including miniature nuclear devices, onto these tiny drones.
7. Weaponizing AI
Numerous scientific and military experts are deeply concerned about the role of artificial intelligence in warfare. While a full-scale killer robot uprising may not be the primary fear at this stage, it raises numerous ethical dilemmas that must be addressed. How can we ensure that autonomous, self-learning weapons can distinguish between combatants and civilians, especially when even we sometimes struggle with this? And perhaps more importantly, how do we hold a machine responsible for its actions? Jail time isn't exactly a deterrent for a machine.
Despite these concerns, artificial intelligence is already playing a much bigger role in warfare than many would be comfortable with. For example, Israel’s “Harop” loitering munition system functions as a suicide drone capable of self-destruction when it locks onto what it identifies as a target, such as enemy combatants or anti-aircraft missile systems. It’s already seen use in battle, and the terrifying part is that it decides what to dive-bomb entirely on its own. Germany is reportedly also developing fully automated missile systems capable of shooting down enemy missiles without any human intervention.
There is a glimmer of hope, however; AI developers are not as easily accessible to hire as general weapons experts. Many in Silicon Valley have explicitly refused to work with the military, striving to ensure that AI’s role in warfare remains restrained.
6. Mind-Controlled Weapons
Imagine connecting your brain to a weapon, vehicle, or robot, and controlling it with a level of precision and fluidity you could never achieve with a joystick—becoming the pilot of a fighter jet or even a giant death robot straight out of a Pacific Rim movie. If you think it’s still a long way off before such technology becomes reality, think again; the tech is already here.
In one groundbreaking study, neuroscientists created what they called the 'brainet,' where two monkeys were trained to control a digital limb simply through their thoughts. While this technology has important non-military applications, such as assisting people with brain injuries or disabilities in their daily lives, it also holds military potential. The US Department of Defense is already investigating the use of mind-controlled weapons, and we may see them deployed sooner than we think.
5. Exoskeleton Suit
Anyone familiar with first-person shooters has likely encountered the concept of an exoskeleton suit—an outer suit of powered armor designed to offer superior protection and enhanced abilities. The idea has been widely explored in fiction, with a notable example being Iron Man.
Although we might still be far from creating a suit as sophisticated as Tony Stark’s, an exoskeleton suit already exists in reality. In 2018, Russia tested its RATNIK-3 prototype, and the results were promising. The test subject was able to carry heavy loads and operate a machine gun one-handed. The suit is built with a titanium framework, which enhances the soldier’s strength and endurance.
However, it does have a limitation: the RATNIK-3 lacks substantial energy storage, meaning it can only operate for a limited amount of time. Fortunately, efforts are already underway to address this issue. Despite this, the RATNIK-3 still qualifies as a functional exoskeleton suit in our books.
4. Seeing Through Walls
Gone are the days of large-scale, face-to-face battles on open fields. Modern warfare is increasingly urban, driven in part by non-state actors and guerrilla fighters. This shift has made warfare in densely populated environments especially challenging, as ambushes and booby traps can halt even the most formidable forces, as seen in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Many nations have been striving to develop technologies that can help them scan areas before they advance. The key to that capability lies in the ability to see through walls—something no one thought possible until now. Recent breakthroughs have shown that not only is this technology much closer to reality than anticipated, but the ability to see through walls already exists.
In 2015, a radar manufacturer from the Czech Republic achieved a breakthrough by creating a device that can detect movements or breathing on the other side of a wall. And if that wasn’t impressive enough, in 2018, MIT researchers unveiled an AI-based technology that could see through walls with an 83 percent accuracy, producing real-time, stick-figure images of those behind the barrier.
In a similar achievement at the Technical University of Munich in 2017, researchers managed to accomplish the same feat using Wi-Fi routers. We’re pretty sure this is something we’ve seen in a movie before.
3. Invisibility Cloak
The ability to vanish at will isn’t just a dream for the military—it’s a concept that many of us could use in our everyday lives. First imagined in science fiction, invisibility cloaks still seem like something out of the future, even in 2019. Fortunately for both military contractors and those who often find themselves in awkward conversations, invisibility cloaks are no longer the stuff of science fiction. In fact, we’ve had one in existence since 2012.
A Canadian company named Hyperstealth Biotechnology Corporation has successfully developed a material capable of rendering objects invisible. This passive material works by bending light around an object, making it disappear from sight. Unlike other technologies, it doesn’t use any screens to replicate the background. Essentially, it’s the invisibility cloak we’ve all imagined. The US military has already shown interest in acquiring it, and it might not be long before we see it in action on the battlefield.
2. Freeze Ray
Unlike most of the other technologies on this list, which could be used by both good and rogue forces, the 'freeze ray'—a weapon capable of freezing someone in their tracks—has typically been depicted in fiction as a villain’s tool. But surely we don’t have anything that could do that from a distance and in such a quick burst of time... do we? In 2015, a team from the University of Washington developed just such a device.
The freeze ray works by using a laser to freeze a liquid. While we’ve had the technology to freeze solids in a vacuum for some time, this marked the first time that such a process was successfully applied to a liquid. It’s also worth noting that lasers usually heat up materials rather than cool them down.
The potential applications for this technology extend far beyond the realm of combat. The researchers believe it could be used to slow down and even freeze the division process in living cells, which could help us gain a deeper understanding of the processes behind aging and diseases like cancer.
1. Seeking Bullets
It’s not surprising that in warfare, skilled enemy combatants are trained to make it difficult to shoot them. This is where a type of ammunition developed by DARPA (the research division of the US Department of Defense) comes into play. Known as EXACTO, it’s capable of homing in on a hard-to-reach target and even adjusting its trajectory mid-flight based on enemy movement, all with alarming precision.
As if that weren’t impressive enough, DARPA is also working on developing an auto-aiming rifle, utilizing advanced algorithms and computation to ensure that shots are only fired when they are certain to hit. This technology removes the need for the shooter to judge factors like wind conditions or visibility, effectively automating the aiming process.
