US Marine Corps buys first autonomous ground vehicle fleet to run frontline missions Marine Corps will receive more than a dozen autonomous ground vehicles under a $19.7 million production award supporting MADIS resupply operations. Read Next: Abrams vs T-90: How US's and Russia's flagship battle tanks compareOverland AI has secured a $19.7 million production agreement with the U.S. Marine Corps to supply autonomous ground vehicles for the Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS), marking a significant step toward deploying fully autonomous vehicles in frontline military operations. The Seattle-based company will deliver more than a dozen vehicles by early 2027 under an Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreement awarded through the Pentagon’s Accelerate the Procurement and Fielding of Innovative Technologies (APFIT) program. The production effort represents the first time a ground autonomy company has served as the prime contractor for a production contract of its kind. Autonomy enters production Unlike traditional unmanned ground vehicles that rely heavily on remote operators, Overland AI’s platform can navigate and make driving decisions independently. Operators assign a destination, and the onboard software plans routes, interprets terrain, and controls the vehicle without continuous human input. Personnel can still assume remote control whenever needed. Chief Executive Officer Byron Boots said demand for autonomous ground systems has increased sharply as militaries evaluate lessons from recent conflicts, including the war in Ukraine. “Ground autonomy matters now more than ever,” Boots said. “We’re registering extremely high demand from U.S. operational units who want to incorporate this technology into their concepts of operation.” The company expects to deliver the vehicles in roughly nine months. Officials did not disclose the exact number of platforms or technical specifications, including payload capacity and vehicle type. More from Military See AllSupporting air defense missions Marine Corps officials plan to integrate the autonomous vehicles into the MADIS