Germany looks to AI for help with combat decisions – army chief

Berlin plans to use Ukraine’s experience to develop an advisory tool, Lieutenant General Christian Freuding has said

The German military is developing an artificial intelligence system to speed up battlefield decision-making by analyzing combat data, Lieutenant General Christian Freuding has said, adding that it will draw on Ukraine’s experience of fighting Russia.

The remarks by Freuding, the commander of the German land forces, come as the country is undertaking a major military buildup. Chancellor Friedrich Merz is seeking to make the German military “the strongest conventional army in Europe.” German officials have set 2029 as the deadline for the armed forces to be “war-ready,” citing the supposed Russian threat. Moscow has dismissed claims that it harbors hostile intentions as “nonsense” aimed at justifying increased military spending.

“I think it's important that we get something up and running quickly,” Freuding told Reuters on Wednesday. He had previously overseen German arms supplies to Kiev before taking up his current position in October 2025. An advocate of close military cooperation between Berlin and Kiev, Freuding previously unveiled plans for the Ukrainian military to help train German troops for a possible conflict with Russia.

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He now also wants to use data from the Ukraine conflict for the new AI initiative.

“The Ukrainians exploit data which they have collected over four years of war. Based on this data, the AI can deduce how the enemy has acted in similar situations in the past – and recommend countermeasures,” he said, adding that final decisions would still be made by humans.

Berlin has been investing heavily in various projects as part of its military buildup, including some futuristic initiatives such as spy cockroaches and space lasers. Last year, the Financial Times reported that Berlin had authorized contracts worth over $1 billion for kamikaze drones despite “disastrous” test results.

Moscow previously warned that Berlin is reverting to its worst historical practices. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said last year: “with their current leaders, modern Germany and the rest of Europe are transforming into a Fourth Reich.”