❯ The US Army sets up an autonomous systems command and gives unmanned equipment its own acquisition chief

One memoAccording to a memo obtained by Axios, acting Army Secretary Adam Telle signed an order on October 1 creating the Army Futures and Autonomous Systems Command (FASCOM) and designating an acquisition executive dedicated to autonomous systems, with priority on buying and fielding smart machinery.

Following Hegseth's projectsThe order came a day after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth unveiled the Meridian and Agincourt projects on September 30. According to DroneXL, Agincourt is an interim effort to prepare a four-star Autonomous Warfare Command, targeted for October 1, 2027. Meridian is a 120-day study of future warfare co-directed by Elon Musk, Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey and others.

Fielding by fiscal 2028According to Breaking Defense, the new executive must prioritize acquiring and fielding autonomous fires, combat vehicles, watercraft resupply and manned-unmanned teaming systems by fiscal 2028. The Army will also adjust force structure in six formation types, including aviation, armored, sustainment and training, and expand authorized positions for drone operators and robotics technicians.

Where the orders goA dedicated command and acquisition chief mean unmanned equipment no longer competes for budget scattered across programs, and defense technology companies that build autonomous systems face a clearer buyer, among them Anduril, which won a $20 billion Army counter-drone contract in March. The new command still needs legislation and appropriations from Congress, and the fiscal 2028 timetable depends on that.

▪ SIGNALOnce an army creates a command just for machines, the question about autonomous weapons has moved from whether to use them to who runs them and who buys them.