U.S.
Pentagon plans autonomous-warfare command as Hegseth targets 20% cut in senior posts
The proposed command would give the Pentagon a new structure for scaling autonomous and robotic systems across the armed forces. Hegseth also said the department has cut general-officer slots and is pursuing further reductions, but the command remains a plan rather than an operating combatant command.
Executive summary
- The proposal: At a Sept. 30 address at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced plans for a four-star Autonomous Warfare Command to coordinate the military's expansion of autonomous and robotic capabilities. The stated target is to establish it by Oct. 1, 2027.[1][2][3]
- The interim step: The Pentagon says an interim project, Agincourt, will prepare the transition under Defense Innovation Unit director Owen West and Navy Senior Chief Max Strasiser. The department's own release sets out a future goal; defense reporting says Congress must authorize the new command and its authorities.[1][4][5]
- A separate personnel target: Hegseth also said the department had reduced general-officer positions by an additional 10% and described a 20% reduction target overall. That is a plan for fewer senior positions; it does not mean 20% of current generals and admirals have been removed.[3][5]
Hegseth used his Sept. 30 State of the Force address at Quantico to announce a planned Autonomous Warfare Command, or AUTOWARCOM. The Defense Department describes it as a future four-star functional combatant command with service-like authorities, intended to scale autonomous and robotic capabilities across the joint force. The address was delivered to military personnel, and the Pentagon published a video of the event.[1][2][5]
The proposal reflects a shift from treating drones and other autonomous systems mainly as separate service programs toward a department-wide effort to coordinate development and fielding. Hegseth framed the initiative around adapting faster as technology and battlefield demands change. The announcement did not set out public rules for acquisition oversight, operational use or how human decision authority would be maintained across future systems.[1][3][5]
The department did not say the new command is already operating. Its release sets a goal of establishing the four-star structure by Oct. 1, 2027, and says an interim effort called Project Agincourt will develop the path. That distinction matters: an announced target and temporary project are not the same as an authorized command with assigned personnel, budget and responsibilities.[1][4][5]
Under the interim plan, Project Agincourt will be led by Owen West, director of the Defense Innovation Unit, and Navy Senior Chief Max Strasiser. The Pentagon says their work is intended to develop the new organization. Breaking Defense reports that establishing a combatant command with the authorities described by Hegseth will require congressional approval; the department's announcement itself presents the October 2027 date as a goal, not a completed legal step.[1][4][5]
Hegseth paired the organizational announcement with a separate effort to reduce senior officer posts. The Associated Press reported that he directed the services to double an earlier reduction target, reaching a 20% decrease across roughly 800 general and flag officer positions by Jan. 1, 2027. In his speech, Hegseth distinguished the positions cut from the number of officers who had left: he said about 10% of generals and admirals had been removed, while an additional 10% of slots had been reduced. The remaining cuts are a target, not a completed personnel outcome.[3][5][2]
The command's practical effect will depend on what Congress authorizes, which functions move into the structure, and how quickly the Pentagon can set acquisition and operating rules. The announcement marks an intention to elevate autonomous warfare in the military's organization; it does not establish that autonomous systems will be deployed on a particular timeline or under a new set of use-of-force policies.[1][4][5][3]