U.S. Army Tests AI Systems During African Lion 2026 Exercise in Morocco

U.S. and partner forces conducted the African Lion 2026 military exercise this month in arid southern Morocco. The annual event, described as the largest U.S.-led exercise in Africa, involved conventional artillery and live-fire training alongside tests of artificial-intelligence systems.

Personnel at a Joint Operations Center in Agadir used an AI platform developed by Palantir to process battlefield data. Lt. Col. Ramon Leonguerrero stated that one targeting decision cycle was completed in three minutes, compared with two or three hours five years earlier.

The same system incorporates Anthropic's Claude large-language model to let operators query data in plain English. Military and industry sources said the model remains in use despite earlier public disagreements between Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the company.

AI operated its ULTRA fully autonomous vehicle during the exercise. The five-foot-tall robot can be directed by a remote operator and carries a machine gun, mines, and explosives. 1st Lt. Vincent Gasparri said the vehicle allowed roughly 40 soldiers to be replaced by two robots in one drill, reducing exposure to danger.

Overland AI Director of Business Development Tim Bishop noted that full automation of the mounted weapon remains technically possible but is not yet deployed.

Command Views on Future Use Gen. Dagvin R.M. Anderson, commander of U.S.

Africa Command, told CBS News that moral and ethical questions remain but that adversaries are adopting the technology. He said failing to adopt AI would place U.S. forces at a disadvantage. An unnamed U.S. soldier interviewed during the exercise said responsibility for lethal decisions should not be delegated to computers.