The US military is testing the ‘Lone Wolf’ robot dog with an AI-powered gun in the Middle East

The US military is closer to unleashing robots on the battlefield after sending a so-called ‘Lone Wolf’ to the Middle East.

The robot dog carries an AR-15/M16 cartridge rifle on its back that is attached to an AI-powered rotating mount that can spot aerial targets.

The armed machine was sent abroad for rehearsal exercises at the Red Sands Integrated Experimentation Center in Saudi Arabia.

The Army shared a photo of Lone Wolf last week, showing a Korean-made Ghost Robotics Vision 60 Quadrupedal-Unmanned Ground Vehicle (Q-UGV) at an undisclosed location.

This was said by a spokesperson for the US military Military.com that the armed robot dog was one of several “non-counter-UAS” systems tested in September.

The other platforms include Apaches helicopters and remotely operated weapon stations.

The Red Sands Integrated Experimentation Center is part of the strategic relationship between the US and the Arab Gulf States, which opened in 2022.

The spokesperson only shared that it concerns the robot The weapon attacked several static ground targets, but declined to elaborate on its possible applications.

DailyMail.com has contacted the US military for more information.

The Lone Wolf rifle has a large electro-optical targeting system to locate aerial targets with infrared or thermal vision capabilities.

Although the military has not named the robot Lone Wolf, the name was etched on the large objective lens.

The armed four-legged machine would be ideal for maneuvering in and out of spaces inaccessible to human soldiers, allowing them to shoot down drones out of harm’s way.

There’s also a laser aiming device on the side of the robot, along with a GoPro-style video camera mounted on the mast at the back.

The armed robot already appeared in the US on August 1 at Fort Drum in New York for the Army’s Operation Hard Kill, which was a demonstration of the department’s ability to use UAS equipment for unmanned aircraft systems.

Spectators at the ‘live fire exercise’ watched as Lone Wolf walked through an open, grassy area and moved his AI-powered camera to focus on targets.

The Pentagon has added robot dogs to its arsenal in recent years, with the Marines testing quadrupedal robots with remote-controlled weapons systems and anti-tank missile launchers.

The army also manned its department with four-legged machines and supplied them with high-powered rifles.

However, the US is not the only country with robot dogs.

Russia, China and the United Kingdom are also experimenting with the creepy technology.

The exercises in the Middle East are part of the US partnership with the Gulf States. However, the robot dog was previously spotted during running exercises in New York last summer

The robot dog is equipped with an AR-15 rifle mounted on an AI-powered rotating platform. Although the military has not named the robot Lone Wolf, the name was etched on the large objective lens

In May 2024, robohounds with machine guns were unveiled by China during a military training exercise conducted by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and Cambodian armed forces.

In a video shared by state broadcaster CCTV, the creatures can operate for between two and four hours, planning routes, approaching targets and avoiding obstacles.

The Department of Defense has also been testing similar technology and trying out the “potential use cases” of the Ghost robot dog in 2022.

Developed by Ghost Robotics, it can navigate complex urban and natural terrains, carry up to 22 pounds, and even deploy by parachute.

Discussing its capabilities, Lance Corporal Heath of the 16 Air Assault Brigade said: ‘As airborne engineers we would certainly use this as our eyes and ears. If we were approaching a compound or an uncertain area, we would be looking for equipment that would allow us to move forward and explore the area.

‘For things like thermal imaging, you can connect ‘LIDAR’ so you can map a 3D image. Commanders would thus be able to assess the dangers and mitigate future dangers. The sole purpose of such equipment is to keep soldiers out of harm’s way.”

Russia has also put its robot dog on display, with one strapped to a rocket launcher in 2022.