Robot “MAUL” Was FORGED From the Ashes of Ukraine’s War

[00:00:00]Forged from the ashes of the Ukraine war arises  something special. Unkillable. Unstoppable. A metal machine unlike any other that is being  developed not just by Ukraine, but by one of its strongest allies. Sweden is making its  mark on Ukraine’s campaign against Russia, and it will work alongside Ukraine to bring  something new to life: Maul. This new ground robot keeps soldiers alive by putting them into coffins,  and it’s coming to the battlefield. Meetings have been held. Pen has been put to paper. The Maul  is coming, and Joint Forces has the details. On June 11, the outlet reported that the Ukrainian  company AIDronesUA has finalized a deal with the Swedish defense firm NJORD Technology AB. At the  Eurosatory 2026 event in Paris, which was held on June 16, the two companies formalized a Strategic  Partnership Memorandum, making official a deal that will bring the Maul ground robotic system to  Ukraine. That deal isn’t simply one company buying from another. Ukraine and Sweden will be working  together on the production of the Maul, and, even more concerning for Putin, these two companies  will also collaborate on the development of more robotic systems that will be brought to the  Ukrainian battlefield. AIDronesUA explains more in a statement released on the day of the signing.  “Maul ground drone is a system developed based on real battlefield experience and is continuously  improved through feedback from military users.

[00:01:27]Together with NJORD Technology AB, we plan to  establish joint production of the Maul platform in Sweden, which will expand manufacturing capacity  and accelerate the delivery of robotic systems,” the company says. This is huge for Ukraine.  The new deal means that Ukraine finally has a throughline for bringing large numbers of one  of the most morbidly useful robots that has ever been created in greater numbers to the frontline.  Why do we say “morbid?” You’ll learn more when we dig into the Maul, but this robot is essentially  a big coffin on wheels that is used to evacuate wounded soldiers from the front lines. A capsule  opens, the soldier crawls inside, and the rolling coffin brings the soldier to safety, where they  can receive treatment for their wounds and survive injuries that might otherwise have killed them.  Ukraine is bringing a coffin that saves lives to a battlefield where Russian soldiers are dying in  droves. The irony is palpable. And the deal that has just been signed isn’t the first that we’ve  heard of the Maul platform. Though Sweden is now getting involved in production, it was specialists  from Ukraine’s First Separate Medical Battalion who developed the robot and first brought it onto  the battlefield. Ukraine’s big challenge during the early weeks and months of the Maul’s existence  was taking a robot that clearly worked and getting it into mass production. The first solution  helped, though it wasn’t a long-term option.

[00:02:43]Maul was made part of a special fundraiser run by  United24 Media and Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs that had raised $620,000 for robotic  platforms by June 4, and will likely raise much more in the months to come. That money  helps. But the joint production deal signed between AIDronesUA and NJORD Technology is far  more important. So, we come to the big question: What do we know about the Maul platform? We’ll  start with how it works, seeing as we’ve already given you some insight. Pravda reports the  basics. Maul is a multi-purpose platform that can be used for casualty evacuations, as we’ve  already touched on, or as a delivery unit that can keep supplies moving across the front lines.  The coffin-like capsule built into the drone can be used to carry ammunition, food, and other  supplies, while the drone itself is capable of tackling difficult conditions, including the  snow-strewn landscape of Ukraine that is so commonly seen during the winter. Militarnyi has  a little more information, as it reveals that the first version of the Maul appeared way back in May  2025. At the time, the Maul could travel at speeds up to 70 kilometers per hour, and it has been  designed to be capable of sustaining damage while continuing to plug along and, crucially, protect  the cargo held inside its capsule. The commander of Ukraine’s First Separate Medical Battalion,  who goes by the callsign “Devi,” explained what makes the Maul an unkillable and unstoppable  machine. “For example, we have specialized wheels. After this vehicle was hit and two wheels  were punctured, they came off. But the design is well thought out — we were still able to return  10 kilometers back without issue. Therefore, even punctured wheels are not an obstacle for  its return.” What Ukraine has on its hands is a near-invincible ground robot. And its new deal  with Sweden means that many Mauls are going to be coming to the battlefield very soon. Let’s talk  about this coffin business for a moment. In a video showcasing the Maul, UATV English showed  us exactly how the Maul’s interesting capsule works. The coffin-like carrier was described  as a first for unmanned ground platforms, as most will have something more akin to a  stretcher placed on top of wheels. That sort of solution works well enough when there is little  risk. However, it leaves whatever is being carried exposed. Direct hits become problems, but even  indirect hits can lead to cargo (or people) being spilled and unable to get back onto the platform.  The coffin-like capsule changes all of that. It wraps whatever or whoever is being carried  inside a strong casing that protects against explosions and metal fragments. A peek inside only  furthers the analogy, as we see soft stretchers, albeit with straps to secure whatever is being  transported. We hope there is no need for those types of straps in an actual coffin, though that  would perhaps help if the zombie apocalypse ever comes… We’re getting sidetracked. The UATV video  also gives us some insight into how the Maul works in practice. Hidden by a panel is a control system  that is used to power the drone on. After that, everything is handled using a remote control  that looks just like the sort of system you’d get with an RC car. A pair of small levers is used to  handle the steering. The Maul has a parking mode, wheel lock, reverse mode, and can move at both low  and high speeds. That level of control is vital.

[00:05:46]Ukraine doesn’t want a robot that is supposed to  be the savior for a soldier moving so quickly when it arrives that an accident occurs. The soldier  showcasing the controls in UATV’s video reveals he’s only been in the unit operating the robot  for a few months, and he’s already picked up everything that he needs to know about the robot.  That’s good. The less time needed to learn, the quicker operators can get the Maul onto the  battlefield, saving lives. The Maul also has a modular architecture, which means there’s plenty  of room for it to be adapted to specific missions as and when needed. Plus, the chunky wheels used  for the platform ensure that it can handle most types of terrain. But perhaps the most important  thing for Ukraine is the dollars and cents. For as impressive as the Maul is, the system is  remarkably cheap to build. A single Maul costs between $22,000 and $33,000, depending on the type  of communication system used in the robot, Pravda reports. For context, The Guardian reports that  Ukraine recently raised the average monthly salary of a frontline soldier to the equivalent of $7,000  per month, which amounts to $84,000 per year.

[00:06:48]For that money, Ukraine could purchase two or  three Mauls, which it can use to replace frontline soldiers involved in medical and logistical  operations. Of course, frontline soldiers will still be needed for fighting. But the more troops  Ukraine can replace with robots, the better. And there’s more. Beyond the coffin capsule, the  Maul offers several advantages over many of the other ground robotic systems that Ukraine is  already using. You may remember that we told you earlier that the Maul can travel at speeds up to  70 kilometers per hour. If that seems fast for a ground robot, then you’re right on the money.  UATV reveals that most ground robots top out at 35 kilometers per hour because they use electric  engines. Maul is different. It has an internal combustion engine that delivers more power,  resulting in faster speeds. In a life-or-death situation, a robot that can literally double the  speed of the other options available can make all the difference. Other advantages of this type of  setup make themselves known during Ukraine’s harsh winters. Cold weather, and particularly frost,  can cause batteries to discharge much faster, UATV reports. That means less speed and,  crucially, less distance that a robot can travel. The Maul and its internal combustion  engine don’t have that problem. As long as there is fuel in the tank, the weather isn’t going to  stop the Maul. For a freezing and injured soldier, that key difference between the Maul and most  other ground robots is huge. We also mentioned the modular aspect of the Maul. On the tail end of the  robot is a fiber optic connection, suggesting that fiber optics has been tested. UATV reveals that  they have. And though the tests didn’t go well, as fiber optic cables can get knocked loose  from a robot driving over the type of terrain that the Maul has to handle, this idea may be  revisited in the future, when Ukraine has spools of the appropriate length and strength to make it  viable. So far, all of this is very impressive. In the Maul, Ukraine has a ground drone that saves  lives by bringing a coffin to injured soldiers.

[00:08:35]It’s modular, multi-purpose, and, thanks to  the new deal signed between Ukraine and Sweden, it’s about to be mass-produced. But we told you  at the beginning of this video that the Maul has been forged from the ashes of the Ukraine war to  be nigh unkillable. That wasn’t hyperbole. Maul is already battle-tested and has proven how tough  it is. But before we explain more, this is a quick reminder that you’re watching The Military Show.  There’s a lot more where this comes from, so make sure you’re subscribed so you never miss a video.  We take you back to November 2025. In that month, Ukraine’s First Separate Medical Battalion was  called into action, and it deployed the Maul.

[00:09:12]Still a little-known quantity at that point,  the ground robot faced a difficult task. The Insider reports that a soldier was injured  on the battlefield. But this wasn’t any old injury. For 33 days, that soldier had survived  with the help of field medics, but time was running out. Ukraine had attempted an evac using  ground robots already. Several evacs, in fact.

[00:09:31]Six robotic platforms had started the journey to  the wounded soldier, only to be destroyed along the way. With the situation getting desperate, the  Maul was called to the field. Ukraine’s new drone set out on a long journey. But as it drew nearer  to the settlement where the injured soldier lay, which was under Russian occupation, tragedy almost  struck. The Maul rode over an anti-personnel mine, which exploded. For any other ground robot, that  would have spelled the end, and Russia would be able to chalk up a seventh evacuation attempt  that it had stopped. But the Maul kept going.

[00:10:00]Even with its damaged wheel, it was able to make  it to the injured Ukrainian soldier. The coffin capsule opened, the soldier was loaded inside,  and the Maul set out on its return journey, damaged wheel and all. In a perfect world, that  would have been the end of the challenges. The Maul would have gotten back with no issues. But  the battlefields of Ukraine are far from perfect.

[00:10:19]On its return leg, the Maul was beset by unmanned  aerial vehicles. Russia knew what the robot was carrying, and it wanted to ensure that the injured  soldier didn’t make it back alive. One by one, the drones struck. But they couldn’t stop the  Maul and, more importantly, they were unable to penetrate the incredibly strong capsule protecting  the injured soldier. The Maul survived. And after a grueling 64-kilometer journey, 37 of those  kilometers traveled on a damaged wheel, the Maul made it back to base. What this rescue showed us  is that the Maul is far more than competent. It’s unkillable. Russia threw everything that it had  at the robot, and it still wasn’t able to stop the Maul from achieving its objective. Pravda  reveals that the armored steel used to make the coffin capsule is what saved the soldier's life  in November 2025, and the strong mini-tractor wheels built into the robot are what allowed it to  survive the mine. That damaged wheel is now kept at the First Separate Medical Battalion’s control  point as a souvenir of the strength of Ukraine’s new machine. More missions have been carried out  with the Maul since. But in this single story, we see everything that makes the signing of the  deal between AIDronesUA and NJORD Technology so important. The Maul is battle-tested. It’s  a proven lifesaver. And now, it’s coming to Ukraine in greater numbers than ever before. But  what we’re really seeing with this new deal is a microcosm of a much larger movement happening in  Ukraine’s military right now. Ground robots have been identified as the way of the future across  the front lines for several reasons, and this deal just goes to show that Ukraine is accelerating the  rise of the robots in its battle against Russia.

[00:11:50]The key to Maul and other ground robotic platforms  is that they reduce the risks faced by Ukraine’s frontline soldiers, particularly those tasked with  providing medical care or handling logistics. In the case of the former, Ukraine no longer has to  risk an evacuation crew heading out to the front using vehicles and, in some cases, helicopters.  Those crews typically involve four people, all of who have to put themselves in the Russian  firing line to get an injured soldier away from the front. The Maul is operated by a crew of six,  none of whom has to actually go to the front.

[00:12:20]A strike against an evacuation crew just means  more injuries and deaths. But a strike against a Maul… Well, you’ve seen how little effect they can  have. Looking wider across all robotic platforms, Ukraine’s ground robots are already  saving an immense number of lives, both directly and by keeping soldiers away from  the front. The Modern War Institute at West Point noted in March that Ukraine’s General Staff  believes that using ground robots has reduced personnel casualties by as much as 30% since  they were introduced into the military. For a country that has endured more than four years  of war, and likely somewhere between 500,000 and 600,000 casualties, that sort of reduction  is massive. Soldiers survive for longer when ground robots are in play, and that ultimately  means that Ukraine’s defenses remain strong.

[00:13:06]Ukraine sees the clear benefits, and it has been  gradually increasing its use of ground robots since 2024. The Modern War Institute says that  Ukraine produced around 2,000 of these machines in 2024. By the end of 2025, the yearly output  had risen to 15,000. And according to The Insider, Ukraine plans to have contracted 25,000 ground  robotic systems by the end of the first half of 2026, suggesting that it is aiming to reach a  total of around 50,000 by the end of the year.

[00:13:33]This rapidly accelerating production schedule  has been bearing fruit. Toward the end of 2025, ground robots were handling about 90% of logistics  operations in the contested cities of Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad. Fast-forward to 2026, and Ukraine has  gone all in on using these types of platforms.

[00:13:51]In a June 13 report, Mezha said that Ukraine has  deployed 1,028 ground robot complexes across the front lines in 2026, and those complexes have thus  far been responsible for carrying out about 50,000 missions. Every single one of those missions is  one that would have previously placed a human soldier at risk. Ukraine has also standardized  60 ground robots in 2026 alone, the outlet says, which means it has put the processes in place for  the mass production of far more than simply the Maul. Euromaidan Press adds that there are  now 100 companies working on ground robots in Ukraine. There were precisely zero companies  doing this kind of work when Russia launched its invasion. There’s an entire army of ground robots  coming to Ukraine. The Maul is simply one of the most impressive of them all. The increase in the  sheer number of ground robots being produced and deployed is being mirrored by more units learning  how to use these vital pieces of equipment.

[00:14:43]Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense reports that 230  units are now using ground robots, up from 117, and Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy,  has called for closer coordination between the government and Ukrainian industry to ensure  the production of ground robots can be scaled up even further. “Everyone must understand, this  is about saving lives,” Zelenskyy declares. And in the Maul, Ukraine has a robot that specializes  in doing just that in more ways than one. And so, we come back to the Maul. It’s easy to boil this  new ground robot down to a coffin on wheels that is used to save lives. But it’s so much more than  that. This robot represents what has made Ukraine such a tough nut to crack for Russia for over four  years. A constant stream of innovation centered around solving real problems on the battlefield  has turned Ukraine into one of the world’s most lethal combat forces, and robots like the Maul  exist to ensure that lethality is maintained for as long as possible. And as the ink dries on  yet another new contract with a European partner, the Maul can also stand as a monument to the  alliances that Ukraine has built in the wake of Russia’s invasion. Ukraine and Sweden have  indeed forged something unkillable. But it’s not just the Maul that can’t be stopped. The  alliance between these two nations is going the distance. And for Putin, who is a man  who thrives on causing chaos and division, the unity displayed in this new deal is like  a dagger to the heart. The Maul is coming.

[00:16:02]And we already know that mines and drones can’t  stop it. Though we’ve placed much of the focus of this video on the Maul and the utility of  ground robots when it comes to saving lives, Ukraine’s robots can do so much more. They’re  not just lifesavers and supply carriers. Some are killers. In January, a Ukrainian unit found  a way to make a ground robot a dealer of death for Russia’s forces. Combine that robot with 12  anti-tank mines, and boom – you get the end of a Russian unit. Find out more about that incident,  and the future at which it hints, by watching our video. And if you enjoyed this video, remember  to subscribe to The Military Show so you never miss any of our analysis of Ukraine’s latest deals  and innovations in the field of ground robotics.