DSEI UK 2025: Combat Gereon unveiled by ARX Robotics

ARX Robotics will launch the Combat Gereon, its first combat-capable unmanned ground vehicle (UGV), during DSEI 2025 in the UK. The demonstration will feature the UGV equipped with Valhalla Turrets’ LOKI remote-controlled weapon station, a configuration designed for use in high-risk environments to enhance soldier survivability by enabling unmanned first contact, and increasing the distance between soldiers and the enemy.

The core integration of the Combat Gereon was developed and tested in a joint European-Ukrainian campaign in partnership with Frontline, a Ukrainian technology company, with input from Ukrainian end users. Frontline has previously worked with Milrem to fit the BURIA remote weapon station to a THeMIS UGV. “At Frontline, we believe the future of modern warfare belongs to robotic systems… where drones perform defensive and offensive operations while soldiers remain out of harm’s way,” Yevhen Tretiak, CEO of Frontline, said at the time. This collaboration with ARX aimed to align the platform with frontline requirements and battle conditions, and included the BURIA remote weapon station from Frontline.

In a separate effort, ARX worked with Valhalla on a parallel integration, focusing on weapons systems and meeting the certification and fielding requirements for European armed forces. This work integrates a general-purpose machine gun and sensor suite onto the Combat Gereon and is intended to support rapid adaptation to battlefield conditions while adhering to European procurement and security standards. 

The Combat Gereon with the LOKI turret from Valhalla will be shown on the ARX Robotics stand at DSEI UK 2025. Credit: ARX Robotics. 

The company states that the UGV is designed for missions with low survivability for personnel, such as reconnaissance, route clearance, and forward observation in contested zones. It is intended to reduce the operator’s workload and facilitate remote operation, allowing forces to operate at an extended range without direct exposure. Marc Wietfeld, co-founder and CEO of ARX Robotics, stated that the system extends the company’s autonomous platform into the combat-capable domain, with a focus on increasing survivability on the front line.

The Combat Gereon builds on the company’s existing Gereon line of UGVs, which are designed to be modular and perform a variety of missions across both defence and the commercial world. Production  is scalable across ARX’s European and Ukrainian factories, the company states in its press release, and the vehicle’s modular payloads are intended to allow for configuration in different environments and rapid upgrades to address evolving threats. The company says that by combining autonomous navigation, flexible armament, and fleet-level coordination, the Combat Gereon is intended to enhance battlefield survivability and increase operational tempo.

Both sides in Ukraine are making use of UGVs, the Ukrainian company Tencore recently secured funding to accelerate its production of the TerMIT UGV and plans to manufacture 2,000 of the vehicles with that support, on top of 800 that have already been delivered. Russian sources reported in November last year that 50 of the Courier UGVs manufactured by an organisation called The People’s Front. They are mostly used for logistics, casualty evacuation, and route clearance. But more UGVs are being fitted with weapon systems, which will enable them to play an increased role in combat operations.

Calibre comment

Reconnaissance can be a high-risk operation leading to many casualties and potentially little reward. This has been most starkly demonstrated in Ukraine, where forward observers and even highly-specialised reconnaissance teams have been eliminated without achieving their missions. As a result there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that those missions should be conducted by unmanned platforms, or at least more UGVs and UAVs than personnel. This may not be the case for all operational scenarios, but in a high intensity war with an opponent that is incredibly lethal, as is Russia, UGVs do seem to offer a number of benefits and the potential to preserve crewed vehicles and their crews. 

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on August 29, 2025. Credit for the lead image is ARX Robotics, it shows the Combat Gereon fitted with the Buria RWS from Frontline.