Armed MUTTs: Self-Driving Vehicles Could Boost The Military’s Arsenal

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January 30, 2017 | Originally published by Date Line: January 30 on

Self-driving cars are grabbing headlines lately, and the military is also making inroads with similar tech— but these vehicles are mounted with weapons like machine guns.

General Dynamics created MUTT, aka Multi-Utility Tactical Transport, to help dismounted small units. This is a smart robot designed to help lighten the load for Marines and other warfighters.

MUTT looks like a futuristic spin on the sort of quad you might have fun driving around your farm. Rectangular shaped, it is 5 feet long and 4.5 feet wide and weighs 750 pounds.

The vehicle drives on tracks or wheels, and there are two wheeled variants: 8×8 and 6×6. War zones are unlikely to provide convenient flat, easy surfaces, so MUTT is designed for high performance mobility in tough terrain like mud, sand and steep inclines.

And MUTTs can also be amphibious. They tackle water with gusto.

Also see the manufacturer, General Dynamics, website, http://www.gdls.com/products/tracked-combat/MUTT.html