AI in Action: Drone Warfare Training, AI Myths and the Simulation Reality

Drone warfare is reshaping defence training at a pace few anticipated. In this episode of AI in Action, Halldale’s Andy Fawkes speaks with two leaders navigating this shift from different vantage points. 

Hans Lindgren, Head of Business Development at Saab Training & Simulation, and Martin Carr, Founder and Director of Applied Virtual Simulation, who joins the conversation from the Baltic Sea.

Together, they cut through the assumptions surrounding “AI‑equipped drones” and explain why trained human operators remain indispensable. Carr, drawing on his work supporting Ukrainian unmanned systems forces, describes how AI tools such as machine vision and pattern recognition assist operators but fall far short of replacing them. The human still performs 90–95% of the cognitive work.

Both guests underline the accelerating role of simulation.

In Ukraine, simulation delivers the majority of operator training, enabling hundreds of repetitions before soldiers fly live missions. Carr highlights how small development teams rapidly update simulation tools within days based on frontline feedback - a cycle Western militaries struggle to match due to regulatory and electromagnetic‑spectrum constraints.

Lindgren details Saab’s investment in AI‑enabled analytics to help training audiences interpret the vast data generated during live exercises. As drones add new layers of complexity to combined arms operations, AI is emerging as a tool for faster understanding, not autonomous warfare.

The discussion also explores how nations may need to train thousands of operators rapidly, the role of blended live‑virtual‑constructive training, and why updated rules and risk frameworks will be essential.

The message is consistent: use AI where it adds value, expand simulation everywhere, and adapt training systems to match a new operational reality.