Einstein’s alma mater involved in Swiss military drone production

The Swiss army chief forecasts that the first prototypes of locally made attack and defence drones will enter industrial production in 2027. The armed forces have earlier pledged to improve their collaborative efforts with local universities on this matter, including the renowned ETH Zurich.

The head of the Central European country's armed forces, Benedikt Roos, said that war is a "massive stimulus" for innovation, speaking to the Schweiz am Wochenende newspaper.

When it comes to the challenges facing security policy, Roos emphasised the growing importance of new technologies. He disclosed that the army and Armasuisse, the federal procurement agency for the armed forces, were working with the federal technology institutes ETH Zurich and EPFL in Lausanne, as well as start-ups to develop their own solutions for attack and defence drones.

Roos also called for a broader social debate on security. “We won’t succeed in sparking such a debate with brochures,” he said.

The army chief wants to build support for the Swiss army by replicating the success of peace marches. “A march for security, perhaps,” said Roos. Being a federal employee, Roos himself cannot organise demonstrations. However, such initiatives could come from associations in different fields, he suggested.

The Swiss Army announced last year that it was preparing to boost its research spending to reach 2% of its total budget by 2030, focusing on drones, cybersecurity, and surveillance. Under the new strategy outlined in the government’s armament plan, Armasuisse pledged to invest about ten times more in university research projects than it currently does.

The primary partners chosen for this co-operation are the above-mentioned institutions, widely regarded as some of the world's most prestigious education facilities. Local media outlets reported back then that ETH Zurich, the primary alma mater of physicist Albert Einstein, and EPFL are expected to move beyond their current role as technology observers to become active co‑developers of defence innovations.

By Nazrin Sadigova