Ukraine has launched production of the "Sapper Assistant" — the first individual robotic complex for demining.

Kyiv, 04.12.2025 — Ukraine's demining cluster announced the launch of production of the first 100 innovative robotic platforms called "Sapper's Assistant" — individual micro-robots designed to improve the safety of humanitarian demining specialists.

This was stated by Maxim Tkachenko, Chairman of the Board of the Ukraine Demining Cluster, during a press conference entitled "The Deminer's Assistant: A New Innovative Level of Safety for Deminers."

"Today, sappers are still often left alone to face danger. Our task is to change that. The “sapper's assistant” is a personal robot that walks ahead of a person, takes on the risk and provides maximum information before the sapper makes a decision" — Maxim Tkachenko emphasised.

The R&D hub of the Ukraine Demining Cluster has begun serial production of robotic platforms developed in Ukraine with the real working conditions of deminers in mind. The robotic assistant is a lightweight, mobile and portable device that can be carried and quickly deployed without additional equipment.

A unique feature of the platform is its modular design — various equipment can be installed on a single chassis: robotic arms, hydraulic guns for neutralising explosive objects, cameras, sensors, and logistics modules for transporting ammunition remnants.

"We are not creating a separate gadget, but an entire ecosystem of robots that can work alone, in pairs or in groups: one conducts reconnaissance, the second neutralises threats, and the third transports. This is a fundamentally new approach to humanitarian demining" — Tkachenko noted.

According to him, the "Sapper Assistant" does not replace humans in the demining process, but minimises the risks to their life and health. The robot is the first to enter the danger zone, surveys the area, identifies potential threats and allows the sapper to make an informed decision on further actions remotely.

The Cluster emphasises that heavy demining equipment is already available on the market, but individual technological protection for sappers has not yet existed. The "Sapper Assistant" creates a new class of safety equipment and has the potential to become the standard in humanitarian demining.

"Robots before people — that's our philosophy. The task of machines is to take on the danger where people used to take risks" — Maxim Tkachenko summed up.

The Ukrainian demining cluster plans to scale up production and further develop the platform depending on the needs of demining operators and international partners. In the future, the development may be integrated into international humanitarian demining programmes.