Where The Eff Is The Rest Of The Truck?

If you’re wondering where the rest of this apparent Silverado went, it didn’t go anywhere. By design, it was never there in the first place. And if you’re wondering what kind of engine might be under the hood, surprise, you won’t find an engine at all. Not there or anywhere else on the truck, because it’s an EV. And as you have no doubt guessed, there are no accommodations for a driver because it will be unmanned..

So what is this thing? You’re looking at GM Defense’s proposed Unmanned Ground Vehicle or UGV, which I sincerely hope will be pronounced “Ugvee.” The UGV’s mission will be “silent logistics” and evacuations, which both sound like great uses for unmanned technology on the battlefield. As Matt said in Slack, “It’s such a terrible waste to put people in danger to move pallets of shit,” and I can’t see any argument with that. Likewise, anyone in need of evacuation is likely under fire or otherwise in danger, so all the better if they can be rescued without putting other personnel at risk.

Tech details from GM Defense are scant beyond the vehicle being based on the Chevy Silverado 3500HD heavy-duty pickup in dually configuration, and built upon “skateboard architecture.” Here’s the entire bit on the truck from the GM Defense release:

GM Defense unveiled its Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) concept, built on a rugged Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD dual-rear-wheel skateboard architecture to support silent logistics and casualty evacuation, with functional trials targeted for 2027.

CarBuzz‘s Ian Wright’s reporting from the UGV’s unveiling offers more tech insight, stating, “The specs show a 100-kWh rechargeable energy-storage system and an 8,000-pound maximum payload.” Motor1 added more detail, noting:

Autonomy comes from Scout AI’s Gx Ground Agent driving system. The display also paired the truck with a LOCUST X3 counter-drone laser weapon and a Squarehead Discovair G2+ acoustic drone-detection sensor.

Though not currently envisioned as a combat vehicle, the UGV will not exactly be entirely away from action if it’s going to be blasting drones out of the sky – see video below of the laser drone-swatter.

 

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GM Defense is not the only unmanned-land-vehicle game in town.

In July, Quantum Systems announced its Mandrill and Zetros unmanned trucks (built in partnership with Daimler Truck) were bound for Ukraine for validation testing on the front lines. Per the press release, “The vehicles will be deployed with the National Guard of Ukraine (NGU) under real-world conditions, generating feedback to support the continuous development of the system.”

Hendrik Kramer, Vice President Ground Domain at Quantum Systems, explains further:

Quantum Systems has a proven track record of integrating frontline feedback into its systems. With this contract, we can now test and validate two of our newest products, mere months after their launch under real-world conditions in Ukraine, which has a significant demand for modernizing military logistics.

The Mandrill is the smaller vehicle in the image above, “a modular, high-mobility unmanned ground vehicle engineered for demanding defence and disaster response missions.” It can carry up 1,650 pounds (750 kg), with a top speed of 62 mph (100 km/h).

The larger Zetros’ full cab suggests it retains manual operation capability, and according to Quantum, the MOSAIC Ground Autonomy Kit that provides the Madrill and Zetros with autonomous capability is designed to retain manual functionality and can be retrofitted to existing vehicles.

The Quantum Systems MOSAIC Ground Autonomy Kit transforms heavy-duty logistics and tactical vehicles into autonomous, unmanned platforms through a modular, vehicle-agnostic architecture. Designed for both retrofit integration into existing fleets and OEM implementation on new vehicles, the system enables automated and teleoperated driving while retaining manual operation.

I’m sure the UGV and other autonomous logistics vehicles will be a welcome sight to any soldiers who would otherwise be traveling to the front to deliver supplies, and even more welcome by anyone already in the fight who needs to get out of it, pronto. For now, it’s all future tech, but it’s a very near future, with Quantum Systems vehicles headed to Ukraine and UGV trials slated to begin in 2027. If successful, I doubt it would take long for GM Defense to put UGVs in the field.