Ukraine can defeat Russia faster if Big Tech “unites”, says Ukraine's digital minister

advertisement

from drone army With daily messages on social media from President Volodymyr Zelensky to protect Ukraine's borders, technology has helped save lives and defend the country against a full-scale Russian invasion.

The mastermind behind these tactics is Mykhaylo, a 33-year-old former digital marketing expert who is now Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister for Innovation, Educational Development, Science and Technology Development, or Ukraine's Minister of Digital Transformation.・This is Fedorov.

“We don't have as many people as the Russian Federation. It's a basic calculation,” he told Euronews Next in a Zoom interview from Kiev.

“This is why technology has such a tangible competitive advantage that it can stop adversaries in their tracks and provide asymmetrical action.”

Unmanned technology is a “game changer,” he says. Ukraine's suicide drones have become a cheap and effective weapon for gathering intelligence and destroying expensive Russian military equipment in the war.

In recent weeks, Ukrainian drones have attacked Russian oil facilities and cornered Russian ships in open waters and naval bases.

electronic warfare

Ukraine's suicide drones are a must-have in your arsenal. But Russia has powerful electronic countermeasures, and these skills have a pedigree.

Russia has significant jamming equipment that can overwhelm Ukraine's signals by blocking or jamming the radio communications used by its drones.

Federov said the country's engineering faculties are producing a group of engineers who write code and are proving their worth to Russia. He also said that Ukraine has opened up its market and created a lot of competition from private electronic warfare companies.

“This is a very rapidly evolving technology war, so it’s important to stay on top of the latest technology,” he says.

However, Russian interference with GPS systems has also been reported in Europe's far north, the Arctic region, where Norway and Finland border Russia.

I was asked if NATO countries should worry about Russian radio interference“The speed of change is incredible, so our partners should follow what is happening in Ukraine,” Fedorov said.

“If you're not proactive about this continued wartime pace of adaptation, and your manufacturing industry isn't adapting to the day-to-day pace, it's going to be very difficult to catch up later,” he added.

There are other challenges, too, including saturation of air defenses, particularly Russia's use of Iran's Shahed drones, which fly toward targets and explode on impact.

As a result, Ukraine provides proving grounds and even battlefield testing for allies and companies to test their defense capabilities.

AI as a weapon

One of the latest technologies taking the world by storm is now making its mark on the battlefield. Artificial intelligence (AI) plays a role in electronic warfare, as it is a network-centric warfare that makes extensive use of digital technologies such as sensors used in real-time and battlefield awareness systems.

“Artificial intelligence allows us to recognize events on the battlefield and react accordingly, which means that in the future we can expect to see even more use of AI-enabled systems,” Fedorov said. say.

However, AI drones are still in their infancy and cannot guide a drone to a target in a perfect trajectory.

advertisement

To combat this, they are constantly analyzing data from the battlefield and field-testing several new technologies for electronic warfare, Federov said.

Russia, for its part, said it is also using AI in AI-assisted drones, computer vision applications, and even machine learning to enable target acquisition for Ukrainian drones.

Bringing big tech to the battlefield

Since the start of the invasion in 2022, Mr. Federov has urged big tech companies to support the war in Ukraine, asking the chief executives of YouTube, Apple, Google and Netflix to block or restrict Russian services. requested.

He also asked questions on X, then known as Twitter. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Activate Starlink network in Ukraine to provide satellite internet.

“While you guys are trying to colonize Mars, Russia is trying to occupy Ukraine!” Fedorov wrote on February 26, 2022.

advertisement

“We ask you to provide Ukraine with a Starlink station.”

As Mr. Federov got his way, satellite Internet terminals turned out to be essential not only for military operations, but also for the operation of hospitals and businesses.

Other tech giants, including Microsoft and IBM, have also offered support to Ukraine.

Federov said the country was grateful for the assistance, but said that since the invasion began, the reactions and response times of technology companies have been “slightly shorter,” and that “more support could be needed.” It's definitely necessary.”

“We understand that life goes on and sometimes Ukraine comes and goes in the headlines, but at the same time, Russian attacks continue, people continue to die, and this is a terrible war. “You have to remember that,” he says.

advertisement

“If they [Big Tech companies] “With equal efforts in defense technology and support for Ukraine, we will be much stronger than Russia,” he added.

He said the country needs support from cloud services and the opening of research and development facilities that will allow for the development of dual-use technologies and a place to exchange expertise and resources.

When asked what message he wants to send to big tech companies, he said:

If we come together, we can stop this sooner. But we need to come together. ”

information war

Another way global technology companies can come together to support Ukraine is by Disinformation and misinformation.

advertisement

“We are working with international companies who can help us block Russian bot networks and channel networks,” Fedorov said, adding that he is seeking further support from tech companies around the world to limit Russia's capabilities. It added that assistance may be available.

For now, Federov said Ukraine has public government institutions that quickly respond to disinformation to prevent the “spread of Russian propaganda.”

Another stronghold is the public, who are very savvy at countering misinformation. Nevertheless, the information is very powerful and evolving. ”

But he says the most powerful thing of all. information warfare President Zelenskiy told the nation that he is a “very strong communicator.”

“The president comes before the people every day and talks about what happened.”

advertisement

Zelenskiy is not alone in his rise to the position of becoming a global symbol of strong leadership amidst aggression from one of the world's most powerful countries.

Federov also rose from being Ukraine's youngest minister to the architect of Ukraine's digital defense strategy.

Even before the war, he created Diia, an app that created the most convenient governance system, and created a buzz.

The app provides citizens with a digital identity, allowing them to register businesses and receive many other government services.

But during the war, other functions, such as the ability to claim insurance if your home is damaged by Russian artillery fire, receive evacuation assistance, and submit reports and videos on the movements of Russian troops. also produced.

advertisement

It was also used to stream the World Cup final during a power outage.

“After the war, we want to solidify our position as the coolest state in terms of digital transformation,” Federov said.

“But we also want to be a trendsetter in defense and military technology for decades to come, because our experience is invaluable to the world and to every country,” he said. added.

“And this could become a major part of our economy in the future.”