Marine Corps releases blueprint for future warfare, including robotics and AI

The Marine Corps has marked a major evolution in how it plans to equip, organize and conduct ground warfare over the next 15 years with the release of the Marine Corps Ground Combat Element 2040 Initiative report.

The Marine Corps has undergone radical changes in recent years under its Force Design umbrella, including divesting itself of heavy tanks and traditional towed artillery and replacing them with lighter, expeditionary anti-ship missile units. 

Officials said GCE 2040 is the next stage in the redesign of the Marine Corps to prioritize expeditionary warfare to defend coastal areas against adversaries like China and Russia.

Marine Corps officials said last week the intent of GCE 2040 is to develop a modular, multi-domain force that combines dispersed operations, lethality and information dominance to seize and defend contested littoral terrain.

“The Marine Corps faces a future defined by rapid technological change and the re-emergence of peer-level adversaries. The security environment of 2040 will demand a Ground Combat Element [GCE] that is not only technologically advanced but also physically, mentally, and morally prepared for the complexities of the modern battlefield,” according to the report.

The Marine Corps GCE is built around core infantry units that have been reinforced with combat support capabilities like artillery and engineers. The exact composition of a GCE depends on the size of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force that it supports.

“Ground Combat Element 2040 maintains a forward-looking strategy that ensures Marine Corps ground combat formations remain prepared not only for immediate operational demands but are positioned to secure and maintain decisive combat superiority through 2040,” according to the report.

The framework provides an essential roadmap for developing a force that is more lethal, adaptable, and resilient, Marine Corps officials said.

“There are future uncertainties the Marine Corps will face; however, with discipline and proactive force design and development, rapid learning and wargaming, experimentation, and mission engineering in life, virtual and constructive environments, we can buy down risk, hedge for success and invest in capabilities to ensure maximum flexibility and deliver decisive combined arms combat power,” Lt. Gen. Eric E. Austin, deputy commandant for combat development and integration, said in a statement.

The GCE 2040 program integrates artificial intelligence, robotics, and machine learning. The future battlefield will be characterized by trends that challenge traditional ground combat, including expendable drones, a contested electromagnetic spectrum and long-range precision weapons.

Lt. Gen. Jay M. Bargeron, deputy commandant for plans, policies and operations, said the central imperative is to cultivate a GCE that is strengthened by cutting-edge technology while remaining “fundamentally human-centric.”