Windsor-based XRC Robotics has been awarded a contract by the Ministry of Defence for its RHINO uncrewed ground vehicle, in what the company describes as the first time the UK MoD has fast-tracked a robotic platform into frontline experimentation programmes, the company stated.
The contract, secured in February 2026, covers XRC’s modular RHINO platform, which is designed for operation in contested environments and combines high-speed performance with a modular chassis offering long-range and heavy payload capability. The system can be reconfigured between intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, logistics, and casualty evacuation roles, with the company saying operators can repair or reconfigure the platform in the field in minutes.
Cam Knighton, Founder of XRC Robotics, said the award demonstrated that the UK did not need to look abroad for world-class robotics capability. “This contract award is a defining moment for British defence innovation. By partnering with the British Army we are proving that the UK does not need to look abroad for world-class robotics. XRC is delivering a British solution for a British problem, ensuring our Armed Forces have the home-grown technological edge they need to prevail in modern conflict.”
XRC describes its offering as a fully sovereign solution, with in-house engineering, development, and manufacturing keeping intellectual property and supply chain security within the UK. The company is based in Windsor and maintains what it describes as total in-house control over the entire engineering and manufacturing lifecycle. The contract supports ongoing operations and the creation of skilled jobs in mechatronics, AI, and advanced manufacturing.
The award comes as the British Army continues to develop its approach to uncrewed ground systems as part of broader modernisation efforts. The MoD has been expanding its experimentation programmes for autonomous and robotic platforms across multiple domains, with ground systems seen as increasingly relevant to the kind of attritional, contested warfare observed in Ukraine.
This is the kind of news that brings me hope for the UK’s defence. A contractor that goes ahead and develops a device to fulfill a need before being tasked to do so. Like reading Captain Ballard’s comments about the Kraken K3 boats, a great attitude. Reminds me of how Hawkers designed and built the Hurricane in anticipation of it being required. Excellent!
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I am rather disappointed that the army is still conducting UGV ‘experimentation programmes’ in 2026. A wide range of sophisticated Technology Demonstrators were available which could easily have been scaled up for frontline experimentation programmes in the 1980s. We should have first fielded UGVs decades ago.