Pentagon in search for robot GIs

The US Army is on the hunt for a private contractor to build war droids. Dubbed 'Future Combat Systems', the robots will be used to deploy sophisticated weapons in war zones to limit human casualties.

A Pentagon spokesman explained that the robots will do "everything you would ever need to do on the battlefield. They will be able to fire at things, defend themselves, do reconnaissance and find targets."

Boeing, General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin are all bidding to lead the $154m (£108m) project, and the plan is to have a first generation of battlefield R2D2s ready for war within a decade.

The robotic 'seekers' will look for the enemy, signal its location and call in firepower. Weapons will include advanced laser guns and microwave cannon fired from unmanned vehicles to take over the role of tanks.

Pilot-less aircraft would then launch guided missiles and smart bombs at the targets identified by the ground robots.

The new fighting vehicles will be lighter than the current generation of tanks to enable them to be flown into battle zones.