The US Marine Corps is adopting an AI-controlled gun turret system called Bullfrog, made by defence robotics firm Allen Control Systems (ACS), to counter the growing threat of cheap drones without relying on costly interceptor missiles. The system works by fitting onto existing military firearms rather than requiring a bespoke weapon, and it will be attached to the Marines' Light Marine Air Defense Integrated System (L-MADIS), a vehicle-based sensor and weapons platform. Notably, demonstration footage suggests the system can also be switched to target ground threats, raising questions about autonomous targeting of humans, since it appears to lack software safeguards against this.

ACS announced the Marine Corps deal, which will reportedly use the M240 machine gun variant, capable of firing up to 850 rounds per minute and engaging drones up to 800 metres away and as high as 18,000 feet. Bullfrog units are also available for larger weapons such as the M2 .50-calibre machine gun, with chain gun and minigun versions in development. The Marines become the third US service branch to field Bullfrog, after the Army and Navy, with ACS pointing to the proliferation of inexpensive drones in conflicts such as Russia-Ukraine and the Middle East as the driving need.