{"podcast":{"title":"Defence & Security Podcast Network","slug":"defence-security-podcast-network-607233","podcast_index_feed_id":607233,"rss_url":"https://defenceconnect.libsyn.com/rss","website_url":"http://www.defenceconnect.com.au/","image_url":"https://static.libsyn.com/p/assets/b/7/3/9/b739dd59f139871816c3140a3186d450/Defence__Security_podcast_network.jpg","author":"Defence Connect","episode_count":912,"summary":"The Defence & Security Podcast Network hosts a unique series of podcasts, featuring discussions with key enablers from across the Australian defence and security industry. The podcasts provide the perfect blend of business intelligence and insights from a range of guests, which include government officials, ADF personnel, industry stakeholders, and members of the academic community. By aligning ourselves with the ADF and the Commonwealth government, we are uniquely placed to deliver a dynamic 360° platform that bridges the gap between the customer (Defence) and industry. We split our focus not just into the traditional sectors of Land (Army), Air (Air Force) and Sea (Navy), but into the six new Capability Streams: - Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance, Electronic Warfare and Cyber - Key Enablers - Air and Sea Lift - Maritime and Anti-Submarine Warfare - Strike and Air Combat - Land Combat and Amphibious Warfare As Defence moves to ensure the Force Structure Review and the First Principles Review: Creating One Defence plans are met, Australian industry involvement is critical for mission success. The Defence & Security Podcast Network will provide you and your business with…","last_synced_at":"2026-09-15T14:18:02.070344+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/defence-security-podcast-network-607233"},"episode":{"title":"Australia's UGV dilemma and why land autonomy remains stuck in the mud, with Stephen Bornstein","slug":"australia-s-ugv-dilemma-and-why-land-autonomy-remains-stuck-in-the-mud-with-stephen-bornstein","published_at":"2026-09-10T07:24:59+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/defence-security-podcast-network-607233/australia-s-ugv-dilemma-and-why-land-autonomy-remains-stuck-in-the-mud-with-stephen-bornstein","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/defence-security-podcast-network-607233","url":"https://defenceconnect.libsyn.com/australias-ugv-dilemma-and-why-land-autonomy-remains-stuck-in-the-mud-with-stephen-bornstein","audio_url":"https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/defenceconnect/DC_Stephen_Bornstein_260820_mixdown.mp3?dest-id=715252","summary":"Australia's push to develop autonomous ground systems has delivered promising prototypes and live-fire demonstrations, but land-based autonomy remains outside the Australian Defence Force's current priorities. Speaking with news editor Robert Dougherty, Sightline Intelligence managing director Stephen Bornstein discusses the challenges facing Australia's emerging uncrewed ground vehicles sector and the growing importance of low-cost autonomous systems. Cyborg Dynamics Engineering's Warfighter UGV progressed from a Queensland-developed platform into a military system, including live-fire Javelin and minigun trials in 2023. However, Bornstein says industry was already aware that land autonomy was being deprioritised ahead of the Defence Strategic Review. By late 2023, Cyborg had pivoted towards firefighting and research applications, using those markets to continue developing the underlying technology. Bornstein argues that while UGVs continue to appear at exercises and innovation programs, current funding remains largely experimental rather than sufficient to deliver a major land capability. The pair also discuss Athena AI's integration into Sightline Intelligence and its subsequent acquisition by Acron Technologies; the company gained access to US opportunities that would have been difficult for an Australian-only business to pursue. Looking towards Land Forces, Bornstein expects continued growth in lower-cost, disposable and attritable UGVs, alongside AI-enabled systems incorporating computer vision, terminal guidance and aided target recognition. For Australia's defence industry, the challenge remains turning promising autonomous technologies from experimental projects into scalable, operational capabilities. Enjoy the podcast, The Defence Connect team","meta_description":"Australia's push to develop autonomous ground systems has delivered promising prototypes and live-fire demonstrations, but land-based autonomy remains out…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2087,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/defence-security-podcast-network-607233/episodes/australia-s-ugv-dilemma-and-why-land-autonomy-remains-stuck-in-the-mud-with-stephen-bornstein/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/defence-security-podcast-network-607233/australia-s-ugv-dilemma-and-why-land-autonomy-remains-stuck-in-the-mud-with-stephen-bornstein.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}