PENTAGON WANTS $54 BILLION FOR AI WAR MACHINES IN A SINGLE YEAR — AND CONGRESS IS ASKING WHO DECIDES WHEN THE DRONES SHOOT The United States military asked Congress for $54.6 billion to fund autonomous warfare systems in a single fiscal year — a 24,000 percent increase from the $225.9 million it was allocated for the same purpose just one year earlier. The figure is not a typo. The Pentagon is not incrementally expanding its AI warfare program. It is attempting to rewrite the entire doctrine of American military force in one budget cycle. The funding request centers on the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group, known as DAWG, a unit that absorbed the cancelled Replicator drone program in late 2025. DAWG’s mandate is to flood future conflict zones with low-cost autonomous systems running AI pilot software developed by companies like Shield AI, whose Hivemind system is being integrated into the military’s new Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System. The strategic logic is China. The Pentagon believes swarm warfare — thousands of cheap AI-piloted drones overwhelming adversary air defenses — is how the next major conflict will be won or lost. The Joint Chiefs chairman said autonomous weapons will be a key and essential part of everything the military does going forward. The problem lawmakers are raising is accountability. Less than two percent of the proposed $54 billion is earmarked for doctrine, training, and rules of engagement. The foundational Pentagon policy governing AI weapons was written in 2012 and has not been substantively updated since. Congress wants to know who authorizes an autonomous system to use lethal force. Keywords: Pentagon AI warfare budget, DAWG autonomous weapons, AI drones military, autonomous warfare 2026