"The new Swiss Army knife": The Israeli unmanned platform out to replace soldiers in the field
Amid Israel's defense tech boom, CTech’s Amy Shapiro talks to Liad Tamir, CEO of Macushla, a robotics startup bringing versatile unmanned vehicles to the front lines.
Macushla at at the Defense Tech Expo 2026
(Video: Daniel Campos)
"We look at it as the new Swiss Army knife," says Liad Tamir, CEO of Macushla, an Israeli robotics startup developing unmanned ground vehicles and weapon systems. The company’s platforms have been actively deployed to the military over the past few years, driven by a mission to "replace soldiers in day to day missions and actually reduce risks," while providing "a more conservative approach to the battlefield."
Tamir spoke with CTech’s Amy Shapiro during the Defense Tech Expo 2026 in Tel Aviv (February 17 2026), an event that underscored the significant shift of the Israeli technology sector. In the wake of October 7, Israel’s defense sector has experienced a maturation, accelerating from a period of rapid adaptation to a sustained "gold rush," driven by battlefield-proven solutions and a global increase in defense spending.
Weighing only 25kg but capable of carrying more than 200 kg, the platform is built to operate across a variety of environments, functioning "underground, overground, indoor and outdoor". "Basically the end user buys one platform and it can be anything," Tamir explains. "It can be adapted to any type of mission".
“The condition in Israel in the past two years expedited the whole use of technology in the battlefield," she continues. Looking to the future, Tamir views the evolution of defense tech as a fundamental driver of modern combat shaping the battlefield. "It works together.”
You can watch the full conversation in the video above.
