American Rheinmetall, a combat vehicle developer, has been awarded a two‑year contract for the U.S. Army’s Project Sustainment effort. Under the contract, American Rheinmetall will provide four hybrid‑powered, autonomous unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) designed to support company‑sized element sustainment missions. These vehicles will autonomously transport supplies to and from the forward line of troops, reducing risk to soldiers and increasing operational efficiency in contested environments.

American Rheinmetall is executing this effort in collaboration with key partners, including Harbinger Motors, Forterra, and Primordial Labs. The partnership with Harbinger brings commercial technology and vehicle expertise to the program, enabling rapid development and scalable production pathways. Forterra provides leading autonomy capabilities, allowing Army sustainment operations to be conducted without continuous human control, which further reduces risk to soldiers.

Forterra brings advanced autonomous capabilities to the team, strengthening the solution’s ability to operate with minimal human intervention.

Primordial Labs’ next-generation human-machine interface, Anura, transforms robotic systems into battlefield teammates. By distilling commander's intent through intuitive, natural language commands, Anura scales the soldier-to-robot ratio, reduces cognitive burden, accelerates training timelines, and enables heads-up, hands-free operation.

“The Harbinger hybrid vehicle platform exemplifies how proven commercial technologies can be rapidly adapted to meet the evolving needs of the U.S. military,” John Harris, Harbinger co-founder and CEO, said. “By partnering with American Rheinmetall, we're bringing together advanced vehicle platforms, scalable manufacturing, and proprietary battery technology to deliver autonomous-ready vehicles that reduce risk to soldiers while enhancing military operational effectiveness.”

The Project Sustainment program emphasizes advancements in autonomy, commerciality, and hybrid power integration and incorporates innovative features such as voice control to enhance soldier/system interaction. Work will be conducted across U.S. facilities and test ranges.

“This award expands American Rheinmetall’s growing portfolio of uncrewed ground systems within the U.S. market and reinforces our position as a leader in ground robotics and autonomous technologies,” said Jim Schirmer, VP of sales and marketing, American Rheinmetall. “Project Sustainment directly supports the Army’s modernization priorities by delivering autonomous load‑handling and transport capabilities that increase readiness and reduce the burden on soldiers.”

The contract includes the potential for follow‑on orders as the Army continues to evolve and modernize its autonomous logistics fleet.