U.S. Army is considering to replace some soldiers with robots to cut size of brigade 2301142.

Continuing, he noted that the Army had devoted more resources to "force protection," keeping the troops safe, at the cost of some firepower. "I think we’ve also lost a lot in lethality," Cone said.

Robots could reduce the force protection burden, giving the Army more killing power per brigade.

Generals are studying proposals as the U.S. army is to slim down from 540,000 to about 490,000 soldiers by the end of next year. Some reports suggest it could dip below 450,000 by the end of the decade.

On December 20-21, 2013, 16 teams were the main attraction at the DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency of United States) Robotics Challenge (DRC) Trials, where they demonstrated their prototype robots’ ability to perform a number of critical real-world disaster-response skills. DARPA constructed eight tasks at the Homestead Speedway in Homestead, Fla., to simulate what a robot might have to do to safely enter and effectively work inside a disaster zone, while its operator would remain out of harm’s way.

“The DRC Trials demonstrated the difficulty of having robots conduct seemingly simple tasks in real-world situations, and the participation of the first responder community provided an important illustration of how technology can save lives,” said Brad Tousley, Director of DARPA’s Tactical Technology Office.