North Korean leader Kim Jong Un urged faster drone development and military use of artificial intelligence (AI) at an Oct. 29 exhibition, casting unmanned systems as part of a push to modernize the armed forces.
The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported his remarks in a dispatch published Oct. 30. Kim said North Korea should seek “absolute superiority” in drone technology, describing it as “an indispensable option” as patterns of warfare change. He also called for faster progress in unmanned-aircraft technology and defense AI, with advanced AI integrated into unmanned weapons.
Kim said those weapons needed improved operational capabilities and argued that strength ensured peace. “Strength precisely means peace and peace is guaranteed only by strength,” KCNA quoted him as saying. His remarks linked technical development with the country’s stated effort to build modern armed forces.
KCNA said the exhibition, titled “Unmanned Aeronautical Technology Development-2026,” featured drones for strategic, operational and tactical uses. Suicide attack drones were also displayed, the agency said.
The separate demonstration included tactical suicide drones, cruise missiles and multipurpose drones, alongside a battalion equipped with 600-mm-caliber multiple rocket launchers, KCNA said. The agency claimed drone and missile strikes hit an islet with 100% accuracy. The Korea Herald said it could not independently verify the reported accuracy. KCNA also said a 600-mm launcher called “Sniper” fired in front of the public for the first time. Its dispatch gave no production figures or deployment timetable for the systems.
The exhibition came days after Kim urged army company commanders to intensify training, a separate military-readiness push. That earlier report said the meeting of company leaders took place in Pyongyang on Oct. 22-23 and connected unit readiness with North Korea’s wider military buildup.
