M1E3 main battle tank modernization will use artificial intelligence (AI) to rank battlefield threats

Summary points:

• Contract will advance modernization of the M1 Abrams tank, laying the groundwork for the next-generation M1E3.
• The M1E3, set to deploy in the early 2030s, will feature lighter weight, hybrid-electric propulsion, AI integration, and an unmanned turret with an autoloader.
• Key upgrades include integrated modular armor, reduced size and weight, open-systems architecture, and reduced detectability by enemy sensors.

WARREN, Mich. – Armored combat vehicle designers at General Dynamics Corp. are moving forward with a major project to modernize the M1 Abrams main battle tank, with an eye to developing enabling technologies for a redesigned Abrams tank for the 2030s and beyond called the M1E3 tank.

Officials of the Army Contracting Command in Warren, Mich., in late June announced a $150 million contract to General Dynamics Land Systems in Sterling Heights, Mich., for the Abrams Engineering Program.

This project is developing and integrating modern technologies for the Abrams tank by moving from previous separate upgrade efforts towards the next-generation M1E3 main battle tank design.

Abrams Engineering Program technologies will address space, weight, and power consumption (SWaP); improve armor protection; enhance armored vehicle survivability; and promote network integration.

Upgraded electronics

The Abrams Engineering Program since its inception has involved enhanced power generation; upgraded electronics and data processing; and improved armor and counter-improvised explosives systems. The program seeks to ensure the Abrams tank remains viable at least into the 2040s.

The M1E3 Abrams modernization program, to which much of the Abrams Engineering Program technologies will go, will modernize the M1 main battle tank fleet with a clean-sheet redesign that capitalizes on emerging technologies to deal with modern battlefield threats.

Key features of the M1E3 Abrams modernization program include lighter weight and improved mobility; integrated modular armor and survivability; modular open systems architectures; unmanned turret and autoloader; hybrid-electric propulsion; reduced thermal and electromagnetic signatures; and advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and network integration.

The M1E3 program launched in September 2023. General Dynamics Land Systems in sterling Heights, Mich. -- the Abrams tank original designer -- has started designing the new tank, and defining technology requirements. The new tank first should deploy in the early 2030s.

Active protection systems

The M1E3 tank will be designed to reduce overall weight compared to current Abrams models. The M1E3 will use integrated armor protection that capitalizes on next-generation composite materials and active protection systems.

The tank also will feature a modular open-systems design to help carry out technology upgrades quickly with reduced cost and complexity. The new tank is expected to include an unmanned turret with an autoloader to reduce crew size from four to three.

The M1E3 also will have hybrid-electric power to reduce fuel consumption by as much as half. The tank will make it difficult for enemy sensors and targeting systems to detect, and onboard AI will help tank crews identify and rank the battlefield's most serious threats. Army leaders seek to align fielding the M1E3 tank with next-generation mechanized infantry vehicles.

On this Abrams Engineering Program contract General Dynamics Land Systems will do the work in Sterling Heights, Mich., and should be finished by June 2027. For more information contact the Army Contracting Command-Detroit Arsenal online at https://acc.army.mil/contractingcenters/acc-dta/, or General Dynamics Land Systems at https://www.gdls.com/.