Robot model
Ripsaw M5 (RCV)
~10.5-ton tracked hybrid-electric robotic combat vehicle (with Howe & Howe); four M5 prototypes delivered to the US Army for RCV-Medium.
- Manufacturer
- Textron Systems
- Form factor
- defense_ugv
- Maturity
- pilot
- Lifecycle
- active
- Deployments
- 1
- Website
- textronsystems.com ↗
Overview
~10.5-ton tracked hybrid-electric robotic combat vehicle (with Howe & Howe); four M5 prototypes delivered to the US Army for RCV-Medium. The lighter Ripsaw M3 was reported as the 2025 RCV down-select variant.
Verified vs. claimed
- Maturity stage
- pilot(Small-scale deployment in controlled or trial conditions.)
- Verified deployments
- 1 deployment on file
- Sources on file
- 3 sources, view all
Key facts
Focus
Robot
Parent
Subsidiary
Products
Partners
Specs
Note
Config
Weight
Max speed
Weight kg
Payload kg
Data & sources
Web sources
3
3 sources backing this record.View all →
Pricing
No verified price is on record for Ripsaw M5 (RCV). Physical-AI systems are often sold through enterprise contracts or operated as a service rather than at a public list price.
Deployments (1)
The US Army received 4 Ripsaw M5 vehicles as RCV-Medium prototypes under the Robotic Combat Vehicle program, which was cancelled in 2026, leaving the platform's future trajectory uncertain pending Army restructure or…
Ripsaw M5 (RCV) on the deployment map
Where Ripsaw M5 (RCV) is verified operating. Explore the deployment map by place and type.
Recent activity
Every change to this record is dated, sourced, and independently verified where marked.
- Sources verifiedVerifiedJun 7, 2026
source added -> Textron Systems: Ripsaw M5
- Verified media addedVerifiedJun 5, 2026
Textron Ripsaw M5 Robotic Combat Vehicle
- Record createdJun 5, 2026
Added to the verified registry
- Price point recordedJan 1, 2025
Not announced
- Price point recordedJan 1, 2025
Not announced
Deployment-verified media (1)
Textron Systems' showcase of its Ripsaw M5 Robotic Combat Vehicle (developed with Howe & Howe). A teleoperated, operator-controlled combat platform; any autonomy kit is separate, and the autonomy framing is the maker's.
From deployment: United States
Safety record
No incidents on record for Ripsaw M5 (RCV).
Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.
Sources (3)
Common questions
- What is Ripsaw M5 (RCV)?
- ~10.5-ton tracked hybrid-electric robotic combat vehicle (with Howe & Howe); four M5 prototypes delivered to the US Army for RCV-Medium. The lighter Ripsaw M3 was reported as the 2025 RCV down-select variant.
- How much does Ripsaw M5 (RCV) cost?
- Ripsaw M5 (RCV)'s price is not publicly disclosed. DEPLOY has no verified price on record for Ripsaw M5 (RCV) from Textron Systems. Physical-AI systems like this are often sold through enterprise contracts or operated as a service rather than at a public list price; check the manufacturer for the latest.
- Is Ripsaw M5 (RCV) actually deployed in the real world?
- Yes. Ripsaw M5 (RCV) is independently verified in real-world operation on the DEPLOY registry, confirmed at named deployment sites with primary sources: not a concept, render, or demo-only.
- What are the specs of Ripsaw M5 (RCV)?
- Ripsaw M5 (RCV)'s recorded specifications on the DEPLOY registry: Weight: ~10.5t; Max speed: 45 mph; Payload: 3600 kg. See the Specs section for the full sourced set.
- Who makes Ripsaw M5 (RCV)?
- Ripsaw M5 (RCV) is made by Textron Systems, based in Hunt Valley, MD.
- Where is Ripsaw M5 (RCV) deployed?
- 1 verified deployment of Ripsaw M5 (RCV) is on the DEPLOY registry, including at United States.
- Can you buy Ripsaw M5 (RCV)?
- Ripsaw M5 (RCV) is in pilot deployments with named customers and is not yet broadly for sale.
- What are alternatives to Ripsaw M5 (RCV)?
- On the DEPLOY registry, comparable defense_ugv robots to Ripsaw M5 (RCV) include THeMIS, MUTT (S-MET), ATLAS (Autonomous Tactical Light Armour System), Arion-SMET.
- How does Ripsaw M5 (RCV) compare to THeMIS?
- Ripsaw M5 (RCV) and THeMIS (Milrem Robotics · 3 deployments) are both defense_ugv robots on the DEPLOY registry. Ripsaw M5 (RCV) has 1 verified deployment on record. Compare both records for specs, safety, deployments, and verified-vs-claimed autonomy.
- Is Ripsaw M5 (RCV) a top defense_ugv?
- On DEPLOY's intelligence score, which blends verified deployments, safety, adoption, media, and IP signals, Ripsaw M5 (RCV) ranks in roughly the top 74% of defense_ugv models tracked by the registry.
- What is Ripsaw M5 (RCV)'s maturity stage?
- Ripsaw M5 (RCV) is at the pilot stage on the DEPLOY maturity ladder (research, prototype, pilot, commercial, production). Pilot stage means at least one named-customer trial deployment is verified.
- Is Ripsaw M5 (RCV) safe?
- Ripsaw M5 (RCV) has no incidents on record in the DEPLOY registry. This does not constitute a safety guarantee; it reflects the incidents DEPLOY has tracked and verified to date.
Methodology: Verified · 3 sources (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-07-15
Verification posture
Verified
Low confidence
Review state
Stable
Last reviewed 2026-07-15
Maturity + lifecycle
Maturity stage: pilot
Lifecycle: active
Architectural position
Cohort: defense_ugv
Sources by quality tier
- 2
- unclassified
- Unclassified source
- 1
- knowledge-base
- Knowledge base
The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.
Methodology surface for Ripsaw M5 (RCV).Recent coverage
Ripsaw M5 (RCV) in third-party press
Attention vs reality over time
Media mentions per month (area) against verified deployment events (dots). A press spike over a flat deployment line is the hype gap, drawn over time.
In the press
Recent coverage mentioning Ripsaw M5 (RCV) from third-party publications. Automatically surfaced; not part of the verified registry record.
Textron Systems, Howe & Howe and Teledyne FLIR Defense Deliver RIPSAW M3 Prototypes to US Army
Two RIPSAW M3 prototype vehicles delivered to the US Army for the Robotic Combat Vehicle competition.
First European RIPSAW M3 Robotic Ground Vehicle Sold to Sweden
Textron Systems sold the first European RIPSAW M3 robotic ground vehicle to the government of Sweden.
Machine-readable surfaces
- Markdown mirror: /models/textron-ripsaw-m5.md
- JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
- REST API: /v1/models/9c94adcd-7c81-436f-a56d-fa8847fc4253
- Revision history: /models/textron-ripsaw-m5/history
- Data documentation: /data
- Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP
Reality vs attention
Ripsaw M5 (RCV) draws attention at the 7th percentile but verifies reality at the 67th percentile among defense_ugv robots. Hype Gap -60.2, 13th widest among defense_ugv robots.
6-month trend
Analysis
Limited independent press and video coverage to date.
Signal flags
Dimension breakdown
Verified signal
Attention (reach, not merit)
DEPLOY Intelligence scores are computed from verified registry data: confirmed deployments, disclosed funding rounds, regulatory filings, active job listings, video viewership, and press coverage. Confidence ratings reflect data availability. Scores update nightly.
DEPLOY Indices — verified vs claimed
Last computed: Jul 21, 2026