Fifteen years from now, amid the rubble of a war-torn city in a distant land, a strange creature lurks in the dark. Encased in lightweight climate-controlled body armour, humming with electricity and bristling with sensors, this fighting man-machine is constantly updated with battlefield information via a glowing monocular display. Meet the soldier of the future. Several countries are pursuing this vision of a networked infantryman dripping with technology, and, while the US Army's Integrated Future Force Warrior project leads the way in R&D investment and ambition, other nations are making significant headway with their own initiatives. Alongside Slovenia's 21st Century Warrior, Australia's Land 125, Portugal's Soldado do Futuro, Felin in France and the Swedish Markus programme, almost every militarised nation is investigating the concept of the 'future soldier'.