Ukraine's state security service has unveiled an upgraded sea drone it says can now operate anywhere in the Black Sea, carry heavier weapons and using artificial intelligence for targeting.

Ukraine has used the unmanned naval drones to target Russian shipping and infrastructure in the Black Sea.

The Security Service of Ukraine, known by its Ukrainian acronym SBU, has credited strikes by the unmanned vessel known as the “Sea Baby" with forcing a strategic shift in Russia’s naval operations.

The range of the Sea Baby was expanded from 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) to 1,500 kilometers (930 miles), SBU said.

It can carry up to 2,000 kilograms (about 4,400 pounds) of payload, SBU officials said.

At a demonstration attended by The Associated Press, variants included vessels fitted with a multiple-rocket launcher and another with a stabilized machine-gun turret.

Drone strikes have been used in successful attacks against 11 Russian vessels, including frigates and missile carriers, SBU said, prompting the Russian navy to relocate its main base from Sevastopol in Crimea to Novorossiysk on Russia’s Black Sea coast.

Authorities asked that the location of the demonstration not be made public for security reasons.

The craft are operated remotely from a mobile control center inside a van, where operators use a bank of screens and controls.

The SBU also said sea drones helped carry out other high-profile strikes, including repeated attacks on the Crimean Bridge, most recently targeting its underwater supports in a bid to to render it unusable for heavy military transport.

The Sea Baby program is partially funded by public donations through a state-run initiative and is coordinated with Ukraine’s military and political leadership.

The evolution from expendable strike boats to reusable, networked drones marks an important advance in asymmetric naval warfare, SBU Brig. Gen. Ivan Lukashevych said.

“These drones were financed by Ukrainian people as a part of United24 initiative. Here we can present Ukrainians the most effective usage of money donated to us,” he added.

AP video by Alex Babenko

AP production by Bela Szandelszky