WASHINGTON — In an effort to promote innovation while also keeping within budget, the U.S. Army has announced an initiative to replace its autonomous weapons systems with cheaper, more expendable Marines.

“It’s really amazing what Marines are capable of these days,” Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. James McConville said. “They can almost think, feel, and make decisions as well as a machine.

“Not quite as well, but it’s close.”

The Marine was invented as early as 1775, and they have long been used by the Navy to guard ships and get arrested on port calls in Europe and the Pacific. The Army has always been reluctant to employ Marines in its formations, citing “liberty risks” and “lack of basic cognitive functioning.” But tightening budgets and growing computing costs for artificial intelligence systems have caused the Army to reconsider.