The Digital Battlefield
What began as a casual hobby between two friends has become one of the most influential platforms shaping global perception of the Ukraine-Russia conflict. Roman Pohorilyi and Ruslan Mykula were just university students sharing geopolitical updates with a small Telegram audience when Russian forces began military actions near Ukraine’s borders in late 2021. Neither could have imagined their side project would evolve into DeepStateMap.live—a sophisticated war-tracking platform that now influences international discourse.
The portal has transformed from simple troop movement tracking into a comprehensive digital battlefield experience. Users can access real-time missile strike data, analyze attack vectors with military precision, and monitor critical infrastructure like railway networks and power grids. The platform’s granular detail—showing specific weapon systems, territorial changes, and civilian impact zones—creates an almost interactive war documentary that updates continuously.
What makes DeepStateMap unique is its unexpected features that blend serious intelligence with subtle engagement tactics. The interface includes weather overlays for tactical analysis, fortification mapping, and even gamma radiation monitoring for nuclear scenarios. Users can simulate weapon ranges and damage potential for everything from artillery systems to ballistic missiles.
One of the most interesting features is hidden within this serious functionality: a playful Easter egg: It is a Baby Yoda animation that, when activated, uses “the Force” to eliminate Russian military units—a moment of levity in an otherwise grim interface. This small feature plays a significant role in perception building among the users regarding Russia.
The platform’s evolution from amateur hobby to professional intelligence operation reflects geospatial technology’s growing role in information warfare. What started as two friends sharing news now employs over 100 contributors combining open-source intelligence with direct military unit communications. This hybrid approach—mixing crowdsourced verification with frontline data—represents a new model for conflict documentation.
The visual impact cannot be understated. Unlike traditional media reports, the map provides instant understanding of territorial losses, and infrastructure damage. Color-coded control zones and directional attack arrows create powerful narratives that shape international opinion more effectively than written reports ever could. It has also become one of the most important resources for media outlets. However, this democratization of battlefield intelligence raises fascinating questions about information authenticity and narrative control. The founders claim strict neutrality, rejecting propaganda from both sides, yet their data selection and presentation methods inevitably influence how millions perceive the conflict.
DeepStateMap represents the future of conflict reporting—where geospatial technology doesn’t just document wars but actively shapes their perception, funding, and resolution.