Made for Defense Research and Development Canada (DRDC, or RDDC in French), the rifle has been in development since 2009, designed to give Canadian troops a lighter, better weapon. From appearances, it doesn't really look lighter, and even the DRDC's write-up only offers the cautious and polite caveat that it "could weigh less than" the Colt C7 Rifle Canada currently uses. The rifle's planned data integration means that it will collect information and also receive it from command. In battles this could be useful to troops, and afterwards that data can better inform Canadian gunmakers as they plan for guns beyond this one