In the early 1930s, the French Cavalry was in need of a small scouting vehicle. On 27 November 1931, the "Section Technique de la Cavalerie" asked Renault to rebuild one of his six "chenillette" prototypes into an armed tankette. Prototype N° 77982 was therefore turned into a "Automitrailleuse légère de contact tout terrain" in the winter of 1932, by being fitted with a small rectangular superstructure holding in its front a ballmount with machine-gun to be operated by the commander; the hood was placed on top of it. This type was rejected by the Cavalry for being too slow; further developments would however result in the AMR 33 light cavalry tank of which the Renault UE was the direct ancestor.