The United States is looking to expand its AI fighter jet program with further technological developments to stay ahead of China and others working towards these new-generation aircraft technologies.
The goal is to develop the AI to fly without GPS on the planes and teach it new tactics that the AI will apply and use whenever it flies off.
US AI Fighter Jets: Fly Without GPS, New AI Tactics
(Photo: John Torcasio on Unsplash)
According to ABC News, the country's military is now focusing on these key developments that would help improve the tech and deliver features like flying without GPS and learning new tactics.
It was revealed that relying on GPS has downsides, including using disruption tech to blind the pilot and impede communications. However, going GPS-less on flights, relying on AI reading the Earth's magnetic fields, would avoid such disruptions.
On the other hand, AI's algorithm only knows what was uploaded or applied to it from the ground, and flying means it would have to rely on stored knowledge.
That being said, the tests may use its data and apply it to the algorithms in preparation for future ventures or actions.
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US Wants to Stay Ahead of China, AI Race
The US is ramping up its development of AI tech for its fighter jets now, especially for the F-16 aircraft, which recently engaged in the AI vs. Human dogfight, one that would give it an edge over China.
The US is looking to get ahead of the competition and develop a capable AI-powered autonomous fighter jet in this AI race.
However, that being said, the US promised that it would not rely entirely on AI, particularly as it met public backlash where there could be a time when the AI would be given a target to eliminate, all without human intervention.
AI-Powered Aircraft, Autonomous Flights
Since 2020, the US has been looking towards letting AI control its F-16 fighter jets and develop one of the earliest autonomous military fighters for future needs.
Previously, it was able to demonstrate an AI dogfight between a human pilot and an artificial intelligence controlling the F-16's systems, initially called the DARPA AlphaDogfight Trial, to see how it performed.
Additionally, this renowned more than a week-long testing saw that the AI beat the human pilot, centering on Heron System's AI, which trumped by a whopping 5-0 score.
It is also known that this was not the first time that an AI defeated a human in a virtual dogfight that simulated the activities of what they would do on air, even against experienced veterans.
While AI can beat humans in a dogfight, it only shows that the side-by-side designation of AI and people for these kinds of ventures would be a massive plus for improving defense.
That being said, the US is intent on improving its AI technologies with massive features like flying without GPS to avoid disruptions, as well as new tactics to teach the country to take the lead in this race.
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