A Defense Innovation Unit prototyping project that seeks to develop multiagent teams of autonomous unmanned aircraft systems has concluded a five-day flight test event.
The Artificial Intelligence for Small Unit Maneuver project intends to provide situational awareness for warfighters and enable them to counter threats through a collaborative system of autonomous drones, DIU said Wednesday.
The AISUM prototype consists of the Shield AI-built Nova 2 UAS, the Skydio-made X2D drone and features ground control software and user interface from Auterion Government Solutions and multiagent UAS software from Systems & Technology Research.
During the initial test flight event, a single operator was able to control multiple small drones, which demonstrated their capability to communicate, carry out mission-type orders and avoid obstacles using onboard software.
According to DIU, the AISUM project builds on a swarm architecture developed through the OFFensive Swarm-Enabled Tactics program of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
The Customs and Border Protection and the Office of Naval Research also works with DIU on the project.
