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Advanced / Transformational Technology

Level of Allowed Autonomy Key Question for U.S. Air Force on Skyborg, Other Drones

Frank Wolfe

Friday, December 18th, 2020

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Level of Allowed Autonomy Key Question for U.S. Air Force on Skyborg, Other Drones

A Skyborg conceptual design for a low cost Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) (Air Force Research Laboratory)

U.S. Air Force development of low-cost unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and the Skyborg low-cost attritable demonstrator hold significant promise, yet a key question will be the level of artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled autonomy that the service will afford to such drones. "Low-cost UAVs can add complexity to the thinking, both our thinking and the adversary's thinking because we can proliferate them and make them all a little different," Air Force Chief Scientist Richard Joseph told the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies'…

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