:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/archetype/EGZQHKLI7VEHJB3E6KCFEGQCDI.jpg "AI-operated fighter jet will fly Air Force secretary on test run")
The Air Force is betting a large part of its future air warfare on a fleet more than 1,000 autonomously operated drones, and later this spring its top civilian leader plans to climb into one of those artificial intelligence-operated warplanes and let it take him airborne. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told senators on Tuesday …
In the spiraling race to develop new, better and more drones, artificial intelligence is one of the new frontiers Ukraine is hoping to dominate before Russia gets the chance to edge ahead. But with the demands of a grinding war, there are pressing concerns over how quickly AI is taking to the skies and how …
Armed with about $49 billion that Congress appropriated in 2021, a normally inconspicuous Commerce Department agency is tackling an ambitious goal of giving all Americans access to high-speed internet. At a recent congressional hearing, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. of New Jersey, the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said the National Telecommunications and Information Administration “may …
It’s hard to overstate the level of hype currently surrounding military drones. Just in the past week, former senior US military commanders have penned commentaries comparing drones, in terms of their revolutionary potential, to the development of the phalanx formation that helped make Alexander the Great’s conquest possible, and suggesting they may make the US …
In the beginning of 2021, Alphabet shuttered Loon. It was a familiar story within the annals of Google X history: an ambitious moonshot with tremendous upside that sputtered out prior to gaining any sort of meaningful traction after nearly a decade. “Despite Loon’s extraordinary technical progress,” X explains with a tinge of melancholy on the …
Air Warfare, Networks / Cyber Ukranian servicemembers launch an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) which is equipped with a thermographic camera, in Zaporizhzhia region, southeastern Ukraine. (Dmytro Smolienko/Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images) WASHINGTON — “The war in Ukraine is spurring a revolution in drone warfare using AI,” blared a Washington Post headline last July. Then, …
War is a fearsome accelerant of arms races. Before Russia invaded Ukraine two years ago, the ethics of using land mines and cluster munitions were the subject of heated debate, and many states had signed agreements not to use either. But once the desperate need to win takes over, governments can lose their qualms and …
Anduril’s Roadrunner interceptor drone, ready for takeoff. Courtesy of Anduril Industries Anduril Industries says it wants to become the Lockheed Martin LMT of the 21st century. One way the defense-tech startup, cofounded by billionaire Palmer Luckey, is trying to get there is by developing gear on its own dime rather than waiting for Pentagon contract …
Despite their ecological importance, sharks face one of the highest extinction risks among vertebrates, with more than a third of shark and ray species currently at risk of extinction, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Overfishing is a primary driver of this decline, exacerbated by the life history traits of sharks, including …
New York’s coastline now not only has cleaner waters, but warmer ones. While it is an environmental win for some – who doesn’t love a more pristine environment? – it also has led to a bit of a problem. Warmer and cleaner waters are a big draw for swimmers, surfers, and beachgoers. They’re also a …