U-2 Flies with Artificial Intelligence as Its Co-Pilot - Air Force Magazine

One of the Air Force's oldest planes became the first military aircraft to fly with artificial intelligence as its copilot on Dec. 15. A U-2 from Beale Air Force Base, Calif., flew with an AI algorithm that controlled the Dragon Lady's sensors and tactical navigation during a local training sortie. The algorithm, developed by Air Combat Command's U-2 Federal Laboratory and named ARTUµ in a reference to the droid that serves as a copilot in the Star Wars film franchise, took over tasks normally handled by the pilot, in turn letting the flier focus on the flying. "ARTUµ's groundbreaking flight culminates our three-year journey to becoming a digital force," said Will Roper, the Air Force's assistant secretary of acquisition, in a release. Failing to realize AI's full potential will mean ceding decision advantage to our adversaries." The laboratory used more than a half-million simulated training missions to build the algorithm, which took over sensors after takeoff. The training scenario focused on a simulated missile strike, with ARTUµ finding enemy missile launchers and the pilot looking for adversary aircraft--both using the U-2's radar, according to the release. "We know that in order to fight and win in a future conflict with a peer adversary, we must have a decisive digital advantage," Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr said in the release. "AI will play a critical role in achieving that edge, so I'm incredibly proud of what the team accomplished.