- [Speaker] Launch, launch, launch.
(drone engine firing)
- [Narrator] This is the new Valkyrie drone.
It's a prototype of a system that is said
to take out targets over a distance of up to 3,000 miles
and run on artificial intelligence.
The Valkyrie XQ-58A could be an important part
of the US military's multi-billion dollar effort
to expand its arsenal with thousands of drones
in the next several years.
All so it can keep up with increasingly advanced adversaries
like China.
- The Department of Defense has been quite clear
that there's a concern
about the conventional military balance really shifting
in the Indo-Pacific in favor of China,
which has more missiles
and more people than the United States.
And so to offset that eroding conventional balance,
there's a view that we need to buy
more next generation drones to bring mass to the theater
and reset the regional balance.
- [Narrator] Here's how the Valkyrie is built for stealth,
and how it could fit into the US military's plans
to establish a fleet of artificial intelligence systems.
- It's really the only system flying,
particularly that's been flying as long as it has,
with mission configuration systems, with autonomy,
with artificial intelligence,
that's in the true attritable class range,
which means sub-$10 million,
fully integrated, mission capable.
- [Narrator] The Valkyrie, made by defense company, Kratos,
is designed for stealth missions
using parts that are easily sourced.
It is still in the development process
and will have to compete with other AI-equipped drones
for additional military funding.
But within its class of drones,
around the five to $10 million price point,
military experts say it's a notable contender.
- We focus on a reduced number of parts.
Obviously the fewer parts you have,
typically the less expensive something is.
Some of the avionics are common
with general aviation aircraft.
Some of the avionics are custom and designed by us
and by some of our suppliers specifically for the Valkyrie.
It's the mix of all those that allows you to have a system
with the capability level that this has,
but without the sticker price
of what typically would be a manned fighter aircraft.
- [Narrator] The Valkyrie weighs 2,500 pounds,
about as much as two or three concert grand pianos.
30 feet long with a wingspan of 27 feet,
it's made to evade radar detection through its curved shape
and more specific features like the serpentine inlet
that feeds its turbofan engine.
The Valkyrie can accelerate to Mach 0.85,
travel 3,000 miles at up to 45,000 feet in altitude,
and carry 600 pounds of weapons internally
and the same amount on each wing.
And it doesn't require a runway to launch.
It can fly from aircraft carriers, or small air fields.
But one of the most important parts of the Valkyrie
is what's controlling it.
- It's a combination of the AI with the features
of the aircraft itself that really make it unique.
So think about the Vanguard programs
that the Air Force has rolled out to say,
"This represents the future."
Like adding un-crewed systems,
performing manned, unmanned teaming,
performing multiple teams of un-crewed aircraft together,
and all of those proof-of-concept elements
have been demonstrated with the Valkyrie as it's evolved.
And in addition to proving those basic concepts,
the Valkyrie's evolved as a system
so that it can be a primary platform and system
that will ultimately be used to perform
those actual missions.
- [Narrator] The US military has recently doubled down
on artificial intelligence to counter threats from China
and keep up with its rapidly expanding arsenal.
- We must move with urgency and unity of purpose,
to ensure we can maintain the peace
and have our troops ready for whatever may come.
Because that's what's required in this era
of strategic competition with the PRC.
- [Narrator] While some military technology
already incorporates artificial intelligence,
like computers that pull data
from satellite images or video,
the military is exploring tech
with much broader capabilities.
From inexpensive drones
with various intelligence-gathering sensors,
to automated missile defense systems.
The military intends to use these in such large numbers
that enemies can't destroy them all.
At this point,
multiple branches of the military and defense contractors
are working on AI pilot systems.
And they're testing some with the Valkyrie.
The Air Force Research Lab conducted its first test mission
with an AI-equipped Valkyrie over the summer.
And Shield AI, a contractor for the Defense Department,
is working on its own AI pilot with the drone.
The Valkyrie is designed to run a variety of missions
in contested airspace.
Its AI pilot would use a range of sensors to monitor
and interpret its surroundings.
The AI would share that information and act on it,
issuing commands to the plane's onboard computer system,
which would determine the flight path
and settings to get where it needs to go.
If the Valkyrie locates a target,
it would get human authorization
before neutralizing it using bombs or other weapons.
In a military operation,
the Valkyrie could execute missions autonomously,
or be used in conjunction with fighter jets.
Because the Valkyrie can carry up to
1,800 pounds of payload,
it could also be used to launch a variety of weapons.
But many military experts have voiced concerns
about putting weapons in the wings of drones running
on artificial intelligence.
That drones could inadvertently deploy weapons
that could cause harm or escalate conflict.
- There are huge ethical
and potentially legal considerations associated
with putting true artificial intelligence in a drone.
In the United Nations,
there's discussions about banning lethal autonomous weapons
of course, but the problem with all of this
is that our adversaries are unlikely to participate
in any kind of ban on lethal autonomous weapons.
And the United States, in fact,
is not participating in any kind of ban.
So the real issue is that even though we choose to act
in a way that conforms with our values
and our role in the international system,
other countries may not choose to do that.
- [Narrator] The Valkyrie is priced at five to $10 million.
That's a fraction of the price of a crewed aircraft.
An F-35 fighter jet can cost about $90 million.
Though in practice, many cost significantly more.
But as the US military looks to add thousands of AI drones
within the next two years to its fleet,
it will also be exploring systems
that are substantially cheaper.
Even if they don't travel as far, or as fast,
or carry as many weapons,
they could use the same AI piloting software being developed
on the XQ-58A.
- Other drones could accept some of the same autonomy.
The basic AI and the ability to deploy AI
across a number of systems is very important.
And if you look at some of the things
that the Air Force has published lately,
they've been very open.
Their intent is to have a family of systems across the DoD,
and to maximize commonality from an AI perspective,
from an interface perspective,
with those different un-crewed aircraft systems
so that it doesn't require one specific trained operator
for any one aircraft type.
The difference again becomes in the mission capability.
- [Narrator] There's still development work to go.
In a test mission this summer,
the Air Force Research Lab said
an AI-equipped Valkyrie solved a tactical challenge problem
in the air, but didn't provide more specifics.
But whether the Valkyrie will move forward
through proposed initiatives
like the Air Force's planned
collaborative combat aircraft program remains to be seen.
Other companies are also working on their own drones,
like Boeing's MQ-28 Ghost Bat.
According to Kratos,
the Valkyrie is already at a stage where it could be used.
But full deployment is probably at least a year away.
- Because the Department of Defense
hasn't really settled on exactly the types of drones
it wants to buy yet,
and in fact probably needs a family of drones.
What you've seen is that industry has responded
to this demand signal with this wonderfully diverse set
of capabilities that really do span the whole spectrum,
from a very small to the much larger.
Some of them are focused on
intelligent surveillance reconnaissance,
some of them can carry air-to-air missiles.
A real question and the thing that industry is waiting for
is where is that demand signal now
to scale production of these drones?
This is an urgent question
because we want to shore up for structure in short order
to build up that combat credible force.
- [Narrator] Given how big a shift
economical AI-equipped weapons represent
for the US military,
it's unclear exactly how or when the Valkyrie
or the software being built on it
will actually reach the battlefield.
(bright music)