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[FoxNews] The U.S. Navy has committed an additional $150 million to the development of an artificial intelligence-piloted fighter aircraft designed to take off and land vertically, bringing total public and private investment in the program to $400 million.
Defense technology company Shield AI announced Thursday that the Navy had modified an existing agreement to support development of its X-BAT aircraft, with the company matching the new government funding with $150 million of its own capital.
The investment follows a separate $50 million Navy funding action in August, also matched by Shield AI, bringing combined commitments to $400 million, according to the company's press release.
The X-BAT is designed to conduct military missions without a human pilot, using Shield AI's "Hivemind" software to operate even when GPS signals or communications are limited.
The aircraft is being developed to take off and land vertically from ships, islands and remote locations without relying on traditional runways.
In an October 2025 interview with Fox News Digital, Armor Harris, Shield AI's senior vice president of aircraft engineering, said X-BAT was designed to counter China's strategy of targeting American aircraft on the ground, allowing U.S. forces to launch missions without relying on vulnerable airfields.
"China has built this anti-access aerial denial bubble that holds our runways at risk," Harris said at the time.
In Thursday's announcement, Harris emphasized the company's progress toward flight testing.
"We are testing early and often while working on the aircraft, mission systems, ship suitability and production in parallel," he said.
Shield AI said roughly 500 engineers across the company and its suppliers are working on the program, with flight testing scheduled to begin later this year.
WHAT TO KNOW
- Three fired OpenAI researchers have raised concerns that increasingly sophisticated AI systems could become harder to monitor, posing potential safety risks as the technology advances, according to The Wall Street Journal.
- Tech entrepreneur Bryan Johnson, who has spent millions pursuing ways to extend his lifespan, says artificial intelligence could revolutionize medicine but isn't reliable enough to trust with his health.
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