CaliToday (22/10/2025): US defense tech firm Shield AI unveiled a new, fully autonomous multirole fighter jet on Wednesday, powered by the same artificial intelligence "brain" that successfully piloted an F-16 in a historic dogfight against a human-crewed aircraft.
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| Shield AI has unveiled X-BAT, a stealthy jet-powered 'autonomous fighter' designed to take off vertically and land the same way, tail first, after completing its mission. |
The company, a prominent "unicorn" in the defense sector, introduced its new aircraft design, the X-BAT. Shield AI claims the jet is a revolutionary platform that can operate entirely without human pilots, GPS, or reliable communications, and can take off and land vertically without the need for runways.
This VTOL (vertical takeoff and landing) capability, the company says, allows it to be deployed from unconventional locations, including remote islands and commercial container ships, not just dedicated warships.
Armor Harris, Shield AI's senior vice president of aircraft engineering, told Business Insider that the intelligence powering the new aircraft is the company's "Hivemind" AI pilot. This is "the same combat-proven AI pilot we used to fly a modified F-16 through a dogfight," Harris said, referencing a landmark 2024 test.
The AI That Won a Dogfight
That 2024 exercise was a pivotal moment in aerial warfare. An AI-driven X-62A VISTA, a heavily modified F-16, went head-to-head in a real-world aerial combat engagement with a human-piloted fighter. Then-Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall was so confident in the system that he rode in the back of the pilotless fighter during the test, calling it "a transformational moment."
While the military never officially declared a winner in that specific engagement, AI pilots have consistently beaten human counterparts in other simulations. The 2024 test marked the transition of autonomous air-to-air combat from "a distant dream" to a tangible reality.
Shield AI told Business Insider that the Hivemind-powered X-BAT can complete entire missions without human intervention, navigating contested areas where traditional crewed aircraft may be unable to operate safely, or at all. Pilotless fighters are also not bound by the same design limitations—like G-force restrictions meant to protect a human pilot.
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| A mock-up of the X-BAT on its launch trailer. One of Shield AI’s V-BAT drones is also seen at left. Shield AI |
"Unlike legacy crewed aircraft, X-BAT frees human aviators for missions that demand critical human judgment," the company stated, calling it "an essential advantage in today's fast-moving and unpredictable conflict zones."
The 'CCA' Wingman and Future Warfare
The X-BAT is also designed to function as an "attritable" drone wingman, part of the US Air Force's major investment in Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCAs). These CCAs are intended to fly alongside crewed fighters, acting as force multipliers to protect the human pilot and expand their combat power.
Harris explained that the X-BAT was built for "what comes after" the Air Force's initial "Increment 1" development phase for CCAs, which saw General Atomics and Anduril selected to build prototypes.
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| Shield AI’s Armor Harris in front of a group of V-BATs. Shield AI |
"X-BAT is pushing the envelope with advanced electronic warfare capabilities, greater payload capacity, and extended range that gives combatant commanders geographically distributed long-range fires and effects," Harris said.
A key driver for the CCA program is affordability. These platforms can be sacrificed in high-intensity combat to protect the far more expensive crewed fighters and their pilots. Shield AI said the X-BAT "delivers high-end capability for a fraction of the cost of traditional fighter jets," allowing for a larger, more resilient fleet that can sustain losses.
"The AI competition is essentially going to determine who's the winner in the next battlefield," Kendall said last year.
Deployable from "Almost Anywhere"
A key feature of the X-BAT design is its operational flexibility. Shield AI claims it has a 2,000-nautical-mile range combined with its vertical takeoff and landing capability.
This "letting it launch from ships, islands, or austere forward sites without carriers, runways, or tankers," could be invaluable for overcoming the "tyranny of distance" in the vast Indo-Pacific theater.
Harris noted that while a big-deck amphibious warship could host up to 60 X-BATs, their small footprint means they "could also be launched from atypical vessels, like a container ship." This, he added, gives "commanders the power to project combat airpower from almost anywhere."
The X-BAT, which was unveiled to military leaders and politicians in Washington D.C. on Tuesday, is being pitched for use by all branches of the US military and its allies. While its future adoption is unclear, military interest in autonomy is surging. European defense giant Airbus has also recently tested its H145 helicopter using Shield AI's versatile Hivemind pilot.