ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — One of the more futuristic drones that Ukrainian forces have used to carry out surveillance for strike missions deep inside Russia is on display at the massive International Defense Exhibition (IDEX) that has drawn weapons companies from around the world to this Mideast city in recent days.
Produced by the San Diego-based advanced aerospace and defense tech firm Shield AI, the V-BAT drone has been effective because of its ability to carry out stealth missions without disruption from Russian communication and global positioning system (GPS) jamming technology.
Brandon Tseng, a former U.S. Navy SEAL and co-founder of Shield AI, told Threat Status in an interview at IDEX that Ukrainian forces have deployed the V-BAT for “flying long-range, long endurance, strategic [reconnaissance]-strike missions, where they are going in and finding Russian targets and calling in long-range fires and having wild success.”
The V-BAT has gained popularity globally, he said, because of its adaptability and mobility. The drone, whose hardware can be broken down into parcels small enough to fit on the back or a pickup truck or a seafaring vessel, is also packed with artificial intelligence software that enables it to operate on long missions without relying on GPS for navigation.
“It’s a lot like a self-driving car, but for aviation,” said Mr. Tseng. “It’s mapping out its world around it, and then it’s using that map to reference itself in the world. …There’s no GPS.”
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The technology is part of Shield AI’s “Hivemind,” which the company boasts as the “world’s best AI pilot.”
Mr. Tseng described Hivemind’s ability to navigate as something akin to how a human mind navigates the physical world. “We intuitively map out the world and navigate based on that. I’m not using GPS to get around this conference,” he said at IDEX, a gathering widely regarded as the world’s largest international arms bazaar.
More than 1,500 defense and weapons companies from more than 60 different countries, including the U.S., China and Russia are attending the expo, which occurs every other year in Abu Dhabi.
Shield AI’s V-BAT is among hundreds of drones on display, including from Middle Eastern countries such as the UAE. Ukraine’s own National Association of Ukrainian Defense Industries (NAUD) has its own slate of smaller drones on offer on the exhibition floor.
Shield, however, has had growing success in recent years as an emerging American firm on the cutting edge of fusing AI software with a mobile drone that several U.S. security partners around the world believe is reshaping the future of warfare and deterrence.
The company is engaged in an expanding strategic partnership with Denver-based Palantir Technologies, another emergent U.S. defense firm.
There is widespread speculation about the future role that evolving V-BAT and Hivemind drone swarming capabilities could play in deterring China’s military ambitions in the Indo-Pacific, specifically with regard to Beijing’s stated goal of taking control of the U.S.-aligned island democracy of Taiwan by force if necessary.
With that as a backdrop, Shield was among roughly a dozen U.S. defense firms that Beijing announced sanctions against late last year.
Mr. Tseng described the V-BAT as a “U.S. program of record drone” that is now “being adopted widely across the world.”
“Taiwan just made a public announcement the other day [that] they’ll be buying the V-BATs. Japanese, a program of record, is buying V-BATS. We have V-BATS here in the Emirates with the Emiratis,” he said. “One of the reasons why it’s being widely adopted has been our success flying while GPS and communications were being jammed in Ukraine [and] in Russia.”
The drone’s mobility and relatively low coast also make it attractive. “It’s a move-or-die world out there, where if you’re not constantly on the move, you’re going to get shot with artillery, you’re going to get shot with rockets,” said Mr. Tseng, who noted the V-BAT’s light weight at 120 pounds.
It’s a “vertical takeoff, launch and land aircraft,” meaning it “launches and lands like a SpaceX rocket,” he said, adding that “does the mission of $40 million drones at a fraction of the price.”
“What we’re seeing on the broader global defense stage is a push towards more affordable systems,” Mr. Tseng said, adding that instead of buying $100 million F-35 and F-22 piloted fighter jets, militaries around the world are seeking $15 million or $25 million large uncrewed jets.
“Similarly, with the V-BAT, instead of buying $40 million strategic [Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance] ISR and targeting platforms that are more vulnerable to surface-to-air missile systems, they want to buy something like the V-BAT… which has been proven, has gone up against Russian surface to air missile systems in Ukraine.”
• Guy Taylor can be reached at gtaylor@washingtontimes.com.