# Shield AI Defense AI company building autonomous drone and aircraft systems powered by AI pilots. Founded by former Navy SEAL [[Brandon Tseng]] after combat experience in Afghanistan revealed critical reconnaissance gaps. ## Products - **Hivemind** — AI pilot software that enables autonomous flight without GPS, communications, or remote pilots. - **V-BAT** — Vertical takeoff and landing drone with weapons capability. Used by multiple U.S. military branches and allies. - **X-BAT** — Uncrewed fighter jet in development. VTOL demos planned for late 2026, full validation by 2028. ## Key Facts - Revenue ~$300M (FY ending March 2025). - Targeting $1B revenue by FY2028 (70-100% annual growth). - New CEO Gary Steele brought in to scale operations. - Acquired Australian AI firm Sentient Vision Systems for drone AI upgrade. - Deployed across all U.S. military branches plus UK, Israel, India, Canada, and Ukraine. ## Differentiation Unlike [[Anduril]]'s full-stack approach, Shield AI focuses specifically on the "AI pilot" problem — building software that can fly any aircraft autonomously. Brandon Tseng maintains a notably nuanced position on armed autonomous systems compared to [[Palmer Luckey]]'s more aggressive stance. ## See Also - [[Shield AI X-BAT Navy OT Modification]] - [[Brandon Tseng]] - [[Anduril]] - [[Andreessen Horowitz]] - [[American Dynamism]] - [[Autonomous Weapons Debate]]