We offer our view of Shield AI because it is part of the total ARK Venture Fund portfolio. To see the most updated portfolio, please click here.
Shield AI is developing an artificial intelligence pilot suite called Hivemind—user-friendly, autonomous software portable across multiple aircraft. Eventually, even an untrained person or soldier should be able to operate the system. Already serving government contracts, Shield AI currently sells its indoor drone, Nova 2, and its vertical take-off landing (VTOL) aircraft, the V-BAT, which use the Hivemind software.
Brothers Ryan Tseng and Brandon Tseng co-founded Shield AI. Brandon was a Navy SEAL for seven years and Ryan founded other successful startups, including WiPower, a wireless charging company acquired by Qualcomm.
Shield AI’s technology has proven superior to peer systems in open competition. In simulation, Shield AI won the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) AlphaDogfight trials, which pitted a human piloted F-16 against 8 teams of AI pilots, including Heron Systems (now Shield AI), Aurora Flight Sciences, EpiSys Science, Georgia Tech Research Institute, Lockheed Martin, Perspecta Labs, PhysicsAI and SoarTech. Recently, the company partnered with Kratos Defense & Security Solutions to integrate its Hivemind software into Kratos’ XQ-58 Valkyrie jet drone, which could give Shield AI a first mover advantage.
Swarms of low-cost, unmanned drones that offer a more efficient price-to-value ratio could replace larger, high-priced assets in the field. When integrated with cost-effective aircraft, autonomous pilots like Shield’s Hivemind should be able to help reduce casualties and increase mission accuracy. We believe the US and Allies are likely to increase spending on these assets to guard against threats from China, Russia, and others.
Disclosures
We offer our view of Shield AI because it is part of the total ARK Venture Fund portfolio. To see the most updated portfolio, please click here. Holdings subject to change. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any specific security.
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