reSee.it Podcast Summary
Brandon Tseng, co-founder and president of Shield AI, a defense technology company, discussed his journey from a Navy SEAL to a leader in AI and autonomous systems for national security. A graduate of the Naval Academy and Harvard Business School, Tseng's military experience, including deployments to Afghanistan and the Pacific Theater, profoundly shaped his vision for Shield AI. He emphasized the importance of protecting warfighters and civilians, driven by a desire to solve critical problems in warfare and global stability. His early military career, including augmenting a SEAL Team 6 troop, provided a masterclass in ISR and targeting operations, which later informed his approach to building AI systems.
Shield AI, founded in 2015, has raised over $1 billion and grown to over a thousand employees, focusing on building AI pilots for military assets. Their core innovation is the "Hivemind" AI pilot, a self-driving technology for unmanned systems that enables operation without GPS or communications, and facilitates swarming capabilities. The company's first product was an AI-piloted quadcopter for clearing buildings, successfully deployed in various conflict zones like Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel, and Ukraine, proving its ability to enhance safety for special operations forces. This initial success, though in a niche market, laid the groundwork for more ambitious projects.
The company expanded its hardware capabilities by acquiring companies that developed the VBAT, a 180lb vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, and Heron Systems, which specialized in AI for fighter jets. The VBAT, akin to a miniature Predator drone, has been operationally deployed with the US Coast Guard for counter-drug operations in the Caribbean, interdicting over half a billion dollars worth of cocaine in just two weeks. It has also seen significant success in Ukraine, performing over 130 sorties and enabling numerous strikes against Russian equipment in GPS and communications-jammed environments, demonstrating its strategic value in contested battlefields.
Shield AI's most ambitious project is the XBAT, a first-of-its-kind, AI-piloted, vertical takeoff and landing multi-role combat strike jet platform. This aircraft, which does not require runways and is designed for mass production, aims to fundamentally transform air warfare by enabling geographically distributed, long-range fires from virtually any location. The XBAT, targeting a cost significantly lower than current fighter jets, boasts a 2100 nautical mile range and fifth/sixth-generation capabilities. Tseng believes AI and autonomy will be the most strategic capability for the next 50 years, leading to human-machine teaming in the near term and eventually robot-on-robot deterrence, emphasizing the need for the US to lead in this technology to maintain global stability against adversaries like China.