Unit X, AI-Powered Soldiers, and an Unmanned Hellscape

The book “Unit X - How Pentagon and Silicon Valley are Transforming the Future of War” was published this week. In the book, the authors Raj M. Shah and Christopher Kirchhoff share their story of running the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental that was created to disrupt and transform the slow Pentagon procurement system.

The US is developing a tactical AI assistant that is supposed to give soldiers a “cognitive overmatch,” or an ability to dominate the situation by making informed decisions faster than the opponent.

But first, in an opinion piece in Bloomberg Andreas Kluth discusses Pentagon’s ambitious drone project called Replicator. The idea is that any Chinese invasion force should be met with overwhelming swarms of drones - uncrewed vehicles under and on the water and in the air:

The Big Story

Unit X, Pentagon and the Silicon Valley

This week, Raj M. Shah and Christopher Kirchhoff’s book “Unit X - How Pentagon and Silicon Valley are Transforming the Future of War” was published.

The book starts with an account of Shah in 2006, then a twenty-seven-year-old US Air Force captain, piloting a F-16 Viper along the border between Iraq and Iran and realising that he couldn’t tell which side of the border he was on. The navigation system couldn’t be upgraded, so he used a Compaq iPAQ, loaded civilian navigation software and digital maps, and strapped it to his knee when he was flying.

“That was the first time Raj realised how far Silicon Valley had leapt ahead of defence contractors,” Shah and Kirchhoff write in the book.

Ten years later, Shah and Kirchhoff were appointed to run the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental (DIUx), or Unit X for short. Unit X was a newly created outpost in Silicon Valley, with the mission to “disrupt and transform the culture of the largest and possibly most bureaucratic organisation in the world by infusing its clogger arteries with the nimble, agile DNA of Silicon Valley.”

Shah and Kirchhoff were given the authority to cut through the red tape and function almost as a venture capital firm, particularly by meeting immediate military needs with technology from Valley startups rather than companies like Lockheed, Raytheon, and Boeing.

The book ends with the authors visiting Ukraine. In a commentary in The Atlantic, they write about how they “saw a glimpse of the future of war” there, with commercial technology having transformed every domain of the war.

“Anyone with a credit card could access intelligence that only superpowers had,” they write. “Forces that make the most of cheaper, nimbler, and unorthodox technologies will gain a key advantage over their adversaries […] if Ukraine offers a glimpse of the future, it also offers a warning: America isn’t ready.”

Kirchhoff announced the book in a LinkedIn post with the comment: “As we’ve seen in Ukraine – and are seeing with Houthi sea-drone attacks in the Red Sea and Hezbollah’s use of loitering munitions to depopulate northern Israel – a new wave of technology is transforming how war is fought. The geopolitical balance of power is shifting. And the U.S. and its allies are racing to catch up.”

In a post on X, Eric Schmidt called the book “[…] essential reading on technology and national security.”

In Forbes, William Hartung said the the authors “join the chorus of techno-enthusiasts who believe that pilotless weapons and systems incorporating artificial intelligence are the future of warfare” calling for a vigorous national debate about whether and how to use emerging technology for military purposes.

*Raj and Chris fly a long-range surveillance drone at a test range outside of Lviv in October 2023. Source:* *Unitxbook.com*

AI-Powered Super Soldiers

The hyper-enabled operator, HEO, a tactical AI assistant being developed by the US, is supposed to help elite troops operating in the grey zone between peace and conflict. The objective is straightforward: to give soldiers a “cognitive overmatch,” or an ability to dominate the situation by making informed decisions faster than the opponent.

“The goal of HEO,” as SOCOM officials put it in 2019, “is to get the right information to the right person at the right time.”

The HEO concept is the successor program to the Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS) effort initiated in 2013 and was intended to outfit US special operations forces with a so-called “Iron Man” suit. TALOS was inspired by the 2012 death of a Navy SEAL during a hostage rescue operation in Afghanistan and was intended to improve operators’ survivability by making them resistant to small-arms fire through an additional layer of sophisticated armour. In 2019, the program was closed due to integration challenges but gave rise to the HEO.

The HEO concept swaps the powered armour of TALOS for sophisticated communications equipment and a robust sensor suite built on advanced computing architecture, allowing the operator to vacuum up relevant data and distil it into actionable information through a simple interface like a head-up display. This should also be possible in places where traditional communication networks are unavailable.

The system should enable rabid situation awareness and help the SOF operators to make timely, well-informed decisions, and take actions inside an adversary’s ability to react.

In the News

Australia Looks to Model Ukraine Killer Drone Success

Australia plans to bolster its military capabilities by acquiring loitering munition Switchblade 300 drones, inspired by their effective use in Ukraine. These portable drones, which crash into targets, will be in service by late 2024 to deter potential aggressors. The acquisition is part of a larger plan to invest between $500 million and $1 billion in army drones. While effective against infantry, some officials argue that these drones are not a game-changer and emphasize the need for investment in larger defence platforms.
Read more at Yahoo News.

AI Can Support Humanitarian Organisations in Armed Conflict or Crisis, But They Should Understand Potential Risks

AI offers significant benefits for humanitarian organisations operating in conflict zones, including improved decision-making and resource allocation. However, the deployment of AI systems also poses risks such as data privacy issues, potential biases, and the ethical implications of autonomous decision-making. Humanitarian organisations must weigh these benefits against the risks and establish frameworks to ensure ethical and effective use of AI in their operations.
Read more at Humanitarian.

Lockheed Martin Awarded Contract To Develop Artificial Intelligence Tools For DARPA

Lockheed Martin has secured a $4.6 million contract from DARPA to develop AI tools for dynamic airborne missions as part of the Artificial Intelligence Reinforcements (AIR) program. The project aims to create advanced modelling and simulation approaches and AI agents for multi-ship, beyond visual range missions. This initiative will enhance the Department of Defense's system performance and decision-making capabilities, offering significant cost savings and future AI defence solutions.
Read more at Lockheed Martin.

After an Earlier Era of Flying ‘Sausages’ and ‘Jellyfish’, Balloon Warfare Is Having a Renaissance

Balloon warfare, which began during WWI with Germany’s “sausage” balloon, is experiencing a resurgence. High-altitude balloons are now used for military intelligence and surveillance. Early last year, a Chinese spy balloon traversed US airspace, and North Korea has sent hundreds of balloons into South Korea. The US Army is developing advanced sensing technology for balloons, capable of continuous coverage and close target monitoring. These modern balloons offer long-term observation capabilities and are cheaper than satellites but face challenges like stratospheric risks.
Read more at ABC News.

Government Launches $4m ‘Pitch Day’ for Defence Technology

The Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA) in Australia is initiating a $4 million pitch day to foster local defence innovation. The theme is “innovative asymmetric advantage,” focusing on disruptive capabilities. Selected companies will pitch at the ADSTAR Summit in September, with successful pitches potentially securing contracts up to $750,000. The initiative aims to support Australian warfighters and enhance the sovereign industrial base, exemplified by the Ghost Shark program, which offers long-range autonomous undersea capabilities.
Read more at Defence Connect.

J2 Ventures Raises $150 Million for National Security Startups

J2 Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on technologies critical for national security and private sector applications, has raised $150 million for its new Argonne Fund. This fund, which is more than double the size of their previous fund, will support startups in advanced computing, cybersecurity, telecommunications, and healthcare sectors. The fund has garnered backing from major financial institutions like JP Morgan, MetLife, and the New Mexico State Investment Council, reflecting a significant interest in J2 Ventures’ investment model.
Read more at Boston Globe.