A NATO-backed startup, Scaleout Systems, is pioneering the use of smaller AI models on drones to identify and attack targets, adapting their tech from truck-mounted surveillance to battlefield drones.

The company, founded in 2018 by Uppsala University researchers, has recently pivoted its focus to defense applications following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Their models, leaner than those from leading AI giants, are designed to fit on the hardware found in drones and forward bases.

"With the war in Ukraine and a shifting world, we realized that this technology can be very important to operationalize edge data and sensor data for machine learning to make sure that NATO allies have found that strategic advantage, " said Andreas Hellander, cofounder and CEO of Scaleout Systems.

Scaleout was chosen to join NATO’s Defence Innovator Accelerator program and is working on the Federated Aerial Intelligence for Recon project, which aims to adapt machine learning models for use in drone hardware.

This move towards AI-driven surveillance and attack missions could revolutionize modern warfare, but as AI technology advances, so too do concerns about its misuse.