In early March, the US Army received a prototype of the Titan, a mobile command post consisting of a large windowless container bolted onto a six-wheeled truck.The vehicle is so unassuming that it wouldn’t have looked out of place rumbling onto the shores of Normandy during World War II or through the Vietnamese jungle in the 1960s. But the station’s simplistic exterior belies the complexity hidden inside.
Titan is packed with computer servers running software that gobbles up reams of information about troops, tanks and artillery in the field, integrates the data and links with satellite feeds from as far as Washington to keep tabs on the growing numbers of unmanned weapons crisscrossing the front lines. This intel is quickly distilled into usable bites, using AI to provide real-time assessments that streamline decision-making in increasingly complex combat theaters.
Developed by lead contractor Palantir Technologies Inc., the Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node, as the system is called in full, heralds nothing less than a revolution in how future wars are fought, and crucially: who will supply the gear to the modern soldier.
The model of warfare put forward by Silicon Valley and increasingly embraced in Washington would recalibrate how assets are deployed on the battlefield. Instead of dozens or even hundreds of soldiers supporting one $100 million system, one soldier using AI software could command dozens of cheap, autonomous weapons, whether they’re airborne, in space, on land or in the sea.
With just a series of clicks, soldiers will be capable of dispatching autonomous weapons, surveillance drones and other advanced equipment. This approach aims to deter enemy aggression by presenting an overwhelming force, and reducing risk by putting a protective shield around soldiers and expensive systems like fighter jets and battleships.
Other key players in America’s high-tech defense push include Anduril Industries Inc., which is building combat drones and other autonomous weapons systems; Saronic Technologies Inc., a startup developing unmanned surface vessels; San Diego-based Shield AI, which is developing self-driving technology for aircraft and has been flying F-16s autonomously since 2022 (Bloomberg Beta has invested); and Los Angeles-based Epirus, which makes high-powered microwaves that can zap incoming enemy drones and swarms from the sky and disable boat motors.