DARPA and U.S. Air Force fly AI-controlled F-16 with a production jet, not a one-off testbed

DARPA 与美国空军试飞 AI 操控的 F-16 战机

A production F-16 modified with the VENOM Autonomy Kit flew under AI control at Eglin AFB, with a safety pilot in the cockpit able to switch back to manual at any time. Unlike the earlier X-62A dogfight demo, this uses a standard fleet jet without altering its core flight software. The same VENOM aircraft will now feed into DARPA's AIR program for multi-agent live-flight tests, aiming toward human pilots commanding teams of uncrewed combat aircraft. The post does not disclose the number of flights, the AI model architecture, or training details.

Why it matters: Official DARPA release: AI-controlled production F-16 flight, distinct from the earlier X-62A testbed path. HKR all hit, but the post doesn't disclose sortie count, model architecture, or training data — not enough density to push past 78. Per policy, default to the lower band...