WASHINGTON — The U.S. military is exploring a range of artificial intelligence capabilities, from predictive maintenance of ICBMs to analyzing reams of satellite data.
This creates opportunities for AI startups like Virtualitics, which has won Air Force and Space Force research contracts and is offering an AI tool that could identify vulnerabilities in procurement programs by analyzing historical data and predicting potential issues before they arise.
Kyle Rice, chief technology officer of Virtualitics’ federal business, said he heard Space Force leaders talk about the need for improvements in how the service acquires satellites and other systems, and believes that AI tools can help.
AI can flag risks in procurements by analyzing historical data and uncovering patterns in past contracts, Rice said Feb. 13 at the Air & Space Forces Association’s Warfare Conference in Aurora, Colorado.
AI for predictive maintenance
Virtualitics, based in Pasadena, California, has a contract with the Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center to use the company’s platform to predict maintenance needs for the fleet of Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles. Under a separate contract, the Air Force Global Strike Command is using the AI platform for predictive maintenance of the nation’s bomber aircraft fleet. The technology helps identify maintenance needs and potential equipment failures, manage inventory and human resources.
“The SpaceForce leadership is talking about procurement improvements, getting things done faster and how to streamline that,” Rice said. “Why that excites me from an AI perspective is one of the areas of AI that’s getting a lot of uptick around DoD is around project assessment.”
This is essentially using AI techniques to look at data about past programs. “We collect so much data on how we build things, in procurement documents, in financial documents, in delivery schedules,” Rice said. “And when you…
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