In 2024, two F-16 fighter jets took to the skies over the Edwards Airforce Base in a high-speed aerial duel known to pilots as a “dogfight.” During the hour-long demonstration, the aircraft flew nose-to-nose, often within 1,000 feet of each other, reaching speeds of 550 miles per hour. The twist: One of the jets was controlled entirely by artificial intelligence.
AI Fighter Jet Definition
AI fighter jets are combat airplanes that are controlled by artificial intelligence, allowing them to fly, navigate and even engage in defensive and offensive maneuvers with little to no intervention from a human pilot.
While there was no clear winner, the exercise marked the first real-world flight of an AI-controlled fighter jet opposite a seasoned, human pilot. This milestone highlights how quickly AI is advancing in military aviation, pointing to a future where human pilots and AI could fly side-by-side — or face off — in increasingly complex combat scenarios.
What Is an AI Fighter Jet?
An AI fighter jet is a next-generation military aircraft that uses artificial intelligence to perform tasks that are traditionally handled by human pilots. These intelligent unmanned aerial vehicles are still in early development stages, but the goal is for them to process vast amounts of sensor data, identify potential threats and make split-second decisions on their own.
Unlike conventional fighter jets, which rely almost entirely on human control, AI-enabled jets are designed to fly, navigate and engage targets with minimal or no pilot input. They can be unmanned and fully autonomous or fly alongside manned aircraft in supportive “loyal wingman” roles, where they respond to commands or cues from the lead pilot. In this setup, AI fighter jets extend the capabilities of the main aircraft — absorbing enemy fire, scouting ahead, jamming signals or launching precision strikes — without putting human pilots directly at risk.
As AI systems, these jets can be trained on data from both simulated and real-world missions, allowing them to adapt and improve over time. In the future, this could lead to faster reaction times and more precise targeting compared to systems that rely solely on human reflexes and situational awareness. In fact, in the case of totally unmanned aircraft, AI fighter jets could eliminate any immediate risks to human pilots’ lives entirely — though broader technical and ethical concerns still remain.
Pending any international ban, AI fighter jets are expected to play a central role in future military operations around the world. Whether they’re operating in a swarm or flying in tandem alongside a manned aircraft, these systems aim to enable faster, more data-driven decision-making — free of human error. Over time they could be integrated into bigger, multi-domain battle networks that span air, space, cyber and ground forces.
AI Fighter Jet Examples
Anduril’s YFQ-44A (“Fury”)
Anduril Industries’ YFQ-44A (nicknamed “Fury”) is an unmanned combat aerial vehicle developed as part of the U.S. Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft program. Designed to fly alongside crewed fighters, Fury leverages specialized AI software that allows a single operator to control multiple autonomous aircraft at once. Its swept trapezoidal wings, chin-mounted inlet, and cruciform tail support high-altitude, near-supersonic flight — up to 50,000 feet and Mach 0.95. Modular and built with commercial components, it is also designed for cost-effective mass production. Fury made its international debut at the Avalon Australian International Airshow in 2025, with flight testing set to begin in the summer of 2025.
DARPA’s Air Combat Evolution Program
DARPA’s (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) Air Combat Evolution program is a multi-phase initiative focused on integrating AI into dogfighting scenarios, with the ultimate goal of training autonomous aircraft to outmaneuver human pilots. The program aims to train AI agents to execute split-second tactical maneuvers in high-speed air combat, gradually shifting control of actions like evasive moves and targeting decisions from pilot to machine to ensure the system behaves in transparent and predictable ways. Through a combination of simulated environments, live flight tests with scaled-down jets and (eventually) full-scale demonstrations, ACE aims to prepare AI systems to anticipate and respond to threats in real combat scenarios.
Kratos’ XQ-58A Valkyrie
Developed by defense contractor Kratos, the XQ-58A Valkyrie is an unmanned combat aerial vehicle powered by Shield AI’s Hivemind, an artificial intelligence system that enables flight without relying on GPS or active communication links. This allows the aircraft to perform tasks like surveillance, electronic warfare and precision strikes — even in zones where usual signals like GPS and radio don’t work. In 2023, the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory successfully conducted a fully autonomous, three-hour air combat exercise using Valkyrie aircrafts, marking the first time AI controlled a tactical jet in flight.
Boeing’s MQ-28 Ghost Bat (“Loyal Wingman”)
Boeing’s MQ-28 Ghost Bat (nicknamed the “Loyal Wingman”) is an AI-enabled uncrewed aircraft designed to fly alongside manned fighter jets, helping extend their capabilities and reduce risk to human pilots. Its onboard AI allows Ghost Bat to autonomously navigate complex airspace, coordinate with other aircraft, and switch between roles like reconnaissance, electronic attack and close air support — all while adapting to changing mission conditions without constant human input. Ghost Bat was built in Australia, making it the country’s first military aircraft in more than 50 years. It features a modular design that supports a variety of payloads and has completed more than 100 test flights as of 2025.
Benefits of AI Fighter Jets
Faster, More Precise Decision-Making
AI fighter jets are designed to analyze massive amounts of sensor data instantly and make split-second tactical decisions faster than any human pilot could. For example, during DARPA’s AlphaDogfight Trials, technology developed by Heron Systems managed to defeat a human pilot in five consecutive simulated dogfights, making decisions in nanoseconds compared to the human’s response time of several tenths of a second. This quick thinking enables jets to identify targets, assess threats and react in ways that could ultimately be decisive in high-stakes combat situations.
Reduced Risk to Human Pilots
Whether they’re flying solo or alongside human pilots, AI fighter jets are designed to take on high-risk missions without putting human lives on the line. This not only helps keep pilots safe, but it also lets missions run longer and harder in conditions where human thresholds — like fatigue and risk — would normally ground them.
Increased Reaction Speed and Maneuverability
AI fighter jets aren’t limited by the physical stresses that human pilots face, such as blackouts from extreme G-forces. This means they can pull off aggressive, high-speed maneuvers and sharp turns that would be impossible (or objectively dangerous) for a person, no matter their skill level. For example, during a real-world test flight in 2024, an AI-controlled F-16 known as VISTA executed high-speed maneuvers at more than 550 mph, showcasing its ability to perform advanced fighter moves autonomously. Their nonstop analysis of flight data and surroundings lets them quickly adapt to changing threats, giving them an edge in combat situations.
Swarming Capability
AI fighter jets really shine when working together in swarms, where multiple drones coordinate on their own to outmaneuver and overwhelm enemy defenses. This so-called “force multiplication” means just a few human pilots can control a whole fleet of unmanned jets, dramatically expanding reach and flexibility on the battlefield. The first-ever successful drone swarm strike is credited to the U.S. Navy, which used autonomous drones to identify and help destroy a target vessel during a 2021 naval exercise off the coast of California.
Challenges of AI Fighter Jets
Reliability and Safety Risks
The more dynamic a scenario is, the more unpredictable an AI system’s behavior can be. In complex, high-stakes combat environments, this could look like system failures or unintended responses that could potentially jeopardize missions as well as pilot safety. Even unfavorable weather conditions can be a threat, like the high surface winds that took down one of the U.S. Air Force’s XQ-58A Valkyries during a test flight in 2019. This type of disruption can cause AI to misinterpret sensor data or fail to respond in time under chaotic, rapidly changing conditions.
Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities
AI-enabled jets depend on complex software and networked systems, making them vulnerable to cyberattacks, spoofing and other electronic warfare. These threats could disrupt the jet’s decision-making abilities — or, in the worst case, allow an adversary to take control of the aircraft entirely. If compromised, machine learning systems can be fed corrupted data, causing them to make flawed decisions that enemy forces might exploit.
Regulatory and Compliance Hurdles
Although many are in the works, there are currently no international regulations governing lethal autonomous weapons systems, which has slowed the deployment of AI fighter jets. On the world stage, some countries (like Austria and Brazil) argue for a total ban on autonomous arms, while others (the U.S., Russia and Israel) favor their continued development.
In the absence of any formal laws on the matter, governments and organizations are working to establish their own rules around the development and use of autonomous weapons. The European Union, for example, has issued ethical guidelines for the use of AI in the military. And NATO is drafting an AI strategy to ensure compliance with international humanitarian law. National frameworks like the U.S. Department of Defense’s Ethical Principles for Artificial Intelligence and the UK’s Defence AI Strategy, provide further guidance. These efforts, while not legally binding, aim to provide ethical and strategic direction in a rapidly evolving field — but also reflect the fragmented, uneven pace of AI regulation globally.
High Initial Cost
Integrating artificial intelligence into fighter jets requires massive investments in research, software development and hardware upgrades, as well as extensive flight testing. Lockheed Martin spent more than $1.7 trillion to enhance the F-35’s AI-driven sensor fusion, onboard computing and secure communication systems, while the test flights for DARPA’s X-62A VISTA program was made possible by a multi-million dollar investment from the Air Force Research Lab.
Ethical Concerns with AI Fighter Jets
The use of AI fighter jets — and autonomous weapons in general — raise serious ethical concerns, particularly when it comes to life-and-death decision-making. If an intelligent machine is given the power to identify and strike targets without direct human oversight, it then becomes difficult to ensure accountability in the event something goes wrong. Who is responsible if an AI fighter jet mistakenly kills a group of civilians, for example, or crashes into a manned plane it is working alongside? Unlike human pilots, machines cannot be held morally or legally accountable in such instances, which challenges existing international rules around warfare. This has become a key point of concern for the International Committee of the Red Cross, and is frequently debated at United Nations meetings on lethal autonomous weapon systems (often referred to as LAWS or “killer robots”).
There are also concerns about the potential for misuse. One day, AI-powered fighter jets could be deployed by authoritarian regimes or other bad actors, opening the door to new forms of combat that are faster, less transparent and harder to control or end. Many ethicists and advocacy groups — including Human Rights Watch and the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots — argue that humans should always remain in control when lethal force is being used, warning that an unchecked rise of autonomous weapons could make wars far more deadly and destructive.
The Future of AI Fighter Jets
By 2028, the U.S. Air Force plans to deploy more than 1,000 unmanned, AI-enabled warplanes as part of its Collaborative Combat Aircraft program. Citing escalating military and technological competition with China, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall emphasized the strategic necessity of adopting this technology, telling AP News that “it’s a security risk not to have it.”
Around the world, other major superpowers are exploring their own versions of AI military applications. This includes swarm technology, where multiple autonomous drones coordinate attacks or recon missions without direct human control — as demonstrated by China’s 11-ton mothership-style drone carrier that’s capable of deploying 100 smaller UAVs. And Russia’s S-70 Okhotnik-B, a 20-ton stealth drone, is reportedly conducting semi-autonomous missions involving reconnaissance and electronic warfare. Meanwhile, the United States is heavily focused on manned-unmanned teaming, where AI-powered drones like Anduril’s “Fury” operate alongside crewed aircraft.
While many of these projects are still in the prototyping or testing phases, they signal a much larger shift toward AI-powered warfare could be on the horizon.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the F-35 have AI?
No; the F-35 uses advanced automation and sensor fusion powered by AI-like systems, but it doesn’t use true artificial intelligence that can learn from experience or operate independently of human control.
Is the U.S. military using AI?
Yes; the United States military is currently using AI for tasks like predictive maintenance, autonomous systems and intelligence analysis, as outlined in its official AI adoption strategy. Globally, countries like Ukraine, China and the United Kingdom are also deploying AI in military contexts — from autonomous drones to arms control verification to next-gen defense planning.
Will AI replace pilots?
AI is unlikely to fully replace pilots anytime soon, but it will increasingly take over specific tasks and operate alongside human pilots in autonomous, supporting roles.
