Northrop Grumman announces first Beacon autonomous testbed partners

US prime contractor Northrop Grumman Corporation has named the first six strategic partners who will use its Beacon testbed ecosystem to rapidly test and deliver new autonomous solutions at scale.

The initial partners are Applied Intuition, Autonodyne, Merlin, Red 6, Shield AI and SoarTech, an Accelint company.

Partners will test and refine their solutions using subsidiary Scaled Composites’ optionally manned, Model 437 Vanguard aircraft, along with Northrop Grumman’s proven flight autonomy hardware and integration expertise, during a series of flight demonstrations planned for this year, the company says.

“Beacon is about collaboration across industry between companies of all sizes and expertise,” said Tom Jones, president, of Aeronautics Systems at Northrop Grumman. “By providing open access to the Beacon ecosystem, we’re enhancing the innovation, new competition and ultimately the autonomous capabilities that industry can deliver to our customers – with unmatched speed and at scale.”

Shield AI famously developed the autonomy system on an F-16 fighter that enabled it to autonomously dogfight against human pilots. US company Red 6 builds Augmented reality (AR) systems that support the training of RAF aircrew under a strategic agreement with the UK’s National Security Strategic Investment Fund (NSSIF).

Built on decades of autonomy experience and over 500,000 autonomous flight hours, Northrop Grumman’s Beacon ecosystem connects industry, paving the way for the future of autonomy, says the company. Designed as an open-access testbed ecosystem aligned to government-reference autonomy architectures, Northrop Grumman says Beacon integrates the company’s advanced autonomous software and solutions within an equally advanced digital ecosystem. Beacon will support future aircraft programs by accelerating software deployment, reducing risk and improving readiness.

The self-funded Beacon program was unveiled in June this year and is designed to provide an integrated environment that mimics relevant mission scenarios, says Northrop Grumman. The company is driving autonomous system innovations through its US$13.5 billion ($21 billion) investment in R&D and infrastructure over the last five years.