An AI-run fighter jet went up against another controlled by a human pilot in a drill, the US has said. The aircraft flew at up to speeds of 1,200mph during combat that's often referred to as a dogfight.

The aircraft flew up to speeds of 1,200mph. DARPA did not reveal which aircraft won the dogfight.

  • Blue_Morpho@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1682·
    9 months ago

    AI will win if not now, then soon. The reason is that even if it is worse than a human, the AI can pull off maneuvers that would black out a human.

    Jets are far more powerful than humans are capable of controlling. Flight suits and training can only do so much to keep the pilot from blacking out.

    • NegativeLookBehind@lemmy.worldEnglish
      45·
      9 months ago

      Jets are far more powerful than humans are capable of controlling.

      I think the same will eventually be true for AI, especially when you give it weapons

    • circuscritic@lemmy.caEnglish
      373·
      9 months ago

      Maneuverability is much less of a factor now as BVR engagements and stealth have taken over.

      But, yeah, in general a pilot that isn’t subject to physical constraints can absolutely out maneuver a human by a wide margin.

      The future generation will resemble a Protoss Carrier sans the blimp appearance. Human controllers in 5th and 6th gen airframes who direct multiple AI wingman, or AI swarms.

    • GBU_28@lemm.eeEnglish
      261·
      9 months ago

      Plus the ai has no risk, outside of basic operation.

      Humans have an inherent survival instinct to which drones can just say “lol send the next one I’m dying cya”

      • intensely_human@lemm.eeEnglish
        14·
        9 months ago

        To fight optimally, AI needs to have a survival instinct too.

        Evolution didn’t settle on “protect my life at all costs” as our default instinct, simply by chance. It did so because it’s the best strategy in a hostile environment.

        • maynarkh@feddit.nlEnglish
          10·
          9 months ago

          It’s the best strategy because it takes decades to make a fully functional human, and you need humans to make more humans, plus there is the issue of genetically sustainable population sizes, etc. A fully functional aeroplane can be made much quicker, in a factory that can spit out several of them in a day. They are more expendable.

        • Turun@feddit.deEnglish
          2·
          9 months ago

          Only if the goal is reproduction. You need to survive to reproduce.

          If the goal is maximum damage for the least amount of economic cost then a suicide (anthropomorphizing the drone here) can very much make sense.

          No one would argue that a sword is better than guns or bombs, because you still have the sword after attacking.

      • Aatube@kbin.melroy.orgOP
        72·
        9 months ago

        Jets are a lot more expensive. What’s at risk is all these resources for the jet going down the drain.

        • GBU_28@lemm.eeEnglish
          22·
          9 months ago

          Huh? Jets are far more replaceable than a human operator who takes years of training and has “needs”.

          Ya know unless your military is running on cold war fumes or something and you can’t afford to build an airframe you already have in production

          • diffusive@lemmy.worldEnglish
            10·
            9 months ago

            Training a combat pilot used to cost (in early 2000, not sure now) 10M€ for a NATO member.

            Find me a modern jet that costs so little. Regardless of what politicians say, human life has a price… and it is waaaay below a jet (even including the training)

            • grue@lemmy.worldEnglish
              15·
              9 months ago

              Yeah, but procurement of a combat pilot has about a two-decade lead time. You can build more jets a lot quicker (potentially even including the R&D phase).

              • intensely_human@lemm.eeEnglish
                3·
                9 months ago

                Also as this war expands to become planet-wide, industrial output of drones will expand many orders of magnitude.

            • GBU_28@lemm.eeEnglish
              8·
              9 months ago

              It’s not just money. It’s time, public perception, quantity trainers, quantity student seats etc

              A drone is ready the moment it comes off the assembly line, is flashed with software, and tested.

        • everyone_said@lemmy.worldEnglish
          15·
          9 months ago

          I’d imagine they’d evetually design a jet purpose built for an AI that would be a lot cheaper than a human-oriented one. Removing the need for a cockpit with seats, displays, controls, oxygen, etc would surely reduce cost. It would also open the door for innovations in air-frame design previously impossible.

        • Bgugi@lemmy.worldEnglish
          1·
          9 months ago

          Jets are in many ways expensive because they can’t be expendible. They also make an bunch of compromises to accommodate keeping a human alive.

          For the cost of a single f22, you could put up 60 Valkyries. I think I know which side I would bet on.