AI is now a core part of modern warfare. Some of the AI-powered drones used in Ukraine’s "Spider Web” strikes navigated along established routes and successfully launched weapons at designated targets even after they lost contact with the bases from which they took off. This is one example of how AI is changing military operations. The technology’s versatility—its ability to analyze sounds, radio frequencies, pictures, videos, and other data—means the number of potential uses is practically limitless, and the nation that unlocks its full power will achieve a distinct level of decision advantage over its adversaries.

Computer vision is a type of AI with the potential to transform battlefield operations. At its most basic level, computer vision lets computers “see” objects. Think of cameras that record vehicle and license plate details for toll payments on highways or an iPhone’s Face ID app. However, while technology has historically been used to sort and categorize images, increasingly sophisticated AI models are taking it several steps further. Using video footage captured by cameras and data from sensors, advanced computer vision can analyze a broad swath of terrain and detect anomalies, like weapons or clusters of troops. It can even look at a landscape and plot the least taxing route between two locations. 

The challenge is that off-the-shelf computer vision models don’t always work well in the field. They often require a lot of energy and processing power, and many drones, cameras, and sensors can’t run them. Furthermore, computer vision models built in labs are not always good at adapting to change, and in combat areas, enemy tactics are constantly changing. For example, a computer vision model designed to find specific types of weaponry will fail once the enemy begins changing camouflage patterns.

To get the most out of computer vision, warfighters need to be able to build new models and update existing models in the field. They don’t have the luxury of waiting for models to be taken back to labs or bases and updated there. This is where the Bighorn AI Kit comes in.

The Bighorn AI Kit is an advanced technology solution that lets users build new AI vision models or modify existing ones in environments where there is no reliable internet access. It combines Booz Allen proprietary software, commercial software, GPU chips, and significant computing power and storage capacity inside a durable case the size of a carry-on bag. At just 40 pounds, the Bighorn AI Kit can be easily brought into the field. There, its intuitive interface makes it easy for users to create or update AI vision models to do things like locate land mines, survivors, or other objects.

With the Bighorn AI Kit, warfighters and other users don’t need coding skills. They can build or modify advanced AI models using the following steps:

• Upload video footage: That footage could come from a sensor, a handheld camera, or a camera on a drone.
  Identify specific objects: Users can auto-search the uploaded video for specific objects or patterns (e.g., groups of weapons, people) and tag those objects as targets of interest.
• Train or retrain the model: The Bighorn AI Kit uses the tagged imagery to build a new detection model or update an existing one in under an hour.
• Upload the model and get to work: Warfighters can then upload the new model to a drone or sensor and task it with a new objective.

With the Bighorn AI Kit, warfighters can rapidly build, update, and redeploy specifically tuned vision AI models, allowing them to see what human eyes alone cannot. To return to the example of an AI vision model on a drone tasked with finding clusters of weaponry, a warfighter can upload images of new camouflage patterns that were recently put into the field so that the model doesn’t get fooled.

The Bighorn AI Kit also lets users build AI models capable of identifying different types of radio signals. This is helpful in military operations because adversaries consistently change the type of signals they use. AI models that can recognize how signals are formatted and alert warfighters to interference or jamming attempts let them spot potential threats and effectively respond to electronic warfare tactics. Warfighters can run these models directly on the Bighorn AI Kit.

Bighorn AI Kit’s potential extends beyond the battlefield. Search and rescue teams can use it to design vision AI models to help locate people during humanitarian or disaster relief missions. This type of work takes place in environments that are constantly changing.