Key facts
- Scaleout Systems is developing AI for autonomous drone surveillance and attack missions.
- The AI models are designed to run on edge hardware, such as drones and forward-deployed computers.
- The technology uses federated learning to allow decentralized AI models to learn from aggregated battlefield data.
- Scaleout's AI enables drones to identify and engage targets autonomously, even with intermittent communication.
- The company is participating in NATO's DIANA Challenge Program and the ALMA project led by BAE Systems Bofors.
A NATO-backed startup, Scaleout Systems, is adapting artificial intelligence for use in autonomous drones for surveillance and attack missions, aiming to provide allies with a strategic advantage in modern warfare. Founded in 2018 by researchers from Uppsala University, the company initially focused on deploying machine learning models on commercial vehicles but pivoted to defense applications following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Scaleout utilizes leaner AI models that can operate on the edge hardware of drones, pilot tablets, and forward bases, rather than relying on large, centralized AI models. This approach is crucial for environments where continuous communication with data centers is risky due to potential targeting or electronic warfare jamming. The company was selected for NATO's Defence Innovator Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) Challenge Program in 2025, working on the Federated Aerial Intelligence for Recon project.
The technology allows drone operators to identify and track targets using AI, with the AI models continuously learning and improving from aggregated sensor data. This federated learning strategy enables decentralized networks of AI models to collaborate and update capabilities across multiple devices and locations. Scaleout Systems demonstrated its AI-enabled target recognition and engagement capability for an autonomous attack drone under the ALMA project, led by BAE Systems Bofors, in January 2026. During the demonstration, a drone autonomously detected, identified, and geolocated threats, prioritizing a high-value target and engaging it without direct human commands, though human oversight remains possible.
In June 2026, Scaleout further tested its technology at a Swedish Air Force base, proving that its AI inference and active-learning processes could continue even when disconnected from a central computing node. Updates were shared once the connection was restored. This decentralized approach could potentially scale to enable collaboration between NATO member states.