Science & Tech
Two startups join forces to make self-flying tankers, dogfighting AI, and more
Merlin Labs, which aims to test an AI-powered KC-135 within a year, is to buy F-16 AI driver EpiSci.
Defense Systems
Army hopes digital models in contracts can help industry deliver faster and better
The service is also planning to test generative AI.
Science & Tech
How AI is turning satellite imagery into a window on the future
What can a picture from space tell you? “You're likely to have a drought here that might lead to civil unrest.”
Ideas
NATO's Article 5 isn't as ironclad as many think
Alliance commitments are not quite as binding, either legally or politically, as the conventional wisdom suggests.
Threats
Nine takeaways from ProPublica's investigation into Microsoft’s cybersecurity failures
A whistleblower repeatedly tried to get the tech giant to fix a security flaw that left millions of users exposed—including contractors, the State Department, and the National Nuclear Security Administration.
Defense Systems
Ultrasecure comms could give special operators a leg up
U.S., Norwegian commands team up to test a quantum-communications prototype.
Ideas
The Day Private Willie Mays Threw Out My Dad
Two lives intersect in a story of baseball, military service, and American society in the Korean War era.
Policy
What will happen to the Air Force’s next-gen fighter jet?
The service may be waffling on NGAD because it’s dealing with a “truly miserable choice,” one analyst said.
Ideas
Climate change is a threat, not a distraction, to the US military
We’ve got to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time.
Ideas
Little fanfare as US upgrades Cuba to 'fully cooperating' with anti-terror efforts
But the mid-May move may presage wider rapprochement – if politics allows.
Ideas
Ukraine’s robot boats are rewriting the rules of naval warfare
Strategists around the world have taken note of the changing dynamics at play in the Black Sea and the implications for flashpoints elsewhere.
Threats
Delays push Army’s hypersonic missile to fiscal 2025
GAO notes unsolved problems with launcher and launch sequencing.
Threats
G7 nations tell China to ‘act responsibly’ in cyberspace
The nations have frequently pointed to China as a top cyber adversary.
Threats
Army names air-defense vehicle for Medal of Honor recipient
“Sgt. Stout” will refer to a missile-and-gun variant of the service’s M-SHORAD effort.
Ideas
What can this weekend’s Ukraine peace summit achieve?
Russia won't attend the Swiss-hosted event where Ukraine's Zelensky will pitch his proposal.
Ideas