Northrop Grumman recently demonstrated how its Talon IQ testbed aircraft can switch AI “brains” mid-flight without interrupting a mission.
During a landmark test, the aircraft flew using Prism autonomy software before transferring mission control mid-flight to systems from Applied Intuition and Accelint.
The demo of multiple autonomy handovers showed that Prism can run software from different sources while remaining aligned with US government architecture requirements.
It also highlighted Prism’s ability to support rapid deployment and diverse missions, including manned-unmanned teaming and real-time collision avoidance.
“We’ve opened the Talon IQ ecosystem to help companies prove their autonomous capabilities and advance next-generation flight, providing a real-world testing platform at a lower cost than fully uncrewed systems,” said Craig Woolston, vice president of research and advanced design at Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems.
“Our investment speeds software maturity, enhances reliability, and accelerates delivery of mission-ready solutions.”
Smart Testbed Ecosystem
Talon IQ is a next-generation autonomous testbed within the Project Talon portfolio.
Built on the Scaled Composites Model 437 aircraft, it features a modular architecture that allows partners to develop, integrate, and flight-test software in a controlled environment.
It uses Prism mission autonomy software as the baseline for an open-access autonomy ecosystem.
The aircraft still carries a pilot onboard as a backup, which provides safety assurance during testing and allows new software to move from ground evaluation to flight trials sooner.
Following the demonstration, Northrop said it is confident Prism is ready for integration with the Talon Blue platform.
