Autonomous targeting and loitering weapon to be developed by RTX, Shield AI
NewsJuly 30, 2025
ARLINGTON, Virginia. RTX and Shield AI entered a strategic partnership to integrate Shield AI’s Hivemind autonomy system into RTX defense platforms, including loitering munitions and sensor suites, the companies announced in a statement.
The collaboration aims to field the first operational weapon using Networked Collaborative Autonomy (NCA), a system designed for real-time coordination and adaptive mission execution without external communication links, the statement reads. Development will be fully funded by the companies, without government investment.
As part of the agreement, Shield AI’s Visual Detection and Ranging (ViDAR) software will also be integrated with RTX’s Multi-Spectral Targeting System (MTS) to enable AI-driven autonomy for maritime and aerial threat detection, particularly in swarm scenarios.
