The US Air Force (USAF) has chosen Shield AI to provide mission autonomy software for a drone prototype under its Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program. Shield AI’s Hivemind system will be integrated into Anduril’s YFQ-44A “Fury” uncrewed aircraft, which is competing alongside General Atomics Aeronautical Systems’ YFQ-42A in the CCA Increment 1 phase.
Hivemind will support system-level testing prior to scheduled flight demonstrations in the months ahead. The selection follows a competitive evaluation process aimed at advancing technological maturity and reducing program risk. Company officials highlighted that more than a decade of development work on Hivemind laid the operational and technical groundwork needed to enable mission autonomy in real-world combat environments.
Reports of the USAF selecting Shield AI for the YFQ-44A, while also choosing RTX to supply a comparable autonomy solution for GA-ASI’s YFQ-42A, surfaced in September 2025.
Hivemind is an artificial intelligence-driven autonomy system designed to function like a human pilot, directing uncrewed defense platforms to carry out complex missions independently. The platform-agnostic software can dynamically adjust flight paths, avoid restricted airspace, respond to unexpected threats, and complete objectives without direct human control.
Its capabilities align with the USAF’s objective of fielding autonomous or semi-autonomous aircraft that operate alongside crewed fighters as “loyal wingmen” within the CCA framework. Hivemind has previously been tested and integrated on multiple platforms, including GA-ASI’s MQ-20 Avenger, Airbus’ H145 helicopter, Destinus’ Ruta and Hornet drones, and the US Navy’s BQM-177A target drone.
