U.S. Air Force shows off new AI fighter jet

The US Air Force has unveiled its latest generation of pilots: no one. An experimental F-16 fighter jet, dubbed the X-62, has been shown off to the press that can be flown entirely by artificial intelligence, proving that not even elite test pilots are safe from losing their jobs. It’s early days yet. Colonel James Valpiani, Test Pilot School Commandant, explained that ‘the X-62 has one purpose, which is to advance the state of machine learning... This aircraft really allows us to take relatively immature machine learning tools and agents and place them airborne. And to do that in a safe manner.’ However, it’s not clear exactly what these ‘tools’ entail, and how much control the AI truly has.