President Trump’s Golden Dome initiative has certainly created buzz within the Space industry. There are a lot of questions still unanswered, namely what the architecture of the system will be. Despite this, some inferences can be made as to what this space-based system will eventually consist of. Systems already in the making, such as the Tracking Layer and Next-Gen OPIR will assuredly be part of the system; however, more will be needed if Golden Dome is to stop ICBMs and hypersonics. Space-based interceptors will likely be needed if boost-phase intercept is utilized within this system. Whatever the architecture, the decision-making aspect may rely highly on Artificial Intelligence to make decisions. If the main thrust of the system is indeed boost-phase intercept, that gives the warfighter about three minutes to make a decision and then intercept, not a long time. AI will assuredly need to be integrated to some degree to maximize chance of a successful mission.

Full opinion : With an intercept window of just three minutes, Artificial Intelligence is being pushed as a core component of the ambitious space-based system.