Scale AI on Wednesday announced a deal with the Department of Defense for a flagship AI agent program, a significant move in the controversial military use of artificial intelligence. The AI giant, which provides training data to key AI players like OpenAI, Google, Microsoft and Meta, has been awarded a prototype contract from the Defense Department for “Thunderforge,” the DOD’s “flagship program” to use AI agents for U.S. military planning and operations, according to the releases. It’s a multimillion-dollar deal, according to a source familiar with the situation, who requested anonymity due to the confidential nature of the contract. Spearheaded by the Defense Innovation Unit, the program will incorporate a team of “global technology partners,” including Anduril and Microsoft, to develop and deploy AI agents. Uses will include modeling and simulation, decision-making support, proposed courses of action and even automated workflows. The program’s rollout will begin with U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and U.S. European Command and will then be scaled to other areas. “Thunderforge marks a decisive shift toward AI-powered, data-driven warfare, ensuring that U.S. forces can anticipate and respond to threats with speed and precision,” according to a release from the DIU, which also said that the program will “accelerate decision-making” and spearhead “AI-powered wargaming.”

Full report : Scale AI has partnered with the Department of Defense to use AI agents for U.S. military planning and operations.