AI fighter jets could be in our skies ‘within years’ following successful Gripen tests
July 10, 2025
Following successful trials with Saab’s Gripen, startup defence technology company Helsing has said that AI fighter jets could become a reality within ‘years’.
“Adoption of the software by air forces in real-life settings is a question of ‘years rather than decades’,” Stephanie Lingemann, senior director of Helsing’s air division, told the Financial Times. “We expect it this decade.”
Helsing is a startup defence-technology company, founded in 2021. Its flagship product, Centaur AI, became a pilot in Saab’s Gripen E in recent tests, successfully flying the jet beyond visual range.
Inside the Saab Gripen AI tests
It may have started with a question that has long animated the future of combat aviation: Can artificial intelligence outthink a pilot at 30,000 feet? Saab and Helsing were determined to find out.
The test flights, conducted on May 28 and June 3, 2025, marked the beginning of Project Beyond, a Swedish government-sponsored program under the Future Fighter Systems initiative. The goal is to leverage trustworthy AI for advanced combat capabilities in the face of rapidly evolving threats.
During the test flights, the Gripen E ceded control to Centaur in Beyond Visual Range (BVR) scenarios. In these complex, dynamic air combat drills, Centaur not only executed precision manoeuvres autonomously but also cued the pilot to fire.
A human safety pilot was onboard, but Centaur was at the controls. On June 3, the AI agent faced off against a manned Gripen D in a live BVR engagement.
The tests provided invaluable data to Helsing, and proved the insane capabilities of AI to replicate human learning.
“While the best human fighter pilot could expect to accrue 5,000 flight hours during their careers, it took just 72 hours for Helsing’s company’s Centaur AI system to gain a million hours of experience,” Lingemann noted.
Why the Gripen is the perfect AI fighter jet
Unlike most fighter jets that require military test ranges or purpose-built platforms for AI trials, Gripen E’s modular architecture allowed Helsing’s AI to be integrated directly into the combat jet.
This enabled progress to live operational trials within just six months, a feat virtually unheard of in defence aviation.
“With the unique design of Gripen E, the fighter can fly with the AI software onboard and fully integrated without being restricted to solely military test ranges or have to rely on an experimental X-plane to do flight trials with the software,” Nilsson explains.
Saab test pilot and Chief Innovation Officer Marcus Wandt, who flew the Centaur-controlled mission, remarks, “This is the future of air combat happening right now, in Europe. It’s a testament to the Gripen’s unique software framework and the close Saab-Helsing collaboration.”
The rapid learning of AI
Centaur uses reinforcement learning – AI training at massive scale – to simulate decades of air combat experience in under 24 hours.
It processes data in real-time from the jet’s own sensors, plans combat moves, evades threats, and adapts instantly to adversaries.
Importantly, it operates without GPS, relying instead on inertial navigation-making it especially valuable in jammed or subterranean environments.
“AI, especially in the air domain, is not about replacing pilots but augmenting them,” said Antoine Bordes, Vice President for AI at Helsing. “This is about survivability, speed, and the ability to out-adapt adversaries.”
The potential for AI fighter jet pilots and more
The Gripen-Centaur project follows similar efforts in the US. The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) flew AI-trained algorithms aboard the XQ-58A Valkyrie in 2023, and more recently, the X-62A VISTA has conducted fighter-level manoeuvres using AI.
In a training event at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, the US Air Force demonstrated advanced human-machine teaming with pilots of an F-16C Fighting Falcon and an F-15E Strike Eagle each controlling two XQ-58A Valkyrie autonomous collaborative platforms (ACPs).
The XQ-58A, a runway-independent, reusable unmanned air vehicle, has also flown in formation with fifth-generation fighters like the F-22 and F-35, marking a major milestone in integrating low-cost, autonomous force multipliers into future combat operations.
Integrating AI into Saab’s fighter jets
What makes Saab’s approach stand out is the integration of AI into a combat-ready frontline jet. Saab’s Nilsson calls it a ‘qualitative edge’. “There are no generations in software, only speed,” he quips.
While AI pilots are still in their infancy, the technology has strong promise. “You can get to superhuman performance very quickly,” says Lingermann. “And you are not having to send your pilots into dangerous situations. That’s why this is so revolutionary.”
The team will now analyse the flight data and continue training the AI agent to further enhance its BVR capabilities, with a further series of flights throughout the remainder of the year.
