NASA
On-orbit image analysis using Gemma open-weight models
Accueil › AI Use-Case Library › AI in Aerospace & Defense: 6 real deployments
AI in Aerospace & Defense: 6 real deployments
Named Aerospace & Defense organisations and what they run, grouped by business function.
6deployments
3in production or with results
1with a reported outcome
0halted or reversed
Aug 30, 2026last updated
Research & analysis 2 deployments
Loft Orbital
Loft Orbital ran Google DeepMind's Gemma 3 vision-language model on an Nvidia Jetson Orin AGX aboard its YAM-9 satellite, processing natural-language queries against live Earth imagery entirely onboard, the first reported VLM deployment in space.
Robotics & automation 2 deployments
Vantor
Defense contractor Vantor (formerly Maxar Intelligence) is deploying Niantic Spatial's Visual Positioning System, built from approximately 30 billion Pokemon Go player scans, to enable GPS-denied military drone navigation.
China J-20 'dark factory'
China's lights-out 'dark factory' uses AI-driven process control and robotics to sustain continuous production of J-20 stealth fighter jets without floor workers.
Reported: Reportedly more than doubled production efficiency for J-20 stealth jets
Knowledge management 1 deployment
SpaceX
Training Grok AI on the sum total of SpaceX's internal information and employee contributions
Software development 1 deployment
SpaceX
Acquired Cursor to build AI coding capabilities inside SpaceXAI
Every entry names the organisation and links its source. Outcome figures are quoted as reported, never estimated. Vendor announcements without a named customer are excluded. Halted and reversed deployments are kept on purpose.