Taiwan teams up with Shield AI to develop intelligent unmanned systems

Taiwan's military has signed a ​contract to integrate U.S.-based ​defence-technology firm Shield AI's ‌technology to ​build intelligent unmanned systems, a move aimed at boosting the island's effort to use ‌drones to counter the rising threat from China. * Shield AI called the collaboration an "important foundation" that could lead to broader adoption of autonomous software with Taiwan's ‌top military research body, the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science ‌and Technology (NCSIST).

* Under the agreement, NCSIST will integrate Shield AI's Hivemind platform into its unmanned systems, hoping to "multiply" Taiwan's combat power, which has limited manpower, the Silicon Valley-based ⁠company ​said. * "We are helping ⁠enable the drone forces Taiwan is building with cutting-edge AI pilots that will allow ⁠drones to team and operate while GPS and communications are jammed," said Shield ​AI president and co-founder Brandon Tseng, a former U.S. Navy SEAL.

* ⁠The effort comes as Taiwan seeks to expand security ties with the U.S., including ⁠jointly ​developing and manufacturing weapons, while China steps up military pressure to force the democratically governed island to accept Beijing's sovereignty claims. * As ⁠part of its broader "asymmetric warfare" program, Taipei has been working to secure cheaper, ⁠more numerous ⁠unmanned systems designed to complicate any potential Chinese attack.

* The company did not disclose the financial terms of ‌the deal. (Reporting By ‌Yimou Lee; Editing by Ben ​Blanchard and Thomas Derpinghaus)