Helsing and Loft Orbital want to use AI for real-time information from space

The Munich-based software company Helsing, which specializes in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the defence sector, has announced a cooperation for surveillance from space with the French-American space start-up Loft Orbital. The two companies want to jointly develop a "multi-sensor satellite constellation". According to Helsing, this will use AI to support "Europe's defense and security actors with real-time information" directly from space. According to the plan, the system will help with tasks such as border surveillance, monitoring troop movements and protecting critical infrastructure (Kritis).

The satellite fleet is to be launched with several artificial earth satellites from Loft Orbital, which have highly sensitive measuring and recording devices such as cameras and radio sensors on board. According to the press release, these will use Helsing's AI technology directly in space "to detect and identify military objects worldwide from low-Earth orbit in real time". Short reaction times, high repetition rates and immediate data processing enable "tactical decisions and fast reactions".

Conventional satellite-based reconnaissance systems, such as the Georg spy system of the German Federal Intelligence Service (BND), only process data after the mission, explains Helsing. The planned constellation, on the other hand, can "provide immediate insights" thanks to the AI processing on board. Key areas could be continuously monitored. Ultimately, "real-time warnings give military decision-makers an operational advantage". The satellites are already in production and launch slots have been secured. The first of these celestial bodies could take off in 2026.

Further cooperation with Mistral AI

"The war in Ukraine shows that AI and satellites are making the battlefield increasingly transparent," said Helsing co-founder Gundbert Scherf, explaining the initiative. Loft and Helsing wanted to "offer defense customers permanent and rapid reconnaissance". Europe now needs its own access to such space resources. Both companies are therefore investing their own money to accelerate this approach. Following the recent acts of sabotage on critical underwater infrastructure in the Baltic Sea, NATO recently deployed a small fleet to protect cables in the sea area. Such missions could benefit from the surveillance project.

At the AI Action Summit in Paris on Monday, Helsing also announced a further strategic partnership "for the joint development of next-generation AI systems for the defense of Europe" with Mistral AI. The French company has just released a new version of its chatbot le Chat and is considered to be at the forefront of developing large-scale language models made in Europe. The joint project with Helsing will focus on "vision-language-action models".

According to the announcement, these will be used to enable "defense platforms to understand their environment and communicate easily with operators", enabling them to make "faster, more reliable decisions in complex scenarios". The Munich-based company wants to contribute the expertise it has gained with combat drones in Ukraine and as part of the Eurofighter's electronic warfare system. US whistleblowers have long complained that a "kill cloud" is behind the drone war, bringing death via the internet.

(vbr)