Shield AI has revealed the X-BAT, a vertical take-off stealth aircraft designed for runway-less operations and powered by the company’s Hivemind AI pilot.
US defense technology company Shield AI has unveiled its latest project, the X-BAT vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) stealth drone, designed to operate autonomously in communications-denied environments without the need for a runway. The announcement was made on October 21, 2025 in Washington, DC, during an event attended by government and defense industry officials, where a scale model of the aircraft was also on display.
The company described X-BAT as a Group 5 unmanned aerial system (UAS), the largest class in Pentagon terminology that has a maximum gross takeoff weight (MGTOW) greater than 1,320 lb. The aircraft is capable of runway-independent operations, launched from a trailer with a vertical launch rail that is also used for recovery and long-range missions.
“X-BAT represents the next part of our plan, expanding the warfighting capability of the United States and its allies through a transformative, runway-independent aircraft. Trackless airpower is the holy grail of deterrence. It gives our forces persistence, range and survivability, and buys diplomacy another day.”
—Brandon Tseng, President and Co-Founder of Shield AI
A stealthy, runway-independent ‘attack plane’
The X-BAT is a low-visibility, tailless flying-wing aircraft with folding wings, allowing it to be transported and launched in a matter of minutes from a truck trailer. Computer-generated videos by Shield AI show the
“Those two things (AI-piloted vertical takeoff launch and landing) have never come together in the form of a next-generation aircraft.”
—Brandon Tseng, President and Co-Founder of Shield AI
The company lists the aircraft’s length as 26 feet (7.9 m), a wingspan of 39 feet (11.9 m), and a service ceiling exceeding 50,000 feet, with an operational range exceeding 2,000 nautical miles (3,704 km). Its top speed remains classified, although aviation week reports that the plane will be capable of supersonic flight, powered by the F-16 engine, which uses the GE Aerospace F110 or the Pratt & Whitney F100, depending on the variant.
During the presentation, Shield AI showed renderings of the X-BAT carrying AIM-120 and AIM-174B air-to-air missiles internally. The aircraft will include both an internal weapons bay (with capacity for at least two weapons) and an unspecified number of external hardpoints, which will support payloads for strike, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance or electronic warfare missions.
The Earth is our clue.
Introducing X-BAT, the world’s first AI-piloted VTOL fighter aircraft. With vertical takeoff and landing, long range and full autonomy, X-BAT delivers combat power anywhere, anytime. This is the future of air power.
Watch the video: https://t.co/K4abUZa23z… pic.twitter.com/AnELEPOfLV
– Shield AI (@shieldaitech) October 21, 2025
“Fighter-class” thrust vectoring and propulsion technology
While Shield AI has yet to reveal its propulsion partner, the X-BAT is designed to use a fighter-class afterburner engine, as mentioned above. talking to Breaking the defenseArmor Harris, senior vice president of aircraft at Shield AI, further confirmed that the aircraft features an “F-16-class engine.”
This will be combined with the thrust vectoring nozzle “originally developed for an F-15 thrust vectoring program of the late 1990s,” referring to the F-15 ACTIVE (Advanced Control Technology for Integrated Vehicles). Another similar system was developed for the F-16 Multi-Axis Thrust Vectoring (MATV) in the 1990s.
Harris said the company plans to build five mobile launch trailers per plane, according aviation weekallowing vertical takeoff and recovery without fixed infrastructure. Shield AI also showed concept art showing X-BAT operations from US Navy ships and commercial cargo ships, hinting at possible naval applications of the ships and expeditionary operations from remote islands and austere forward bases.
Autonomy through Hivemind
Central to the X-BAT’s capability is Hivemind, Shield AI’s AI-based flight autonomy software that is already deployed in several US military programs, which we reported on several times here on The aviationist. The system allows drones to autonomously navigate, coordinate and attack targets in GPS and communications-jammed environments, the company says.
“Because it is powered by AI with our combat-proven Hivemind, it can fly alone or act as a drone companion, collaborating and maneuvering with manned fighters.”
— Armor Harris, Senior Vice President of Aeronautical Engineering at Shield AI
Breaking the defense reported that Harris described X-BAT as a “complete” system, with Hivemind as its onboard pilot. However, the company confirmed that the platform will also support third-party autonomy software if future customers require it.
As we previously reported here at The aviationist As previously reported, Shield AI’s Hivemind was demonstrated aboard Kratos BQM-177 drones and is being integrated into Anduril’s YFQ-44A, one of the prototypes selected in the first phase of the US Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program.
Flight Test Roadmap and Production Outlook
According aviation weekAccording to Harris, Shield AI expects to conduct the first vertical takeoff and landing tests of the X-BAT in the fall of 2026, followed by full system flight testing and operational validation in 2028.
Harris declined to reveal specific prices, but stated that the cost would be “similar to other collaborative fighter jets,” which aviation week It is estimated at around $30 million per fuselage. Shield AI also confirmed that industrial partners for engine production and supply will be announced “in the coming weeks.”
“X-BAT offers capabilities beyond the first Increment 1 CCAs, including electronic warfare, increased payload capacity, and extended range.”
— Armor Harris, Senior Vice President of Aeronautical Engineering at Shield AI
It is unclear whether the company already plans to submit proposals for the next phases of the CCA program. As previously reported, GA-ASI and Anduril were selected for Increment 1 of the CCA program, to be followed by an Increment 2 in 2026.
