Insider Brief
- Saab and Helsing successfully tested an AI agent named Centaur in three flights aboard a Gripen E fighter jet, fully funded by Sweden’s Defence Material Administration (FMV), marking a breakthrough in integrating AI into live combat aircraft systems.
- The Centaur AI executed autonomous maneuvers in simulated beyond-visual-range scenarios, demonstrating real-time adaptability and data-driven decision support for pilots under dynamic and degraded conditions.
- Saab says the Gripen E’s software-centric design enabled full AI integration without special testbed restrictions, offering a model for rapid development of AI-enhanced manned and unmanned military platforms.
The first successful flight tests of an AI-controlled fighter jet in Sweden marks a step forward in military aviation and setting the stage for further AI integration in combat systems.
The Swedish Defence Material Administration (FMV) fully financed the joint effort by defense contractor Saab and AI company Helsing to test a new artificial intelligence agent, known as Centaur, on a Gripen E fighter jet, according to Saab.
“This is an important achievement for Saab, demonstrating our qualitative edge in sophisticated technologies by making AI deliver in the air,” Peter Nilsson, head of Advanced Programmes, from Saab’s Aeronautics Business Area, said in a statement. “The swift integration and successful flight testing of Helsing’s AI in a Gripen E exemplifies the accelerated capability gain you can get from our fighter.”
Over three flights, including the first on May 28 and the most recent on June 3, Centaur successfully performed autonomous maneuvers during simulated beyond-visual-range (BVR) combat engagements, according to the company. The system used onboard sensors to track targets and guided the pilot to execute firing commands. Saab and Helsing say the AI adapted to changing variables such as distance, speed, and communication constraints, underscoring its flexibility and reliability under dynamic conditions.
Unlike traditional military testbeds that require isolated environments, the Gripen E platform allowed Centaur to be fully integrated and flown in unrestricted airspace, reflecting what Saab describes as the aircraft’s software-forward architecture. The researchers say this real-world test environment accelerates capability development and shortens feedback cycles between software updates and combat-readiness.
The immediate outcome of the trial is a working demonstration of a combat AI system performing real-time data fusion and decision-making. The broader implication, according to Saab and Helsing, is a blueprint for how AI might operate as a co-pilot or decision aid in future manned and unmanned systems, particularly in scenarios where information arrives too quickly or in too great a volume for human pilots to assess alone.
Testing methodology included dynamic variation of engagement conditions to assess the AI’s robustness. The third flight, which pitted Centaur against a human-piloted Gripen D, introduced unpredictable elements such as loss of command-and-control data to see how the agent responded to degraded scenarios. The results will inform the next phase of development.
Limitations of the current tests include the scope of combat environments simulated and the narrow focus on BVR engagement. Additional data analysis is underway to assess how the AI agent performed across metrics such as response time, accuracy, and pilot workload. The team did not disclose how Centaur’s performance compared to human pilots in equivalent scenarios.
Saab and Helsing plan to continue development through 2025 with more test flights and additional training of the Centaur agent. While the technology remains in early stages, Swedish defense officials view it as a critical pathway to future combat systems that blend human oversight with machine precision.
“Within Project Beyond and other programmes, we utilise the power of software to rapidly explore and blur the lines between “now” and the future; in software there are no generations, only speed,” said Nilsson.
