BAE Systems develops semi autonomous multi domain mission planning software for DARPA

According to an article published on the BAE Systems website on August 31, 2021, BAE Systems has signed a $6.5 million contract with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for the development of the second phase of the Adaptive Cross Domain Lethal Network (ACK) project. Based on the first phase of the project, BAE Systems will develop semi autonomous multi domain mission planning software for DARPA.

The first phase of the ACK project is jointly undertaken by BAE Systems' FAST Laboratory R&D organization, Carnegie Mellon University, and Uncharted Software to develop a software called "Multi Domain Adaptation Request Service". This software can update task planning in real-time during field exercises by tracking the status of established tasks, inputting intelligence information into established tasks, generating operational plans, adjusting established tasks, and finally forming new task assignments. By adding new target strike tasks to the mission plan targeting over 100 targets, the "Multi Domain Adaptation Request Service" software can complete this task planning in just a fraction of a second on each target strike task.

In the second phase of the ACK project, BAE Systems aims to improve the maturity of the software, not only by enabling it to automatically identify available forces across domains, but also by quickly assessing the cost-effectiveness of using these backup forces when adjusting task planning, helping users make more informed decisions.

BAE Systems stated that "independently developing multi domain mission planning is a very important planning tool," and that "the ACK project Phase II mainly designs software for the military to utilize resources in various fields such as space, air, land, and sea to more efficiently complete tasks." BAE Systems will use 20 years of advanced independent technology and product development experience to fully develop this software. At present, the development work of Phase II of the ACK project is underway at BAE Systems' factories in Burlington, Massachusetts and Arlington, Virginia.

Source: Aviation Briefing