U.S. Army Annual Meeting Showcases Advanced Weapons, Multiple New Systems with Taiwan Strait Defense Potential

According to a Voice of America report, at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) annual meeting held in Washington, several defense companies showcased various advanced weapon systems with potential for Taiwan Strait defense. These include Shield AI's X-BAT vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) jet autonomous unmanned system, Anduril's Barracuda-500M cruise missile, and Kratos' Tactical Firejet autonomous drone, sparking external attention regarding U.S.-Taiwan military technology cooperation.

Video link:

Full text:

Shield AI's X-BAT VTOL jet autonomous unmanned system is specifically designed for highly contested theater environments such as the Indo-Pacific, capable of operating completely independently of traditional runways. Its delta-wing, tailless configuration and internal weapons bay design give it extremely low radar observability. The X-BAT utilizes a General Electric Aerospace F110-GE129 engine—the same as that used in Taiwan's F-16 Block 70—paired with a thrust-vectoring nozzle, and its actual size is similar to that of an F-16. Built with the HiveMind autonomous flight control system developed by Shield AI, it is capable of executing various missions including autonomous strikes, electronic warfare, and decapitation strikes. The Taiwan Coast Guard Administration recently received its first Shield AI V-BAT VTOL reconnaissance drone and will receive 12 more of the same model in the future. The X-BAT is one of the projects Shield AI is actively promoting for cooperation with Taiwan following the V-BAT.

Defense company Anduril showcased the Barracuda-500M cruise missile, with a range of over 500 nautical miles, at the defense exhibition. It belongs to the company's line of air-breathing autonomous vehicles designed and manufactured specifically for large-scale production and deployment. Steve Milano is a representative for Anduril's Advanced Effects product line. The Barracuda-500M and all its platform variants, including vehicle-mounted, palletized, and ground-launched versions, possess the capability to strike, move, and maneuver against both moving and fixed targets. The Barracuda-500M was designed for cost-effectiveness. Consequently, its cost is one-tenth that of traditional strike systems currently deployed, and it offers the flexibility to integrate new mission systems, allowing the cost curve to be adjusted upward or downward based on mission requirements. Anduril will co-produce the Barracuda-500 with international partners such as Poland, and Taiwan's National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST) is also seeking cooperation with Anduril in this regard.

U.S. defense company Kratos showcased the Tactical Firejet autonomous drone at the defense exhibition. This autonomous drone shares the same lineage as Taiwan's Chien Hsiang Type 4 attack drone, both of which were developed based on Kratos' MQM-178 Firejet aerial target platform. The Tactical Firejet can be configured as a tactical target drone or a suicide drone according to mission requirements, while Taiwan's Chien Hsiang Type 4 attack drone integrates mission payloads and guidance systems developed by NCSIST to meet Taiwan's needs for rapid countermeasures and long-range preemptive strikes. The Chien Hsiang Type 4 also recently completed flight testing in southern Taiwan.