Elon Musk said a third person has received an implant from his brain-computer interface company Neuralink, one of many groups working to connect the nervous system to machines. “We’ve got … three humans with Neuralinks and all are working well,” he said during a recent wide-ranging interview at a Las Vegas event streamed on his…
The Biden administration’s new sanctions on Russia’s energy sector have led to a sharp rise in oil prices.Oil prices climbed about 2% overnight, to their highest level in four months (and they’ve surged 6% in three days).Analysts say these new sanctions could pressure India and China (Russia’s biggest customers) to seek oil from other suppliers.Brent futures rose 1.6% to settle at $US81.01 a barrel, its highest level since August 26.US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude jumped 2.9% to $US78.82, its highest since August 12.The Reuters news agency has some insightful commentary on these latest US sanctions against Russia:Chinese and Indian refiners are seeking alternative fuel supplies as they adapt to new US sanctions on Russian producers and tankers that are designed to curb the revenues of the world’s second-largest oil exporter.”There are genuine fears in the market about supply disruption. The worst-case scenario for Russian oil is looking like it could be the realistic scenario,” PVM analyst Tamas Varga said.”But it’s unclear what will happen when Donald Trump takes office next Monday.”Goldman Sachs estimated that vessels targeted by the new sanctions transported 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil in 2024, or 25% of Russia’s exports.”No one is going to touch those vessels on the sanctions list or take new positions,” said Igho Sanomi, founder of oil and gas trading company Taleveras Petroleum.At least 65 oil tankers have dropped anchor at multiple locations, including off the coasts of China and Russia, since the United States announced the new sanctions package.Many of the tankers named have been used to ship oil to India and China after previous Western sanctions, and a price cap imposed by the Group of Seven countries in 2022 shifted trade in Russian oil from Europe to Asia. Some of the ships have also moved oil from Iran, which is under sanctions as well.Six European Union countries called on the European Commission to lower the price cap put on Russian oil by G7 countries, arguing it would reduce Moscow’s revenue to continue the war while not causing a market shock.
Washington — Outgoing President Joe Biden sought to burnish his foreign policy record Monday and said U.S. adversaries are weaker than when he took office four years ago despite global crises that remain unresolved. A week before handing over to President-elect Donald Trump, Biden in a rare State Department speech touted his administration’s backing for…
Economic outcomes
By 2035, AI could double the GDP rate of African countries.4 According to Vineusa et al.’s assessment of the SDGs, AI could positively benefit 42 economic targets (70% of what the authors refer to as the “economic” SDG group) while negatively impacting 20 (33%).5 The economic benefits of AI and other emerging technologies often stem from their impact on productivity, both through improving within-sector productivity and through structural change.6 In three of the main sectors of the economy—agriculture, industry, and services— 4IR technologies can play a catalytic role in implementing public and private investment, regulation, and service delivery.7
However, inequality represents a major hurdle when it comes to the spread of emerging technologies, particularly, the challenge of ensuring that people are not left behind as jobs continue to change in the wake of new technology. Africa’s demographic future—by 2063 it will be home to half of the world’s total working-age population—makes this an extremely important challenge for the continent to overcome.8
Social outcomes
Based on Vinuesa et. al’s SDG assessment, AI has the potential to facilitate 67 targets (82%) within the “society” SDG group, including SDG 1 on no poverty, SDG 4 on quality education, SDG 6 on clean water and sanitation, SDG 7 on affordable and clean energy, and SDG 11 on sustainable cities.9 AI can act as an enabler to achieving these goals primarily through its potential to improve the production, provision, and distribution of food, health, water, and energy services while also contributing toward a circular economy that steers resources most efficiently to minimize waste.
Under SDG 3, which concerns good health and well-being, 4IR technologies are already helping African countries achieve health care outcomes and overcome health crises in more efficient and effective ways.10 For example, African AI startups are being deployed to monitor maternal health, produce diagnostic imaging, and develop AI-powered virtual clinic appointments.11
Within health care, Wang et. al are looking into how health care could benefit from a combination of smaller-scale, task-specific models and large-scale generic AIs which are currently less common in medicine.12 They find that large-scale AI models can play a particularly helpful role within medical dialog and medical image analysis; however, these models require a far larger amount of data, which could lead to their development being concentrated in regions outside of Africa.
Despite this potential, AI may also negatively impact 31 SDG targets (38% of Vinusa et. al’s “society” SDG group).13 These consequences stem from the inequality that may increase if these technologies are not evenly distributed (for example, if African small-scale farmers are left behind, meanwhile larger agricultural production companies in other regions capture the market with technology-based solutions), or if AI increases or reinforces discrimination against women and minorities through biased algorithms or image recognition.
Environmental outcomes
The relationship between AI/emerging technologies and the environment has been heavily researched, and the literature emphasizes contrasting impacts. There are important concerns to highlight regarding the environmental impact of AI and other advanced technologies, including resource depletion and carbon emissions if the high-energy needs of AI applications are met by non-carbon-neutral sources. On the other hand, AI has been identified as a tool that can help mitigate the effects of climate change through weather forecasting, early warning systems, land resource management, sustainable agriculture techniques, climate risk assessment, and more, as a GSMA study outlines.14
Vinusa et. al’s evaluation of the SDGs found that AI could be an enabler for 25 targets (93% of the environmental SDG group) due to its ability to better model the impacts of climate change, identify oil spills, identify desertification trends, and other use cases.15
Machine learning has also been found to be an effective tool for combating climate change by providing demand forecasts, optimizing electricity systems, accelerating clean energy technology development, and deploying smart grids and disaster management, according to Rolnick et. al.16 Combining machine learning with generative design and 3D printing can lead to a reduction in the need for carbon-intensive materials in construction and could even create a new “climate-friendly material.”17 Rane notes that generative AI could raise awareness of climate change, conservation, and adaptation for the public and professionals, including by providing assistance in tracking deforestation and wildlife, analyzing oceanic data, disseminating information about sustainable fishing practices, and more.18
According to Olatunde, Adelani, and Sikhakhane, AI, coupled with other emerging technologies such as cloud computing, the Internet of Things, and remote sensing, can help Africa optimize water management by reducing waste through leak detection systems, predicting equipment failures, and resolving contamination issues immediately, which is critical for environmental outcomes and has key spillovers to other development goals related to sanitation and agriculture.19
Governance outcomes
AI can significantly help African governments deliver public services and strengthen African governance. In Togo, for example, the government successfully used AI to refine targeting for the second phase of its Novissi cash transfer program, allowing 57,000 recipients of social funds in 100 of the poorest towns to be identified without contact.20
Rane finds that generative AI can help professionals and citizens navigate legal proceedings, increasing the efficiency of judicial and law enforcement while also increasing trust, transparency, and justice between citizens and institutions.21 Generative AI can also strengthen international cooperation and prevent cybercrimes by identifying potential threats. In Zambia, an AI-powered fact-checking tool called iVerify, which uses machine learning to detect hate speech and fact-check articles, was used during elections and garnered positive feedback.22
However, challenges arise within governance, as AI can also sow polarization and promote misinformation that can negatively impact social cohesion (thus negatively impacting SDG 10 on reduced inequalities) or could hinder access to justice if algorithms contain inherent biases.23
Gaps and challenges
A literature review on the 4IR in Africa by Kibe, Kwanya, and Nyagowa found that 4IR technologies are already being deployed for education, health services, e-commerce, tourism, records integrity, and project management in Africa.24 However, they find that African countries are held back from realizing the full potential of 4IR technologies for further development goals by a lack of 4IR skills, infrastructure, stakeholder involvement, and relevant policies. These gaps and challenges cluster around two issues: ethics and security and inequality.
Ethics and security
While it is clear that AI and emerging technologies have incredible potential for positive change, they can also be leveraged for nefarious purposes. According to the Institute of Development Studies, as of 2023, African governments were spending over $1 billion on digital surveillance technologies, some of which are used without the proper legal protections in place.25
There are also concerns about the human labor powering AI algorithms, which has so far been outsourced to non-Western countries, including in East Africa, where workers are paid a fraction of the wages they would receive elsewhere.26 In fact, in 2023, journalists described how OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, outsourced the human labor required to feed its algorithms to Kenyans who made less than $2 per hour.27 These reports make it clear that it will be critically important to reflect on the types of jobs AI will create or replace.
There are also ethical and security risks that arise from a lack of African data powering AI models. These risks are particularly amplified in the health care sector, where implementing models that provide diagnostic assistance or advice based on data from other countries can be impacted by local bias which can lead to troubling implications on health outcomes.28
Inequality in data, infrastructure, digital skills, and research and development
One of the main challenges facing African countries regarding AI and emerging technologies is the potential for increased inequality both within and between continents when it comes to data, infrastructure and connectivity, digital skills and human capital, and research and development.
Data
Because AI development relies on the availability of large amounts of data, there remain gaps and challenges in making sure that Africa is not left behind in terms of data production, quality, and accessibility. A variety of languages and local contexts are necessary to avoid bias, but trends in the proportions of local content on the internet are concerning. Only 0.02% of total internet content is in African languages (there is 2,650 times more English content), and as of 2023, only 2.5% of the global AI market comes from Africa.29
Infrastructure and connectivity
Many African countries still face a lack of electricity, internet, and broadband penetration, which ultimately constrains the deployment of advanced technologies.30 The African Development Bank estimates that infrastructure needs per year are between $130 billion and $170 billion, leading to a gap of $68 billion to $100 billion in financing.31 Sub-Saharan Africa has a 27% mobile internet connectivity rate, a 60% usage gap, and a 13% coverage gap, compared to the global averages of 57%, 39%, and 4%, respectively,32 meaning that many are within reach of connectivity but not able to use it.
Digital skills and human capital
The usage gap points to another key hurdle in the full implementation of AI for development: digital skills and human capital. Universities are starting to offer AI courses, but there is often a lack of opportunity for hands-on learning. The multidisciplinary skills needed to translate AI applications into development use cases may also be lacking, due to an exclusive focus on machine learning skills or data science.33
These skill gaps are particularly stark between African men and women. According to an ImpactHER survey in 2024, 86% of women surveyed across 52 African countries lack basic AI proficiency, 60% have not had digital skills training, 50.2% do not have (or have poor quality) internet access (37 percentage points lower than African men), and 34.7% do not own a digital device (with a stark contrast between urban and rural women: 15.7% of urban respondents reported no digital device ownership compared to 84.3% of rural respondents).34 The cost of AI training, information gaps in available programs, gender-based discrimination in access to digital skills training, and a lack of understanding of the benefits of digital skills were cited as challenges, alongside other factors such as cultural norms and time constraints.35
Research and development
Currently, AI funding, researchers, and publications are concentrated in the West, with the United States alone home to 60% of the top-tier AI researchers and $250 billion in private funding.36 Africa, South America, and most Asian countries have contributed less than 5% of peer-reviewed papers across AI subfields since 2014, while the U.S. and China have contributed 30% and 18% respectively.37 This leads to disparities in data and talent availability and potential biases in AI systems. Resource constraints and weak infrastructure hinder some African countries’ ability to rely on foundation models, let alone develop their own. Graphic processing units and cloud computing have high costs, which pose a challenge for researchers with limited resources.38 So far, AI startups in Africa have relied on grant funding, as the private sector has yet to overcome its risk aversion in investing in startups that use high tech innovation in science and engineering, in turn amplifying concerns that AI algorithms are being developed without African context.39 AI still represents only a small proportion of Africa’s $4 billion in total funding for tech startups in 2023.40
Strategies to unlock the potential of AI and emerging tech
Despite these challenges, some African countries have already emerged as leaders in AI research and development, AI startups, tech hubs, research initiatives, and government strategies for emerging technologies. Kenya in particular is leading the way in terms of public interest and engagement in AI. The 2024 Standard AI Index found that 27% of Kenyans use OpenAI daily.41 As African countries continue to face both the challenges and opportunities of AI, below are some key strategies to steer AI and emerging technologies toward maximum impact.
Implementing national, regional, and continental strategies
Seven African countries have developed AI strategies while others are creating specific entities to tackle these issues—Kenya’s Blockchain and AI Taskforce42 and South Africa’s Presidential Commission on the Fourth Industrial Revolution,43 for example. In July 2024, the African Union Executive Council endorsed its inaugural Continental AI Strategy, which calls for strengthening regional and global cooperation and a commitment to “an Africa-centric, development-focused approach to AI, promoting ethical, responsible, and equitable practices across the continent.”44 As continental and national strategies take shape, it will be important to ensure inclusive and collaborative processes that include perspectives on the ethics of AI. Key to moving these strategies forward will be the establishment of accountability mechanisms as well as clear ownership of the roles and responsibilities of each stakeholder.45
Supporting partnerships and support for AI research
Given the potential consequences of not being involved in the research and development of AI systems, Africa must prioritize partnerships between African universities, ministries, and private sector players with international players working in this space.46 Already, African universities are forming partnerships, including in Ghana, Uganda, and South Africa, where universities have formed AI labs focused on social impact. AI startups are also helping contribute to African-led research. Examples include Intron Health, a Nigerian startup that is developing a natural language processing tool for African accents in clinical settings and iCog labs, an Ethiopian startup that is developing an Amharic-speaking robot.47 As Asiegbu and Okolo point out, these innovations sprouted from local, grassroots communities who are training and spreading an AI research ecosystem.48 As AI becomes more advanced, African governments and universities must continue to make it a priority to pursue public and private research and development initiatives.49 More broadly, partnerships between the five key types of actors involved in AI (data holders, hardware/software providers, technical partners, domain experts, and financial partners) as identified by GSMA will be key for collaboration and synergy in order to implement positive AI use cases in Africa.50
Investing in data and AI research and development is a critical priority for African countries to help combat biases and reduce the potential for unequal development and deployment of these technologies and their benefits. Such investments include investing in local language data, in participatory approaches to data collection, and in access to existing data sources.51 Especially critical is the need for data that represents different demographic groups (particularly gender) in order to combat tendencies for AI algorithms to mirror and embed existing social inequalities, as well as robust data privacy and protection laws and clear guidance for data-sharing.52 Policies that promote publicly available datasets should also be prioritized so that local entrepreneurs can leverage AI to create local solutions.53
Developing 4IR-ready human capital
To maximize the widespread gains of AI and other emerging technologies, African countries need to close their skills gaps by investing in basic education and innovative approaches, including new financing models to be able to upgrade post-primary education and job training.56 Integrating emerging technologies into future-ready curricula can offer the rising youth population hands-on learning opportunities including through distance learning.57 Beyond reskilling, worker-centered programs should be explored to support productivity, workforce engagement, and holistic support, which will help shift mindsets from a fear-based focus on changing jobs and tasks to an opportunity mindset based on building capabilities and investing in people.58
Developing future-looking regulatory frameworks
Enabling anticipatory regulatory frameworks and making investments must be prioritized by policymakers to foster a thriving marketplace for emerging technologies,59 especially to address challenges such as inequality and ethics, and to purposefully steer technology toward uses for societal good.60 So far, use cases on the continent have been concentrated in IT services, computer software, and management consulting, with less focus on addressing development goals.61 Legal and regulatory frameworks along with incentives can help steer the focus toward local, inclusive, and sustainable AI solutions62 while also mitigating risks and biases.63 These frameworks should avoid blanket prohibitions, but rather should recognize that AI applications and use cases differ greatly from each other.64 As Davis, Signé, and Esposito explain, leaders must be equipped with three tools: transparent and holistic policymaking approaches, renewed efforts to collaborate across jurisdictions, and a shift toward agile governance.65
Investing in robust cybersecurity
Amid the rapid emergence and ever-evolving nature of these technologies, cybersecurity has become one of the most important investments.66 Cybersecurity should be addressed at multiple levels including the systems level, firm level, and individual level.67 Governments can be proactive in establishing cybersecurity agencies and adopting emergency response strategies,68 while private companies can promote cybersecurity skills for their employees and practice cyber risk protection within their leadership and decisionmaking.69 Awareness-raising and training will be key for citizens and for public, private, academic, and civil society organizations.70
Leveraging green technologies
Africa faces unique opportunities to exploit the positive reinforcing relationship between renewable energy and AI. Many African countries have high potential for renewable energy development, which they can leverage to improve access to electricity and, therefore, the deployment of data centers that can develop sustainable computer technologies.71 For now, AI use cases in energy in Africa are still in the nascent stage due to high initial investments, but with regulatory reforms that unlock private investment, African countries could become leaders in this area.72
Conclusion
Enthusiasm and innovation among African entrepreneurs and end-users are helping Africa forge ahead with the 4IR and its technologies, offering new pathways to development. However, with only five years left until the 2030 SDG deadline, African policymakers, development practitioners, and technologists alike are looking at the potential for AI and emerging technologies to help accelerate progress and unlock new innovations. The benefits of 4IR technologies for economic, social, environmental, and governance goals include wide reachability, lower costs, higher productivity, and new techniques to meet these goals, while their challenges include ethical concerns and perpetuated inequality. To navigate these realities, policymakers should focus on leveraging Africa’s strengths (entrepreneurship, youth population, etc.) when considering pathways forward. African countries need investments in factors that enable 4IR technologies to thrive, such as infrastructure and digital skills, as well as nuanced and forward-looking regulatory frameworks to encourage innovation while protecting citizens.
Corinium Global Intelligence Announces CDAO Fed Ready Summit Q1 2025 in Washington D.C. – Technology Today – EIN Presswire
The Supreme Court will hear arguments on Wednesday in a case that will determine whether states can violate adults’ First Amendment rights to access sexual content online by requiring them to verify their age. The case, Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, could have far-reaching effects for every internet users’ free speech, anonymity, and privacy rights.…
Donald Trump already has a star set to perform at his upcoming inauguration. Country music star and American Idol alum Carrie Underwood will sing for the swearing-in ceremony. A few of the other musical performances planned for the event have also been revealed. Carrie Underwood Was Previously Named In A Leaked Program Trump previously served…
EagleView produces high-resolution images in the wake of disastersBy DRONELIFE Features Editor Jim Magill
Soon after two powerful and devastating hurricanes, Helene and Milton, struck Florida within weeks of each other last fall, data analytics company EagleView Technologies was on the scene, capturing high-resolution aerial images of the destruction to aid recovery efforts and assist in processing insurance claims.
In late September 2024, Hurricane Helene slammed into Florida’s Big Bend region before traveling inland, bringing widespread catastrophic damage and causing numerous fatalities across the southeastern United States. That storm was followed several weeks later by Hurricane Milton, the second-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded over the Gulf of Mexico, which struck Florida’s Gulf coast south of Tampa Bay, leaving a path of destruction as it traveled across the peninsula.
For EagleView CEO Piers Dormeyer, responding to the aftermath of the twin storms was a personal experience.
“I live in St. Petersburg. So, we were actually kicked right out the house for almost a month because those storms hit the Tampa/St. Pete area back to back,” he said.
The different nature of the two storms led to different impacts and elicited a different response from EagleView’s team. “The Helene storm was largely a flooding event across Florida, especially coastal Florida, and then even worse in the Carolinas,” Dormeyer said. “Milton was much more of a windstorm. It came in perpendicular to the coast with very high winds hitting populated areas.” The high winds were so intense that they blew the stadium roof off of Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg.
Using planes and unmanned aerial systems, EagleView was soon hard at work, recording high-resolution images for its customers, which included state and local officials and insurance companies. In responding to hurricanes, unlike with other natural disasters, companies such as EagleView have time to plan and prepare, so that they can have the right assets in place to respond to the disaster scene quickly, Dormeyer said.
As those storms are developing, company officials have as much as a week ahead landfall to plan their response strategy. “We have meteorologists on staff that are really trying to understand the range of possibilities,” he said. “We’re getting an operational group together a couple times a day to really assess what it is that we’re going to need and really understanding the needs of our customers.”
Working with county officials in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties in Florida, as well as local officials in the Carolinas, EagleView’s teams developed their disaster response plans, deciding on what assets – planes or drones – were most appropriate for the job.
“We’re trying to understand what’s most important to them: is speed of data important or is it the high-resolution data that’s more important? That can really change based on the nature of the storm,” he said. “With a weaker storm, for example, you might want to have higher-resolution data. That might take longer to get that because you’ve got to fly lower altitudes, etc. But that’s necessary when you’re not dealing with a total-loss situation and you’re looking for more detail, so that you can triage certain characteristics.”
Dormeyer said this ability to anticipate the customers’ needs has been a critical piece for planning the company’s respond to current disasters, such as the ongoing Los Angeles wildfires.
“We start looking at what are the assets that we have at our disposal, the types of planes, the drones,” he said. Once this analysis is complete, the company decides on what tools are best to deploy to accomplish the mission at hand.
In the case of the California wildfires, Dormeyer said EagleView already has the resources in place – with aviation assets positioned to the north, south and east of the disaster area — to begin recording the devastation as soon as its safe for the company to do so.
“We’re just waiting for some smoke to clear so that we can get in and get very high-quality, high-resolution imagery,” he said. The company is working closely with the FAA, which must first lift the temporary flight restrictions the agency has imposed in the fire-affected areas.
In addition to other obstacles it is likely to encounter in the California disaster, EagleView also has to contend with the loss of internet service in many areas. In these areas, the company will have to establish portable internet links in order for it to be able to share its data with first responders battling the blazes.
“It really just culminates with us delivering data into the hands of the people that are working that event,” Dormeyer said.
Over the last several days EagleView representatives have been working with Los Angeles County officials to coordinate the company’s response to the disaster. In a January 9 interview, Dormeyer described the company’s response plans.
“We actually just got off a call with one of the program managers who is responsible for data in L.A. County who called us and said, ‘Hey, we can’t wait to get your information. We’re not getting access to imagery. All we can see is smoke. So, we know that you guys are going to give us something we can actually use,’”
In addition, EagleView’s team members are working with other emergency response organizations in the area, such as the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). “They can help us understand where the smoke’s going so that we can better plan our routes and do our flight planning so we can get that information as quickly as possible,” Dormeyer said.
Company deploys both manned and unmanned aircraft
EagleView’s employs a large fleet of planes that helps the company capture high-resolution aerial photographic images, which are then processed into ortho-mosaics with high degrees of resolution and accuracy. Combined with artificial intelligence tools, this GIS (Geographic Information Systems)-quality data can be used to conduct in-depth analysis and to create models used across a variety of industries including solar, roofing, real estate and insurance.
In addition to its use of manned aircraft, EagleView employs a wide variety of drones to accomplish various aspects of its mission, everything from larger-format fixed-wing drones that can be used to cover areas encompassing multiple square miles on a single battery charge, to smaller drones.
Such small UAVs proved useful in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton, where they were operated to conduct house-by-house data-collection flights in the Siesta Key area, where the hurricane made landfall. Many of these units are produced by Skydio, and are equipped with machine-learning technology, which can aid in structural damage assessment.
Although the company has the ability to deploy any type of drone hardware within its system, Dormeyer said that since the company works so closely with a number of government agencies, many of its customers prefer the use of U.S.-produced drones, such as Skydio products.
He said the growth of its post-disaster business is a direct outgrowth of the company’s expertise in high-quality image productions and analysis. “For example, we can measure and understand the impact of a storm on a structure,” he said. “Unfortunately, the last six months have been really busy for us in this space.”
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Jim Magill is a Houston-based writer with almost a quarter-century of experience covering technical and economic developments in the oil and gas industry. After retiring in December 2019 as a senior editor with S&P Global Platts, Jim began writing about emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, robots and drones, and the ways in which they’re contributing to our society. In addition to DroneLife, Jim is a contributor to Forbes.com and his work has appeared in the Houston Chronicle, U.S. News & World Report, and Unmanned Systems, a publication of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International.
Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry. Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.
TWITTER:@spaldingbarker
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OPIC Technologies Introduces a New Way to Experience Live Music with 3D Live Technology – Technology Today – EIN Presswire
(Overland AI Photo)
Seattle startup Overland AI raised $32 million in a new Series A round to help the U.S. military and other customers use ground vehicles in complex terrain without the need for a human driver.
Founded in 2022 out of the University of Washington, Overland develops technology that enables a human operator to control multiple robotic vehicles navigating off-road terrain, including in environments with no GPS.
Overland’s tech can be installed on any vehicle and is designed to navigate around various conditions at different speeds. It uses advanced machine learning capabilities to analyze surrounding terrain in real time with only onboard sensing (cameras, LIDAR, etc.) and compute.
Last year Overland won a two-year contract worth up to $18.6 million with the U.S. Army and Defense Innovation Unit to develop its OverDrive technology platform for the U.S. Army’s Robotic Combat Vehicle. Other recipients included top defense tech companies Anduril and Palantir.
Overland also works with the U.S. Marine Corps and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), a unit of the Department of Defense.
In November it announced a partnership with the XVIII Airborne Corps, a branch of the U.S. Army.
“Overland AI has developed capabilities that give the U.S. a decisive advantage in ground autonomy and protect soldiers’ lives,” Joe Lonsdale, managing partner at 8VC, said in a statement. “They’ve rallied the top talent in the domain around the mission to transform land operations, revolutionize this area of warfare, and build one of the most important new American defense companies.”
8VC led Overland’s latest round, which included Point72 Ventures, Overmatch Ventures, Shasta Ventures, Ascend, Osage University Partners, and Caprock.
The latest round comes on the heels of a $10 million seed raise last year.
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In a press release, Overland noted that “modern warfare has created an urgent challenge for protecting ground forces. As demonstrated in Ukraine, aerial systems and distributed sensors, as well as large numbers of UGVs that are poised for deployment, leave these ground forces increasingly exposed.”
“We are in a race to save soldiers’ lives,” the company said. “The United States must accelerate its development of ground autonomy to operate in places that are more dangerous for humans.”
Overland is ranked No. 113 on the GeekWire 200, our list of top privately held startups across the Pacific Northwest.
Overland competes with others companies developing off-road autonomous tech, including Forterra, Kodiak Robotics, Polymath Robotics, Potential Motors, and more startups.
The self-driving industry saw some momentum last year with consumer-focused efforts from Waymo and others picking up steam. TechCrunch reported that autonomous vehicles “had a moment” at the recent Consumer Electronics Show last week.
Overland CEO Byron Boots is a highly regarded robotics researcher who leads the University of Washington’s Robot Learning Laboratory and is the Amazon Professor of Machine Learning at the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering.
Speaking at the GeekWire Summit in 2023, Boots recounted how the roots of self-driving technology started with military-related applications.
“Defense was the original motivator for this technology,” he said.
The company’s CTO, Jonathan Fink, worked as a researcher for the U.S. Army Research Laboratory for more than a decade.
Overland’s other two co-founders are Stephanie Bonk, president, and Greg Okopal, COO. Bonk previously worked at Apple and PROS. Okopal has more than a decade of experience working on large defense research programs.
Previous backers include Seattle’s Pioneer Square Labs and Voyager Capital.