DEPLOYDatabase

Deployment

Shield AI V-BAT at San Diego

Group 3 VTOL fixed-wing ISR/targeting drone (designated MQ-35) that takes off and lands vertically from a small footprint, powered by the Hivemind autonomy stack and resilient in GPS- and communications-denied environments. Fielded in Ukraine and selected by the US Coast Guard. (V-BAT Teams is a multi-aircraft capability, not a separate model.)

Shield AI V-BAT by Shield AI · Operated by Shield AI · Catalog entry · 2 sources · not yet field-verified · Drones

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Machine-readable surfaces

Footage

PRIMARY SOURCE
Courtesy of Shield AI

Shield AI's presentation of its V-BAT VTOL uncrewed aircraft operating in autonomous teams via its Hivemind autonomy. An ISR platform; swarm and contested-environment claims are Shield AI's.

Shield AI V-BAT VTOL UAS deployed with US military and international customers. Autonomous ISR without GPS or comms. Aggregate defense deployment.

Key facts

Fleet
Shield AI V-BAT VTOL UAS
Operator
US military and international customers
Use Case
Autonomous ISR without GPS or comms
Technology
VTOL UAS with GPS-denied and comms-denied autonomy

Safety record

No incidents on record for Shield AI V-BAT at San Diego.

Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.

Trust tier
Catalog entry · 2 sources · not yet field-verifiedhow tiers work →
Last updated
2026-06-28
Company
Shield AI
Operator
Shield AI
Status
operational
Operator type
maker operated
ID
e842a739-3d44-4458-8777-b08c9b3ecc87

Timeline

  1. Jun 2026
    created
  2. Jun 2026
    Current status: operational, reviewed
    Latest recorded state. New status transitions append here as the deployment-status recorder produces them.

On the deployment map

Shield AI V-BAT operates in San Diego. Explore the full verified map:

Sources (2)

  1. https://shield.ai/
  2. https://shield.ai/shield-ai-selected-by-u-s-navy-to-compete-for-800m-in-isr-services-with-v-bat/
Methodology: Verified · 2 sources (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-06-28

Verification posture

Verified

Low confidence

Review state

Stable

Last reviewed 2026-06-28

Maturity + lifecycle

Maturity stage: production

Lifecycle: active

Architectural position

Cohort: aerial

Sources by quality tier

2
unclassified
Unclassified source

The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.

Methodology surface for Shield AI V-BAT at San Diego.

Common questions

What is the Shield AI V-BAT deployment at San Diego?
Shield AI V-BAT, built by Shield AI, is recorded as a deployment at San Diego on the DEPLOY registry. Shield AI operates the deployment directly.
Who operates Shield AI V-BAT at San Diego?
Shield AI, the manufacturer of Shield AI V-BAT, operates this deployment directly. This is a maker-deploys-its-own-product arrangement rather than a customer pilot.
Have there been incidents at the Shield AI V-BAT deployment at San Diego?
No active incidents affecting this deployment are recorded on the DEPLOY registry. Absence of recorded incidents is not a guarantee no incident occurred; DEPLOY records only sourced incidents and suppresses retracted ones.

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