As technologies progress, the modern battlespace continues to undergo a profound shift. Artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML), in particular, has become increasingly vital across a number of systems. Northern Virginia-headquartered and woman-owned Raft leads the pack in addressing tough intelligence problems using AI/ML. In an exclusive interview from the AFA Warfare Symposium, Raft’s Director of AI/ML, Dr. Jake Tyo, discussed the company’s history, goals and launch of its AI Mission System ([R] AIMS), a considerable advance in how AI/ML can tackle real-world challenges in warfighting, from detailed planning to decisive action.
Solving Hard Problems With Multi-Agent AI
Founded six years ago by Shubi Mishra, Raft has a clear mission: to solve hard problems in national security. In today’s world, this translates to tackling the complex challenges of data fusion and intelligence. Raft focuses on two critical areas: integrating and fusing data to enable real-time, mission-critical insights and developing autonomous AI solutions that optimize decision-making and operational effectiveness across the defense landscape.
Raft’s core strength has historically been its data platforms, providing the infrastructure necessary to manage and process vast amounts of data. Raft’s newly launched [R]AIMS expands on the company’s foundation, delivering a suite of autonomous AI agents designed to enhance mission effectiveness. These agents ingest, process, and analyze complex data in real-time, enabling operators to rapidly extract insights and act with confidence. Built for secure, transparent, and auditable decision-making, [R]AIMS seamlessly integrates into existing defense ecosystems enhancing legacy systems.
According to Dr. Tyo, [R]AIMS is built on top of Raft’s core data platform, leveraging teams of AI agents to intelligently navigate and extract value from vast data ecosystems. “Rather than manually wrangling data, we provide a system where you interact with a team of highly capable AI agents that seamlessly dive into your data, execute tasks, and deliver actionable insights,” he explained. “This creates an entirely new way to engage with your information—through a dynamic, voice-activated, chat-based interface that puts real intelligence at your fingertips.”
Use Cases: Revolutionizing Acquisitions and Operations
Raft can customize [R]AIMS to meet the needs of any mission or operational environment. Dr. Tyo highlighted two primary applications: acquisitions and active operations, where AI-driven automation enhances efficiency, decision-making, and mission success.
Streamlining Acquisitions
Acquisition professionals are often overwhelmed by vast amounts of data—from product specifications and company profiles to submitted proposals. Raft’s AIMS autonomously navigates this complex information landscape, extracting key insights and streamlining decision-making, enabling faster, more informed procurement choices.
Dr. Tyo explained, “Imagine a scenario where an acquisition expert has all this data about every product that every company they have ever worked with, how those products have changed over time and all of the proposals that those companies have ever submitted. With [R] AIMS, that person can go into the system and say, ‘I’m looking for these types of insights,’ and then let our AI agents do the digging and diving through.” Dr. Tyo said the system is transparent enough that “You can watch them think and you can watch them navigate themselves through your system.” In the end, [R] AIMS gives the user “a concise and verifiable summary” in a fraction of the time it would have taken to do a traditional hand search.
Enhancing Active Operations
In the heat of combat, timely and accurate intelligence is mission-critical. Raft’s [R]AIMS delivers a dynamic Common Operating Picture (COP) that enables warfighters to make rapid, data-driven decisions without the burden of manually sifting through vast amounts of information.
“With [R]AIMS, we’ve built a COP designed for the modern battlefield,” Dr. Tyo explained. “The core idea is that you shouldn’t have to wrestle with your data—you should be interacting with a team of intelligent agents that handle complex tasks for you and then strive to quickly maximize your understanding.”
Raft engineered the [R]AIMS COP as an interactive workspace, where AI agents distill massive data streams into clear, actionable intelligence through visualizations, maps, plots, and charts. This intuitive, collaborative, mission-ready, voice-activated, chat interface ensures that operators can instantly grasp the tactical landscape and act with confidence.
Addressing the Challenges of AI: Hallucination and Data Security
While AI offers immense potential, it also presents challenges in terms of output accuracy and cybersecurity vulnerabilities. Raft addressed both of these in its design of [R] AIMS.
One of the most significant concerns about using AI, especially for defense applications, is the risk of “hallucinations” where AI models generate inaccurate or misleading information. Raft addresses this issue with a comprehensive evaluation suite built into [R] AIMS. This evaluation stack includes a suite of models dedicated to sanity checking, calibratable to human evaluators. It employs rules and heuristics to ensure the reliability of the system.
Data security remains another critical concern in military applications. Raft’s data platform, which underlies AIMS, ensures that data is properly classified and protected.
“When you integrate data into the platform, it seamlessly enters a controlled environment where AI agents can interact with it,” Dr. Tyo explained. “This ensures 100% traceability of classification levels and full visibility into how the AI processes information.”
“Each AI agent is assigned a persona, allowing it to either mirror the access permissions of the user or operate under a designated, AI-specific persona. This means you always have complete oversight—knowing exactly what the AI has access to and what it doesn’t—at all times.”
Embracing Modularity and Interoperability
Raft understands that modularity and interoperability are essential for modern military systems. While Raft offers its own advanced data platform, [R]AIMS is designed to seamlessly integrate into existing national security infrastructure—regardless of the underlying platform or vendor.
“Modularity is as fundamental to us as security,” Dr. Tyo emphasized. “If you already have a data platform, [R]AIMS will plug directly into it—no rip-and-replace required.”
This flexible, modular architecture allows [R]AIMS to operate across a diverse range of defense systems, from uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) to counter-UAS platforms. By leveraging real-time data from these systems, [R]AIMS delivers actionable intelligence, empowering warfighters with the insights they need in operational environments.
The Future of Warfighting: AI-Driven Decision-Making
Raft’s [R]AIMS marks a paradigm shift in how AI is leveraged across the military—moving from back rooms and boardrooms to the front lines of the battlefield. By equipping warfighters with intelligent AI agents that autonomously sift through vast amounts of data and deliver actionable insights, Raft enables them to make faster, more informed decisions when it matters most.
“We believe that within a year, this technology—built on the orchestration of thousands of highly intelligent AI agents—will fundamentally reshape the user experience to the point where it becomes the new status quo,” Dr. Tyo predicted.
As AI continues to advance, Raft remains at the forefront of pushing the boundaries of AI/ML, developing innovative, mission-ready solutions that evolve with the needs of the modern warfighter. With an unwavering commitment to modularity, security, and interoperability, Raft is poised to lead the next wave of AI-driven transformation in defense technology—empowering those who serve our nation with the intelligence they need to win.
Key Takeaways for Raft’s AIMS:
- AI-Driven Decision Superiority – Raft’s [R]AIMS equips warfighters with autonomous & constructible AI agents that rapidly analyze vast data streams, delivering real-time, actionable intelligence to enhance decision-making at mission speed.
- Advanced Situational Awareness – The AI-collaborative Common Operating Picture (COP) within [R]AIMS provides a visually intuitive battlefield overview, allowing operators to quickly assess threats, track assets, and respond with precision.
- Intelligent Acquisition Acceleration – [R]AIMS optimizes the acquisitions process by automating data analysis across product information, company profiles, and proposals, surfacing critical insights to streamline procurement and speed up decision timelines.
- Seamless Modularity & Interoperability – Designed for plug-and-play adaptability, [R]AIMS integrates effortlessly with existing defense infrastructure, enabling cross-platform compatibility across a wide range of mission systems.
- Uncompromising Data Security & AI Integrity – Raft’s secure, classification-aware data platform safeguards sensitive information, while [R]AIMS’ advanced evaluation suite prevents AI hallucinations, ensuring trusted, reliable intelligence.
By: Dawn Zoldi