Ukrainian defence companies gain access to 5m battlefield images to train AI
Ukraine's Ministry of Defence has granted domestic defence companies access to the Avengers Labs platform to train AI models for unmanned systems using real battlefield data.
Source: Ukraine's Defence Ministry
Details: The ministry noted that the platform was developed by the team at the Centre for Innovation and Defence Technology Development, which also created the Delta combat system.
Delta is a Ukrainian digital battlefield-management system that provides military personnel with a real-time picture of the battlefield by combining data from drones, satellites, sensors and other sources. It allows commanders to track enemy and friendly forces, identify targets and coordinate operations through a single digital platform.
"At the core of Avengers Labs is an annotated dataset of 5 million images collected on the battlefield. Most of this material comes directly from the Delta combat system and is continuously supplemented with new data that has practical value in combat conditions," the defence ministry said.
According to the Defence Ministry, the data covers:
- tanks
- artillery
- air defence systems
- infantry
- aerial assets, including Shahed drones and reconnaissance UAVs.
The ministry also reported that a target auto-detection system trained on the Avengers Labs dataset has proved effective within Delta and analyses more than 100,000 drone video streams each month.
"While processing video, artificial intelligence detects 70% of all enemy assets in real time and helps identify them both day and night," the Defence Ministry added.
Models trained on Avengers Labs can be used, among other things, in scenarios where an operator identifies a target and the drone independently adjusts its trajectory during the final phase of a mission. In another scenario, an unmanned system independently reaches a designated area, detects a target and then acts according to the mission logic.
The Ministry of Defence notes that these scenarios gradually reduce unmanned systems' dependence on constant manual control.
The first Ukrainian defence companies have signed licensing agreements with the Defence Ministry to use Avengers Labs. The platform may also be opened to Kyiv's partner countries in the future.
To gain access, companies can apply via the website. They must then undergo screening, including having no ties or business activities in Russia, not being subject to sanctions and not operating in temporarily occupied territories.
Background:
- Previously, the Defence Ministry reported that more than 75,000 video streams pass through Delta daily, and that, thanks to the built-in Avengers AI platform, battlefield video feeds can be automatically analysed to detect enemy assets.
- Ukrainska Pravda also reported that Ukraine has opened up the possibility for its partners to train AI models for unmanned systems using real combat data.
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