Air Force: ~$9.77M for "explainable AI and autonomy" research (HAARDCORE) — a federal contract with the University of Dayton (USAspending)
The U.S. Air Force awarded about $9.77M ($9,767,131) for operationally relevant, explainable AI and autonomy R&D (HAARDCORE). Recipient: the University of Dayton. University research centered on AI that can explain why it reached a decision.
Contract key facts
- RecipientUNIVERSITY OF DAYTON
- Contract value$9,767,131 (≈$9.8M)
- Awarding agencyDepartment of Defense
- Awarding sub-agencyDepartment of the Air Force
- Award typeDEFINITIVE CONTRACT
- Period of performance2025-08-25 〜 2028-02-24
- Contract ID (PIID)FA239125CB010
Contract scope (original)
HYBRID ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND AUTONOMY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CONSIDERED OPERATIONALLY RELEVANT AND EXPLAINABLE (HAARDCORE)
Key points
- Air Force funded explainable AI and autonomy R&D (HAARDCORE)
- AI that can explain "why" is essential to trust in high-stakes settings
- "Operationally relevant" — mindful of usefulness in real operations
- Value ~$9.77M, period August 2025–February 2028; recipient University of Dayton
- Echoes the "trustworthy AI" concern (FAITH-MD) from our separate article
"Explainable" refers to AI whose reasoning for a conclusion a human can understand. Using AI and autonomous systems in high-stakes settings requires being able to trust and verify their outputs — a concern that echoes the Air Force's "trustworthy AI" framework (FAITH-MD) covered in our separate article. The phrase "operationally relevant" indicates research mindful of usefulness in real operations, not just theory.
Why it matters: that the performer is a university also shows the breadth of government AI research (specific methods and deliverables are not stated in the scope, so we do not infer them).
Why it matters
An example of public funding for AI explainability and operational fit, not just raw performance. Useful for reading trustworthy-AI/autonomous-systems research and the breadth of university-performed military AI research.
FAQ
What is "explainable AI"?
Why would the military research explainability?
Sources (primary)
This article is an independent organization based on the U.S. official spending data below. Verify the exact, latest details with the official source.
- USAspending (award details)
- Contract ID (PIID)：FA239125CB010