The United States Air Force has announced it will soon unveil a university affiliated research center (UARC) in partnership with select historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

This UARC will be rooted in the study of tactical autonomy, which is defined as “autonomous systems acting with delegated and bounded authority of humans in support of tactical, short-term actions associated with a longer-term strategic vision,” per the Air Force Research Laboratory.

The Air Force will determine the center’s location from 11 HBCUs, which have yet to be selected. Additionally, the Air Force plans to have the chosen university also lead a consortium of other HBCUs focusing on the subject of tactical autonomy.

“Part of the future of the military is going to be autonomy — there’s no doubt in my mind of that,” Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall noted in the announcement.

Kendall went on to say artificial intelligence is a “gap in our suite of research institutes.”

“It’s here to stay, and we need to be at the front edge of that. This is an opportunity to tap into that,” he said. “I am very focused on the threat of Chinese military modernization and what that means in terms of our forces for the future.”

Heidi Shyu, Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, spoke positively of the Air Force’s HBCU initiative.

“We’re one of the most innovative countries in the world because of diversity,” she noted. “It’s a diversity of different ideas coming from a diversity of backgrounds that helps you to solve the most challenging problem with innovative ideas that you.”

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) currently runs 14 UARCs with the Army, Navy and Missile Defense Agency.

To qualify for the Air Force’s program, an HBCU must at least be an R2 university — the Carnegie Classification for having “high research activity.”

As a result, eligible schools include North Carolina A&T, Howard, Prairie View A&M, Southern, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Tennessee State, Clark Atlanta, Texas Southern, Morgan State, Florida A&M and Jackson State.

The Air Force plans to decide on the UARC’s location by the end of the year. More information can be found here.

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