New offline AI tool aims to bridge gaps between NCO, officers in US military

With increasing global conflict and international competition, the US and its allies must remain at the forefront of generative AI.

EdgeRunner, a US-based startup, is working in lockstep with defense sector partners to bring the latest AI capabilities to the US military.

The company has unveiled its latest product, AI Battle Buddy, an offline AI platform designed to revolutionize military support.

AI Battle Buddy

This cutting-edge system integrates seamlessly with any device—including laptops and smartphones—and operates in fully air-gapped environments, bridging critical knowledge gaps between non-commissioned officers (NCOs) and Officers across all experience levels.

The AI Battle Buddy leverages the advanced EdgeRunner Tactical model, boasting 7 billion parameters that deliver performance on par with Meta’s Llama 3-70B model, yet with significantly lower resource requirements.

This tool can encapsulate over 20 years of military wisdom into a single, interactive assistant, envisioned as an “NCO in a bottle.”

It transforms legacy unstructured military data into an intelligent knowledge base, ensuring sensitive information remains secure without cloud transfer.

Fully secure

The AI Battle Buddy features local data integration for precise, role-specific guidance based on current military practices. He operates offline to ensure operational security by protecting sensitive data from cyber threats.

It is customizable for various military roles, such as infantry or engineering, and includes built-in RAG capabilities for real-time, context-aware recommendations.

The system uses custom adaptors (LoRAs) for task-specific enhancements and integrates advanced motion tracking and multi-language translation, among other features, to facilitate comprehensive support in diverse operational settings.

The US Space Force Space Systems Command (SSC) has recently lauded the AI Battle Buddy.

EdgeRunner and Space Force SSC recently showcased the AI Battle Buddy prototype at Stanford University, where the system ingested 10,000 PDFs—equivalent to around 300 million tokens—and demonstrated superior performance compared to GPT-4o-mini, particularly in delivering accurate Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for ground station satellite scheduling.

The AI Battle Buddy is set to transform how Warfighters and Operators receive support. By providing instant access to critical doctrine and procedural knowledge, it embodies the ultimate vision of military assistance.

It offers enhanced decision-making, increased operational security, tailored support, efficient training, and improved situational awareness through real-time insights into movement and positioning.

The AI Battle Buddy also overcomes language barriers with its advanced translation capabilities. He adapts to various military branches’ unique cultures, terminologies, and training methods, ensuring highly relevant support.

This technology minimizes reliance on traditional “death by PowerPoint” presentations, streamlining Warfighter training and accelerating readiness. It is an advanced educational tool that provides real-time support during preparation and active missions.

“We are incredibly proud of the EdgeRunner Battle Buddy’s ability to operate independently in secure environments while offering the kind of tailored, real-time support that military personnel need in the field,” said Tyler Xuan Saltsman, Co-Founder and CEO of EdgeRunner AI.

“This recognition from the Space Force underscores the potential of our technology to make a real difference in military operations.”

Talking to IE, Salsman said the platform is fully secure and can perform all the basic and advanced tasks in an offline environment like space or a battlefield.