LAS VEGAS — The Department of the Air Force's Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS) Cross-Functional Team hosted its inaugural Multi-Decision Advantage Sprint for Human-Machine Teaming (MASH) experiment in Las Vegas, Nevada, in May. The two-week experiment integrated multiple artificial intelligence (AI) tools for battle management and included participation from Space Force guardians and Air Force airmen.

The MASH experiment marked the first time the Shadow Operations Center-Nellis (ShOC-N) included active participation from another military service. Space Force guardians provided feedback to developers regarding the AI technology's decision-making logic and limitations. Colonel John Ohlund stated, "The data analysis is ongoing, but initial trends strongly mirror our previous successes, demonstrating a significant acceleration in decision-making speed." Ohlund added, "Ultimately, this validates the potential for human-machine teaming to substantially expand the volume of viable options available to commanders during high-tempo operations."

Six industry teams and the 805th Combat Training Squadron's software engineers developed custom AI tools for the MASH wargame, which evaluated multiple subfunctions and combined them into a single workflow. Colonel Ohlund said, "Specifically, they analyzed incoming information to identify and categorize potential entities, matched the best available joint capabilities to address those situations and then generated multiple, optimized courses of action."

The Air Force Research Laboratory developed an orchestration tool to integrate distinct software applications during the experiment. Captain Adam Sochia noted, "A week ago, it took my team and me 50 minutes to an hour to get one tasking done. With the help of the tool, we were able to get five or six taskings done." Colonel Ohlund stated that the ABMS Cross-Functional Team and the 805th Combat Training Squadron will continue to conduct wargames with AI tools throughout the remainder of the year. The Air Force plans to invite members from other military services to participate in future experiments.

Why It Matters

The 805th Combat Training Squadron, or ShOC-N, began a multi-faceted experimentation campaign in 2024 to inform the development of AI tools and operational concepts for the DAF Battle Network. The DAF Battle Network is the Air Force's contribution to the Pentagon's Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control (CJADC2) initiative.