AIDA3

By 2027, nearly one million commercial uncrewed aircraft systems are expected to be flying throughout the United States, providing key supplies for emergency services, defense, humanitarian aid, healthcare, and assisting in fighting wildfires.

To respond to this demand, Purdue University launched the Center on AI for Digital, Autonomous, and Augmented Aviation (AIDA3). This center focuses on applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to make transportation systems safe, efficient, and scalable. Innovations target unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and other autonomous systems, emphasizing developments that can be scaled up with increasing demand.

Several faculty members from the Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering are contributing their expertise, including Peter Bermel, Mark Lundstrom, and Saurabh Bagchi. The laboratory, based at a “smart operating center” at Purdue University Airport, will transition developments into real-world applications.

AIDA3’s founding partners, Purdue and Windracers, combine strengths to quickly develop technologies for a fast-changing marketplace. Windracers brings real- world experience with large-scale UAVs, while Purdue provides research expertise across multiple disciplines. AIDA3 will investigate AI and ML models for autonomous transportation, focusing on applications ranging from commercial logistics to real-time weather prediction.