Shield AI and Thunder Tiger Corp. have signed a memorandum of understanding to integrate Shield AI’s Hivemind autonomy software across Thunder Tiger’s unmanned systems portfolio. The partnership marks a concrete step in expanding AI-enabled autonomous capabilities within Taiwan’s defense industrial base, with unmanned surface vessels (USVs) as the initial platform of focus.

The first milestone is a live demonstration planned for this summer, in which Hivemind will serve as the AI pilot aboard a Thunder Tiger USV. The demonstration is intended to validate autonomous maritime navigation, real-time mission response, and operational performance at sea under conditions that approximate contested environments.