MAROKO133 Hot ai: General Atomics’ drone wingman prototype for US crashes during tests in

📌 MAROKO133 Update ai: General Atomics’ drone wingman prototype for US crashes dur

A prototype drone built for the U.S. Air Force’s next-generation unmanned wingman program crashed shortly after takeoff in California on April 6, 2026, prompting a temporary halt to flight tests as investigators begin examining the incident.

Test flight ends in desert crash

According to a statement from the defense company, the accident occurred at about 1:00 pm Pacific Time after the aircraft lifted off from a company-owned airfield in the California desert. The site is identified as Gray Butte Airport near Palmdale, a facility operated by the firm for flight testing.

The drone involved is the YFQ-42A, a prototype developed under the U.S. Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft program. The aircraft is designed to operate as a loyal wingman alongside crewed fighter jets.

The company confirmed that no one was injured in the crash. It added that the mishap happened “following takeoff from a company-owned airport,” with safety systems and procedures functioning as expected during the event.

Flights paused as investigation begins

In response to the crash, General Atomics said it has paused all YFQ-42A flight testing. The suspension is described as temporary and is being implemented “in an abundance of caution.”

The company stated that testing will “resume when deemed appropriate” after further review. At this stage, the cause of the crash remains unknown.

“At this early stage, it would be premature to speculate on the circumstances,” the company statement said. “As with any program, we follow a disciplined investigation process to understand exactly what occurred, and our focus right now is on gathering data and ensuring we learn from this event.”

A spokesperson for the United States Air Force confirmed that the service is aware of the incident and will follow standard aircraft mishap protocols.

Prototype fleet and safety response

The company noted that the crashed drone is one of several production-representative YFQ-42A aircraft currently used for testing. These drones are part of a growing prototype fleet that has been flying regularly as part of development efforts.

General Atomics has publicly revealed at least three units of the aircraft. The drone is also known internally as “Dark Merlin.”

“Safety is our top priority, for our people and the public. In this case, established procedures and safeguards worked as intended, and there were no injuries,” company spokesman C. Mark Brinkley said in the press release.

“We’re going to take a close look at what happened, gather all the data, and allow the investigation to guide us moving forward.”

Competition heats up in drone wingman program

The YFQ-42A is part of a broader push by the United States Air Force to field autonomous drones that can operate alongside fighter aircraft. These systems are expected to extend range, carry sensors or weapons, and reduce risk to human pilots.

In 2024, General Atomics received a prototyping contract for the first phase of the program, alongside competitor Anduril Industries. Anduril’s YFQ-44A drone has already begun flight testing with inert weapons, although it is unclear if the YFQ-42A has reached that stage.

A production contract for the program is expected later in 2026. Meanwhile, Northrop Grumman has emerged as a potential contender with its YFQ-48A design.

The second phase of the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program is also underway, with multiple firms advancing early-stage concepts. The YFQ-42A itself belongs to a broader family of unmanned aircraft designs known as Gambit, which General Atomics is promoting for both U.S. and international defense markets.

🔗 Sumber: interestingengineering.com

📌 MAROKO133 Update ai: Startup Approved to Let AI System Prescribe Psychiatric Med

You’ve probably heard of AI psychosis. Well, now get ready for AI psychiatrists — with prescription pads.

A San Francisco startup called Legion Health has been approved to let its AI app prescribe psychiatric medications to patients in Utah

As The Verge reports, there are efforts to keep the idea from becoming the disaster that it sounds like. The chatbot can only renew prescriptions for a specific set of medications, including fluoxetine (Prozac), sertraline (Zoloft), and other substances used to treat anxiety and depression. It can only prescribe drugs that were previously prescribed by a human psychiatrist, and patients will also need to be stable and not have been hospitalized for a psychiatric condition in the last year.

Despite those considerable carve-outs, experts are warning the system may do little to improve access to those who need care the most — while cracking the door to an ominous era for medicine.

University of Utah School of Medicine psychiatrist Brent Kious told The Verge that automating the process could contribute to an “epidemic of over-treatment” in psychiatry. The medications should “require more active management, changes, and careful consideration,” as Harvard Medical School director of digital psychiatry John Torous added.

The experts also cautioned that the chatbots may gloss over important details or not realize that a patient was answering questions inaccurately on purpose to speed up care. Human clinicians still have the advantage of being able to read between the lines and realize when patients are being misleading or intentionally obtuse.

“It would be better if there were greater transparency, more science, and more rigorous testing before people are asked to use this,” Kious told The Verge.

The rollout of Legion Health’s tool is Utah’s second foray into automating healthcare using AI chatbots. An initial pilot of a model in December, dubbed Doctronic, turned out to be a major point of contention, with cybersecurity researchers finding that it could be easily coaxed into spreading conspiracy theories about vaccines, recommending meth as a treatment for social withdrawal, and tripling a patient’s suggested dosage of Oxycontin.

Meanwhile, Legion Health claims it’s playing it safe with its latest AI chatbot, agreeing to file monthly reports to Utah regulators and physicians for review. The company also says it will closely involve pharmacists in the renewal of prescriptions.

“We see this as critical to expand access to hundreds of thousands of people in Utah who live in mental health shortage areas, as well as an important proving ground for AI in medicine,” Legion cofounder and president Arthur MacWaters told The Verge.

The company is hoping to roll out its refill chatbot “nationwide” before the end of this year.

Torous, however, advised patients to stay away and continue seeking the advice of a human clinician instead.

More on healthcare chatbots: Therapists Go on Strike, Saying They’re Being Replaced by AI

The post Startup Approved to Let AI System Prescribe Psychiatric Medication appeared first on Futurism.

🔗 Sumber: futurism.com