Eric Schmidt Is Secretly Testing AI Military Drones In A Wealthy Silicon Valley Suburb

🌈 Abstract

The article discusses the secretive military drone company, White Stork, founded by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. The company is developing AI-guided drones and testing them both at Schmidt's family office in Menlo Park and on the frontlines of the war in Ukraine, where Schmidt has positioned himself as a defense tech guru. The article also covers the company's hiring of talent from tech giants like Apple, SpaceX, and Google, as well as Schmidt's involvement with Ukrainian officials and his public commentary on the use of drones in warfare.

🙋 Q&A

[01] White Stork and its operations

1. What is White Stork, and what is it developing?

• White Stork is a secretive military drone company founded by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt.
• The company is developing AI-guided drones and testing them both at Schmidt's family office in Menlo Park and on the frontlines of the war in Ukraine.

2. How is White Stork operating in stealth?

• After Forbes revealed the venture in January, Schmidt quietly renamed it to "Project Eagle" to obfuscate its operations.
• The company's operations are further obscured by a constellation of LLCs and associated companies, such as Merops, Aurelian Industries, Swift Beat, and Volya Robotics.

3. What is the involvement of Ukrainian officials and the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense with White Stork/Project Eagle?

• White Stork/Project Eagle has been testing drone prototypes with the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense and soliciting their feedback.
• Schmidt has traveled to the frontlines in Ukraine to see drone warfare firsthand, which earned him praise from the Minister of Digital Transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov.
• Schmidt and his team, including Damon Vander Lind and Will Roper, have met with senior Ukrainian officials like Oleksandr Kamyshin and Yulia Svyrydenko.

[02] Talent acquisition and key personnel

1. Who has White Stork/Project Eagle hired?

• Over the past several months, the company has poached at least a dozen employees from tech giants like Apple, SpaceX, Google, and Schmidt's own philanthropic organization, Schmidt Futures.
• The hires have expertise in areas like machine learning, aerospace, supply chains, and procurement.

2. Who are some of the key personnel involved in the project?

• Hendrik Dahlkamp, a former Apple machine learning manager and graduate of Sebastian Thrun's Stanford University robotics lab, is developing AI-enabled visual targeting software for the drone project.
• Damon Vander Lind, a former Kitty Hawk employee, is collaborating with a former SpaceX engineer at an outpost in Oakland.
• Mark Stonich, former VP of sourcing and supply chain sustainability at Google, is heading operations and supply chain at White Stork/Project Eagle.
• Will Roper, founder of the Schmidt-backed defense startup Istari Digital, is a member of the project.

[03] Schmidt's public commentary on drone warfare

1. What has Schmidt written about the use of drones in warfare?

• In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, Schmidt bullishly predicted that "suicide" or "kamikaze" drones would remake warfare, describing them as "ruthless swarms of AI-empowered" drones.
• However, in a later Time op-ed, Schmidt's tone had become more tempered, invoking Nietzsche's words about the abyss gazing back at those who gaze into it, reflecting the "in-the-mud reality" of the Ukrainian frontline.