Defense technology startup Anduril, founded by Pro-Trump billionaire Palmer Luckey, has created a drone racing competition that tests software engineering skills rather than piloting abilities, with winners earning jobs at the company and a share of $500,000 in prize money.
TechCrunch reports that Palmer Luckey’s Anduril has unveiled an innovative recruiting initiative called the AI Grand Prix, a drone racing competition with a distinctive twist that focuses on autonomous flight rather than human piloting skills. The contest offers participants the opportunity to win cash prizes totaling $500,000 and potentially bypass Anduril’s standard hiring process to secure employment at the defense contractor.
The competition concept emerged from internal discussions about recruitment strategy at Anduril. Company founder Palmer Luckey explained that when his team initially suggested sponsoring a traditional drone racing tournament, he recognized a fundamental disconnect with the company’s core mission. Anduril has previously engaged in sports marketing, including sponsorship of the NASCAR Cup Series race known as the Anduril 250.
“Guys, that would be a really dumb thing for Anduril to sponsor. The whole point, our entire impetus and reason for being, is this pitch that autonomy has finally advanced to where you don’t have to have a person micromanaging each drone,” Luckey recalled telling his team during the meeting. “What we should really do is sponsor a race that’s about how well programmers and engineers can make a drone fly itself.”
After determining that no such competition existed, Anduril decided to create the event themselves. The AI Grand Prix will challenge participants to develop software that enables drones to navigate courses and compete against other autonomous systems without direct human control during flight.
In an interesting collaboration, the competition will not feature Anduril’s own drone hardware. Instead, participants will program drones manufactured by Neros Technologies, another defense technology startup. Luckey explained that Anduril’s drone products are too large to operate effectively in the confined course environment planned for the finals in Ohio.
“We talked about having teams use Anduril drones, but Anduril doesn’t make any drones that are of the ultra-high speed, very small nature that you would want for a Drone Racing League. It’s mostly bigger stuff,” he said.
The event represents a partnership between multiple organizations. Anduril is working with the established Drone Champions League to operate the competition, as well as JobsOhio. The final race will be hosted in Ohio, where Anduril maintains a significant manufacturing facility.
The company aims to attract at least 50 teams to the inaugural event and has already received interest from multiple universities. If the competition proves successful, Anduril plans to expand the concept beyond aerial drones to include other types of autonomous vehicles.
“We are starting with these quadcopter racing drones, which is what people expect from drone racing. However, we want to be, in the future, applying AI racing to other platforms as well,” Luckey explained. He suggested potential future competitions could involve underwater autonomous vehicles, ground-based systems, and possibly even spacecraft racing.
The competition will be open to international participants with one notable exception. Teams from Russia will be excluded from entering the AI Grand Prix. “The difference with Russia is they are actively engaged in the act of invading Europe,” Luckey said, addressing the decision. He noted concerns that qualified participants might also work for their nation’s military establishments. “I would love to have everybody, but we’re not the Olympics,” he added, explaining that the event was following precedent set by the World Cup, which has also excluded Russian participation.
Teams from China will be permitted to compete despite ongoing tensions between the United States and China regarding autonomous weapons development. China is frequently cited by U.S. defense officials as a primary concern in the autonomous systems domain. However, Luckey clarified that winning the competition would not automatically guarantee employment at Anduril for all participants, particularly those with connections to foreign militaries.
“If you work for the Chinese military, you’re not going to be allowed to get a job at Anduril,” Luckey stated, noting that certain legal requirements apply to hiring at defense contractors. All job candidates who advance through the competition will still undergo interviews and a qualification process before receiving employment offers.
The AI Grand Prix will unfold over several months, beginning with three qualifying rounds starting in April. The final championship race is scheduled to take place in November. The competition structure will allow teams time to develop, test, and refine their autonomous flight software before facing off against competitors.
The prize structure includes the $500,000 cash pool to be distributed among top-performing teams, along with the opportunity to join Anduril’s workforce without going through the company’s typical recruitment cycle. This combination of financial incentives and career opportunities is designed to attract top engineering talent in the autonomous systems field.
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Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.
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