RESPONSIBLE AUTONOMY

Autonomy under
human command.

Autonomy decides how a mission is finished. It never decides whether there is one. This is an engineering constraint in our software, not a statement of intent.

Human authority is the architecture

Every Vaubren system executes inside bounds an operator sets before launch: the tasked objective, the rules of engagement, the geographic and temporal limits, and the abort conditions. Citadel, our autonomy software, plans and adapts inside those bounds. It cannot widen them in flight.

When a link is denied, the aircraft does not gain authority. It retains the authority it was given on the ground, and continues to execute the mission it was already tasked with, or it aborts under the conditions it was given.

What we design against

01

Bounded authority

Targets, rules of engagement and abort criteria are set by a human before launch and are not modifiable by the system in flight.

02

Accountable operation

Mission parameters, autonomy decisions and outcomes are recorded so that responsibility for an engagement remains traceable to a person.

03

Predictable failure

Loss of link, loss of navigation and loss of an airframe are designed conditions with defined behaviour, not undefined states.

04

Alliance only

We build with allies, for allies. Our systems are developed inside the alliance they are intended to defend.

Export control and compliance

Vaubren operates within the European Union and is subject to EU dual-use export control law, principally Regulation (EU) 2021/821, together with the national export control regime of the member state of establishment and applicable NATO obligations.

Where this applies

These principles apply to Vanguard and Citadel, and to every system Vaubren develops afterwards. They are constraints on the product, and they are reviewed as the programs mature. Questions about this policy can be directed to contact@vaubren.com.