FAA deploys $875M AI system SMART in the same DC airspace where 67 died in January
GaryMarcus · x · 2026-09-21
The FAA will deploy an AI system called SMART in Washington DC airspace starting Monday under a 12-year, $875M contract with Boston startup Air Space Intelligence. It will advise controllers on routing at DCA, Dulles, and BWI — the same airspace where the American Airlines/Black Hawk collision killed 67 in January 2025. The FAA says it won't directly control planes, but has not disclosed whether SMART uses deterministic or generative AI, nor published success metrics. Gary Marcus is skeptical.
More from Safety
- AI safety spat: incident report spends 2x on rabbit feelings vs the cage — joshua_saxe · 2026-09-21
- The likeliest AI doom scenario: an OpenAI intern prompting an unaligned model — gabriberton · 2026-09-21
- Microsoft AI chief Mustafa Suleyman: don't use China as a 'bogeyman' to dodge AI safety progress — Polymarket · 2026-09-21
- Cyberattack wave hits maritime infrastructure: ~20 ships tracked, terminal halts operations — matthew_d_green · 2026-09-21
- iOS 26 on-demand app decryption puts hardcoded API keys at mass exposure risk — matthew_d_green · 2026-09-21
- Lawsuit accuses Anthropic, OpenAI, xAI and Google of illegal agreement to slow down AI — fallingdowndizzyvr · 2026-09-21