Gambit AI
Gambit AI is a U.S. defense technology company that builds a software-first, platform-agnostic adaptive intelligence stack to coordinate heterogeneous autonomous systems across air, land, and sea domains for the Department of War, defense primes, and commercial robotics partners.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2023
- HeadquartersLos Angeles, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Gambit AI does
Gambit AI is a U.S. defense technology company founded in 2023 by Josh Giegel (former Virgin Hyperloop CEO) and headquartered in Los Angeles, California. The company builds a software-first, platform-agnostic adaptive intelligence stack — branded the PhysicalAI Stack — that coordinates heterogeneous autonomous systems from multiple manufacturers across air, land, and sea domains. The stack consists of three modules: Behavior Builder (for creating and training autonomous behaviors), Adaptive Intelligence at the Edge (for real-time execution without centralized control), and Intuitive Interface (for translating operator intent into distributed execution). Underlying capabilities include the Cortex AI platform and Neuron Mesh Network, which together enable spectrum-aware mesh communications and multi-sensor fusion in GPS-denied and communications-degraded environments. The company claims outperformance over incumbents at DoW-sponsored military exercises, including Army T-REX and SOCOM Technical Exercises.
Gambit monetizes primarily through U.S. Department of War contracts, including SBIR/STTR Phase II awards, an Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreement with the U.S. Army Ground Vehicle Systems Center, Air Force AFWERX awards, and joint OECIF funding. It complements direct government sales with a commercial channel via TD SYNNEX's HPE Unleash AI portfolio (NVIDIA AI Computing by HPE ecosystem) as an Independent Software Vendor, and embeds its software inside partner ecosystems through integrations with ModalAI's VOXL 2 autopilot, Psionic sensors, and VICTUS navigation technology. Strategic commercial partnerships with AWS Public Sector Defense Autonomy, Sierra Nevada Corporation, L3Harris, and RTX extend the platform into prime contractor programs.
The company's stated customer base is concentrated in U.S. defense and government agencies — including the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army GVSC, and Pendleton UAS Range — with defense primes and integrators positioned as both partners and adjacent revenue channels. Advisers include former National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster, government procurement expert Katharina McFarland, and USSOCOM Acquisition Executive Jim Smith. The company is backed by Eclipse, Marlinspike, GenLab, Mana Ventures, Next Frontier Capital, Ethos, and Riphean Investments, and is led by CEO Josh Giegel, CCo Ben Richardson, and CTO Andrew Kemendo.
Gambit AI firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Gambit AI
- Legal name
- Gambit AI
- Website
- https://gambit.us
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2023
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Gambit AI is a U.S. defense technology company that builds a software-first, platform-agnostic adaptive intelligence stack to coordinate heterogeneous autonomous systems across air, land, and sea domains for the Department of War, defense primes, and commercial robotics partners.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Gambit AI industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Autonomous Systems Software
- NAICS
- Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415), Custom Computer Programming Services (541511)
- SIC
- Search, Detection, Navagation, Guidance, Aeronautical Sys (3812), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Autonomous Defense Systems (AI/ML, Swarming, MUM-T) (IMABAOAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Robot Software, Autonomy Stacks & Simulation (ROS, digital twins) (HDAAAIAK), UAS Ground Control Stations (GCS) & Remote Operations Infrastructure (IMABAIAL)
Keywords
Where Gambit AI is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Los Angeles
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Gambit AI business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Government Defense Contracts: Gambit generates revenue primarily through U.S. Department of Defense and government agency contracts, including SBIR/STTR Phase II awards and Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreements with the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army GVSC, and Department of War programs. Contracts are multi-million dollar awards supporting adaptive intelligence development for autonomous systems.
- ISV / Software Platform Licensing: Gambit operates as an Independent Software Vendor (ISV) within partner ecosystems such as TD SYNNEX's HPE Unleash AI portfolio and NVIDIA AI Computing by HPE, enabling partners to deploy Gambit's certified AI applications as part of enterprise AI workloads.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Gambit AI product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Gambit builds and sells a software-first, platform-agnostic intelligence stack (the PhysicalAI Stack) that enables defense and commercial customers to build, deploy, and evolve autonomous behaviors across heterogeneous unmanned systems. Its technology coordinates air, land, and sea robots as a unified force through adaptive intelligence distributed at the edge, underpinned by the Cortex AI platform and Neuron Mesh Network. The company delivers this through direct government contracts and partner-channel ISV licensing for defense, counter-UAS, and critical infrastructure applications.
Product overview
Gambit AI is a dual-use defense software company delivering adaptive intelligence for autonomous systems through its PhysicalAI Stack — a software-first, platform-agnostic intelligence stack. The PhysicalAI Stack consists of three interconnected modules: Behavior Builder (for creating and training autonomous behaviors), Adaptive Intelligence at the Edge (for real-time execution), and Intuitive Interface (for mission monitoring and control). Underlying these modules is the Cortex AI platform and Neuron mesh network technology. Gambit operates at the highest level of the autonomy spectrum — adaptive — enabling systems to learn, collaborate, and adapt as unified intelligence rather than isolated automation. The platform is domain- and platform-agnostic, enabling heterogeneous robotic teams to coordinate across air, land, and sea domains. The company emerged from stealth in January 2026 with contracts exceeding $500 million from the Department of War, and has established commercial partnerships with AWS, Sierra Nevada Corporation, L3Harris, and RTX.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- PhysicalAI Stack Software-first, platform-agnostic intelligence stack that enables defense and commercial teams to build, deploy, and evolve autonomous behaviors across any hardware environment, coordinating heterogeneous unmanned systems as a unified force across air, land, and sea.
- Cortex AI Platform Adaptive AI platform that integrates with physics-based simulation environments for counter-unmanned aerial systems testing and evaluation, enabling realistic modeling of coordinated autonomous behaviors, communications, and engagement dynamics.
- Neuron Mesh Network Distributed mesh networking technology that enables resilient, spectrum-aware autonomous communications and coordinated execution across distributed systems operating in contested electromagnetic environments.
- Red Force as a Service Service offering delivering intelligent, continuously learning autonomous systems that emulate evolving adversary behaviors for counter-UAS development, testing, validation, and operator training against coordinated multi-aircraft threat scenarios.
Quantifiable outcome
- Coordinated multi-aircraft scenarios spanning mission planning, launch, and in-flight coordination at MITRE's National Range
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Gambit AI
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Gambit AI technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration8 records
AI capability5 records
Feature9 records
Gambit AI partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and key.
- TD SYNNEX (HPE Unleash AI)coreGambit was onboarded as one of seven new ISV partners in TD SYNNEX's expanded HPE Unleash AI solutions portfolio under the NVIDIA AI Computing by HPE portfolio. The program enables partners to identify, source, and deploy certified AI applications supporting scalable enterprise-grade AI workloads across computer vision, data intelligence, healthcare, and smart environments.
- Reach PowercoreGambit and Reach Power jointly received OECIF (Operational Energy Capability Improvement Fund) funding from the Department of War for the SWARM project. The project combines Reach Power's wireless power beaming technology with Gambit's AI-driven swarm intelligence to enable small drone fleets to operate continuously without landing or battery swaps, achieving 24/7 persistent autonomous operations.
- VICTUS TechnologieskeyGambit and VICTUS partnered to advance coordinated autonomous operations in contested environments where GPS and communications may be degraded. The partnership combines Gambit's mission-level orchestration with VICTUS's PhantomNAV platform-level autonomy and navigation technologies for resilient multi-agent operations across air, ground, maritime, and subsea platforms.
- PsionickeyGambit and Psionic partnered to deliver resilient collaborative autonomy for heterogeneous robotic fleets. The collaboration integrates Psionic's precision sensing and navigation infrastructure with Gambit's adaptive autonomy software, enabling air, ground, and maritime systems to coordinate and navigate in GPS-denied and contested environments.
- ModalAIcoreGambit integrated its adaptive intelligence layer with ModalAI's VOXL 2 autopilot platform (Blue UAS Framework, built on Qualcomm QRB5165). The integration enables Gambit's software to be deployed on any uncrewed system built on the VOXL SDK ecosystem, supporting coordinated autonomous operations across aerial platforms and third-party vehicles leveraging VOXL 2 hardware.
- Pendleton UAS Range (PUR)coreGambit and Pendleton UAS Range partnered to deliver Red Force as a Service capabilities for counter-UAS testing, vetting, validation, and operator training. Gambit's adaptive behavior-based intelligence platform integrates with PUR's real-world structured airspace environment to enable testing against coordinated multi-aircraft threat scenarios.
- AWS Public Sector Defense Autonomy DivisioncoreAWS public sector defense autonomy division partnered with Gambit to scale delivery of its cross-platform intelligence layer technology for autonomous systems. AWS provides cloud infrastructure and defense-specific autonomy solutions to support deployment of Gambit's adaptive intelligence layer.
- Sierra Nevada CorporationcoreSierra Nevada Corporation partnered with Gambit to scale deployment of the cross-platform intelligence layer technology for autonomous systems. Sierra Nevada Corporation is a defense prime contractor providing aerospace and national security solutions.
- L3HarriscoreL3Harris partnered with Gambit to scale deployment of the cross-platform intelligence layer technology. L3Harris is a defense technology company providing communications and sensor systems for military and government customers.
- RTX (Raytheon Technologies)coreRTX (Raytheon Technologies) partnered with Gambit to scale deployment of the cross-platform intelligence layer technology. RTX is a major defense contractor combining Raytheon and Pratt & Whitney.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Gambit AI competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- L3Harris Technologies: L3Harris is a Gambit partner that also builds autonomous and sensor systems for DoW; as a large incumbent, it represents both a distribution channel and an in-house competitor for defense autonomy software.
- Palantir Technologies: Palantir's AIP and defense data platforms overlap with Gambit's intelligence layer in providing AI-driven decision support and coordination across DoD assets, though Palantir is much broader in scope and scale.
- RTX: RTX (Raytheon/Collins) is both a Gambit partner and a potential competitor through its internal autonomy efforts across missiles, electronic warfare, and collaborative platforms; its broad portfolio competes and complements simultaneously.
- Booz Allen Hamilton: Booz Allen Hamilton provides defense AI and autonomy consulting and integration services to DoW agencies, overlapping with Gambit's go-to-market and competing for similar DoW digital autonomy budgets.
Emerging players
- Applied Intuition: Applied Intuition provides autonomy stacks and simulation tooling for autonomous systems and is expanding from automotive into defense; its software-first autonomy approach is comparable to Gambit's PhysicalAI Stack.
- Saronic: Saronic develops autonomous surface vessels and supporting autonomy software for the U.S. Navy, competing in a related autonomous-systems-for-defense category and demonstrating the same dual-use software/hardware thesis.
- HavocAI: HavocAI builds affordable autonomous uncrewed surface vessels with autonomy software, overlapping with Gambit's defense autonomous coordination mission in the maritime domain.
Direct peers
- Shield AI: Shield AI's Hivemind autonomy software enables autonomous coordination across aircraft and is a direct competitor to Gambit's adaptive intelligence layer, particularly in the contested, GPS-denied mission profile that both companies target.
- Anduril Industries: Anduril's Lattice operating system and autonomy stack is the most direct competitor to Gambit's PhysicalAI Stack, providing a platform-agnostic intelligence layer for coordinating heterogeneous autonomous systems sold primarily to U.S. DoD.
Others
- ModalAI: ModalAI supplies the VOXL 2 autopilot that Gambit integrates with; as a complementary enabling technology provider, ModalAI is an ecosystem partner rather than a direct competitor but is critical to Gambit's deployable footprint.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Gambit AI social profiles
Digital presenceGambit AI financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Gambit AI leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Gambit AI funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Gambit AI M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Gambit AI
What does Gambit AI do?
Gambit builds and sells a software-first, platform-agnostic intelligence stack (the PhysicalAI Stack) that enables defense and commercial customers to build, deploy, and evolve autonomous behaviors across heterogeneous unmanned systems. Its technology coordinates air, land, and sea robots as a unified force through adaptive intelligence distributed at the edge, underpinned by the Cortex AI platform and Neuron Mesh Network. The company delivers this through direct government contracts and partner-channel ISV licensing for defense, counter-UAS, and critical infrastructure applications.
Is Gambit AI a public or private company?
Gambit AI is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Gambit AI founded?
Gambit AI was founded in 2023. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Gambit AI based?
Gambit AI is headquartered in Los Angeles, United States, in the North America region.
How does Gambit AI make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Government Defense Contracts are the primary driver. The others are ISV / Software Platform Licensing.
Who are Gambit AI's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are L3Harris Technologies, Palantir Technologies, RTX and Booz Allen Hamilton. Emerging players are Applied Intuition, Saronic and HavocAI. Direct peers are Shield AI and Anduril Industries. ModalAI is listed as an others.
Does Gambit AI have an API?
No public API is recorded for Gambit AI.
What industry is Gambit AI in?
Gambit AI's product category is Autonomous Systems Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMABAOAI, Autonomous Defense Systems (AI/ML, Swarming, MUM-T), with a secondary code of HDAAAIAK, Robot Software, Autonomy Stacks & Simulation (ROS, digital twins). Its NAICS code is 5415 and its SIC code is 3812.