Pittsburgh-Area Firm Helping Airbus Develop Autonomous Aircraft

Since the first flight at Kitty Hawk in 1903, airplanes have always needed pilots. Even drones are remotely controlled by a human being.

But a Pittsburgh-area company is laying the groundwork for the technology that will create autonomous Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)—essentially, pilotless aircraft guided by artificial intelligence—in the not-too-distant future.

Ansys, a Canonsburg-based engineering simulation and embedded software company, is partnering with Airbus Defence and Space, the military arm of the European aviation giant, to develop the software necessary to turn autonomous UAVs into a reality by 2030.

The Airbus UAVs will be part of