Exclusive: Overland AI unveils autonomous Ibex vehicle
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The Ibex autonomous ground vehicle. Photo: Courtesy of Overland AI
Overland AI on Wednesday debuts Ibex, an autonomous ground vehicle capable of shuttling thousands of pounds of materiel and designed for rapid relocation aboard V-22 Ospreys.
Why it matters: The Seattle startup is building the reconfigurable robo-resupplier for the Marine Corps as well as the Army and Special Operations Command.
The big picture: Ibex has been in design since the beginning of the year, Overland AI co-founder Greg Okopal told Axios. Two prototypes are undergoing daily tests in central Washington. Some tweaks and refinements are expected ahead of production later this year.
- More than a dozen AGVs are on order, via a nearly $20 million APFIT contract with the Marine Corps ground-based air-defense shop and a previously unreported $4.5 million add-on that brings in the 75th Ranger Regiment.
- "We are a very field-forward, field-testing-focused company," Okopal said.
- "If you're going to deliver these vehicles to a unit, it needs to keep up with what they are doing," he said. "It cannot slow them down."
Zoom in: Ibex is based on a Polaris MRZR Alpha, a platform also tapped for the Corp's Ultra-Light Tactical Vehicle. It can carry 2,000 pounds, hit speeds greater than 35 mph and cruise for 250 miles. It's fueled by diesel or JP-8.
- "It's narrower, it's longer, but otherwise pretty close in scale to what an Ultra is," Okopal said, referencing the startup's other AGV.
- "It's a lot of payload space, a lot of payload capacity," he added. "You can add sensors. You can add effectors."
Context: Ibex will initially be used to restock Marine Air Defense Integrated Systems, which are used for counter-drone and overhead defense. Overland AI teased that application over the summer — but kept the actual vehicle under wraps.
The bottom line: "We can use roads, if they're there. But we do not need roads. We can move through the most challenging terrain that is out there," Okopal said.
- "And we go fast."
Go deeper: Army creates autonomy command amid Hegseth's robo-warfare push
