Meta and Booz Allen Launch 'Space Llama' AI System for International Space Station

Meta and Booz Allen partner on 'Space Llama' AI program with Nvidia and HPE

Llama, Meta's open-source artificial intelligence model, will help astronauts in low orbit at the International Space Station's National Laboratory with research. "We see a future where open source AI models like Llama will play a vital role in fueling space exploration and research - enabling astronauts to undertake the next level of experimentation to solve complex scientific problems and drive innovation in entirely new ways," Ahmad Al-Dahle, Meta VP and head of generative AI, said in a release. The announcement builds on Booz Allen Hamilton's ISS addition in August, when it deployed the first known large language model in space, per the company. Less than a year later, it is adding a tech stack with Meta's "fine-tuned" Llama 3.2, powered by Hewlett Packard Enterprise's Spaceborne Computer-2 and Nvidia graphics processing units, or GPUs.

Meta, Booz Allen develop 'Space Llama' AI system for the International Space Station - SiliconANGLE

Meta, Booz Allen develop 'Space Llama' AI system for the International Space Station Meta Platforms Inc. has teamed up with Booz Allen Holding Corp., a U.S. government contractor, to develop an artificial intelligence system for the International Space Station. The companies detailed the project today. Space Llama, as the AI system is called, is based on a fine-tuned version of Meta's Llama 3.2 language model series. It's designed to support science projects in the ISS National Laboratory, a research lab located aboard the station. Certain types of materials are easier to mix in low-gravity conditions. As a result, astronauts use the ISS National Laboratory to study material combinations that would be difficult to create on Earth. It's believed that research into such compounds could enable new pharmaceutical manufacturing techniques. The ISS National Laboratory's work also spans a wide range of other areas. Astronauts have studied how systems such as 3D printers, robots and sensors operate in space. Additionally, the lab is used to process data from the numerous Earth observation instruments attached to the ISS. Meta debuted Llama 3.2, the language model series that powers Space Llama, last August. It comprises four open-source models with 1-90 billion parameters. The Llama 3.2 series is optimized to run on systems with limited processing capacity, which makes it well-suited for the computing equipment aboard the ISS. Space Llama runs a fine-tuned version of Llama 3.2 on an appliance called the Spaceborne Computer-2. The system was made by Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. in collaboration with NASA. It combines HPE servers with Nvidia Corp. graphics cards, about 130 terabytes of flash storage and NASA-developed power management equipment. According to Meta, Space Llama uses Nvidia's cuDNN and cuBLAS libraries to run the onboard AI models. The former library provides prepackaged software building blocks for building neural networks. The cuBLAS toolkit, in turn, helps developers boost their AI models' performance. Meta says that astronauts can use Space Llama to extract data from technical reference documents. Additionally, the system's Llama 3.2 implementation lends itself to processing multimodal files thanks to built-in computing vision features. The AI doesn't require instructions from Earth to work, which means it's capable of performing calculations even when network bandwidth is limited.

Meta, Booz Allen Launch 'Space Llama' AI System For Space Station Operations - Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), Booz Allen Hamilton (NYSE:BAH)

Booz Allen Hamilton BAH and Meta Platforms Inc. META have introduced an AI solution named "Space Llama," designed to enhance how astronauts handle maintenance and repairs on the International Space Station (ISS). This joint innovation utilizes a tech stack driven by NVIDIA Corp. NVDA CUDA GPU acceleration and is designed to operate independently of Earth-based computing infrastructure. The Space Llama platform is built to eliminate the need for physical manuals and lessen the dependence on Earth-based guidance during space missions. With its onboard intelligence, the system enables astronauts to quickly identify issues, run diagnostics, and make repairs efficiently all with lower energy usage and no need for internet connectivity to Earth. Also Read: Booz Allen Bets Big On AI Defense Tech With Scout AI Investment "This proof of concept overcomes the historical limitations of low-power, low-capability space-based computing by enabling simple, power-efficient AI use in space without relying on Earth network connectivity," said chief technology officer at Booz Allen, Bill Vass. "We're thrilled and honored to steward with Meta this space-based multi-modal vision language model to achieve critical mission success and redefine how we work in space and at the deepest mission edges." Leveraging a tailored adaptation of Meta's Llama vision AI, Space Llama can analyze visuals and text to deliver real-time technical support. It expands upon Booz Allen's prior deployment of the first large language model in space and is specifically designed to function effectively in areas with constrained or unstable connectivity. The core of the system integrates Booz Allen's A2E2 (AI for Edge Environments) platform with Hewlett Packard Enterprise's Spaceborne Computer-2 and NVIDIA CUDA software. The AI stack mirrors the design of systems used on satellites and can function entirely autonomously aboard the ISS National Lab. While the tech is tailored for space operations, Booz Allen sees potential applications on Earth, from oil and gas to defense and energy where connectivity is intermittent or constrained. Price Action: BAH shares traded higher by 0.25% at $119.63 in premarket at last check Friday. Read Next: PepsiCo CEO Warns Of Tariffs Led 'Increase In Supply Chain Costs,' Cuts Annual Profit Outlook Image: Shutterstock BAHBooz Allen Hamilton Holding Corp$118.22-0.93%Stock Score Locked: Want to See it? Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Reveal Full ScoreEdge RankingsMomentum23.18Growth70.73Quality69.45Value33.54Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewMETAMeta Platforms Inc$542.991.85%NVDANVIDIA Corp$108.371.82%Got Questions? AskWhich space tech companies can benefit from AI?How will Booz Allen profit from Space Llama?What impact on defense contractors with AI adoption?Could energy firms invest in similar tech?Which AI startups might rise due to space tech?How does NVIDIA benefit from this partnership?Will Meta expand AI into other industries?What are the implications for satellite companies?How might Hewlett Packard leverage this tech?Is there potential for telecommunications firms in space AI?Powered By This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

Booz Allen and Meta Successfully Demonstrate AI Vision Language Model for Space By Investing.com

Space Llama speeds ability to make critical repairs on ISS National Lab, powered by NVIDIA CUDA GPUs MCLEAN, Va. & MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Booz Allen Hamilton (NYSE: BAH) and Meta today announced the development and successful demonstration of a novel AI-powered tech stack, accelerated by NVIDIA CUDA GPUs, to support critical work on the International Space Station (ISS) National Lab. This effort is believed to be the first of its kind, setting the stage for space exploration and operations across a variety of disconnected environments. The goal in building the tech stack " dubbed Space Llama " is to not only replace paper documents onboard the ISS National Lab, but also decrease reliance on instructions received from the ground while deployed at the edge. The result will be lower costs, less computing power required, and faster outcomes when responding to onboard anomalies or maintenance issues, without depending on Earth-bound internet. Space Llama evolves and builds upon successful efforts by Booz Allen to deploy and operate the first known large language model (LLM) in space. This moment sees the new addition of a fine-tuned version of Meta's Llama vision AI capabilities (recently made available to US government agencies and private sector partners) to help process and interpret images and text at the farthest reaches of space. This allows users to quickly and reliably access essential technical references, manuals, and instructions leveraging the power of generative and vision AI to address on-board issues at speed. In the power and communications constrained environment of space, the ability to quickly assess, research and solve on-board issues is paramount, said Bill Vass, chief technology officer at Booz Allen This proof of concept overcomes the historical limitations of low-power, low-capability space-based computing by enabling simple, power-efficient AI use in space without relying on Earth network connectivity. We're thrilled and honored to steward with Meta this space-based multi-modal vision language model to achieve critical mission success and redefine how we work in space and at the deepest mission edges. The Space Llama tech stack, undertaken as internal research and development, is comprised of Booz Allen's modular open architecture platform A2E2™ (AI for Edge Environments) and a fine-tuned version of Meta's Llama 3.2, using Hewlett Packard Enterprise's (HPE) Spaceborne Computer-2 and NVIDIA CUDA software. The result: a compact, energy-efficient system similar to those used in satellites that can be deployed locally on the ISS National Lab without requiring power, communication or computation from Earth. This design " open architecture to ensure flexibility in our solution design, now and in the future " results in lower costs and strong technical performance, in addition to enabling predictive maintenance and faster repairs, freeing up users to do mission critical work. This is just the beginning. We see a future where open source AI models like Llama will play a vital role in fueling space exploration and research " enabling astronauts to undertake the next level of experimentation to solve complex scientific problems and drive innovation in entirely new ways," said Ahmad Al-Dahle, Meta VP and Head of GenAI. Space Llama demonstrates the art of the possible in terms of AI's impact at the deepest edge of space, in addition to the versatility of LLM-based technology across a variety of environments with denied, disrupted, intermittent, and limited bandwidth. In addition to fostering greater scientific research and discovery in space, this innovation could also result in positive outcomes for industries including oil and gas, autonomy, government, energy, and the re-use of legacy technology through edge software modifications. This is a critical step for lunar and Mars exploration and enables modern satellite and drone capabilities as the U.S. proliferates space and air with autonomous systems, said Michael Johnston, senior vice president of space programs at Booz Allen. Building this tech stack with Meta, supported by NVIDIA, furthers each of our advanced technology goals, and more importantly, sets the stage for what is possible at the edge. Booz Allen has served for more than 60 years as a space program partner for defense, intelligence, and civil agencies across the federal government. As an advanced technology company and as the leading provider of AI and cybersecurity to the federal government, Booz Allen is uniquely positioned to field emerging capabilities to support the broader national security ecosystem. Booz Allen is committed to advancing the future of space technology by bridging the gap between commercial innovation and government missions. Read more about Booz Allen's space capabilities and impact. About Booz Allen Hamilton Booz Allen is the advanced technology company delivering outcomes with speed for America's most critical defense, civil, and national security priorities. We build technology solutions using AI, cyber, and other cutting- edge technologies to advance and protect the nation and its citizens. By focusing on outcomes, we enable our people, clients, and their missions to succeed"accelerating the nation to realize our purpose: Empower People to Change the World ®. With global headquarters in McLean, Virginia, our firm employs approximately 35,900 people globally as of December 31, 2024, and had revenue of $10.7 billion for the 12 months ended March 31, 2024. To learn more, visit www.boozallen.com. (NYSE: BAH) Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements contained in this release include "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Examples of forward-looking statements include statements that do not directly relate to any historical or current fact. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as may, will, could, should, forecasts, expects, intends, plans, anticipates, projects, outlook, believes, estimates, predicts, potential, continue, preliminary, or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give you no assurance these expectations will prove to have been correct. These forward-looking statements relate to future events or future financial performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. A number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in or implied by these forward-looking statements, including those factors discussed in Booz Allen's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including Booz Allen's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024 and other filings and reports that may be filed from time to time with the SEC, which can be found at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. All forward-looking statements attributable to Booz Allen or persons acting on Booz Allen's behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the foregoing cautionary statements. All such statements speak only as of the date made and, except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. BAHPR-CO View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250425316143/en/ Booz Allen Media Relations: Amanda Allison-Martini, [email protected] Booz Allen Investor Relations: [email protected] Meta PR contact: Ania Kuprian, [email protected] Source: Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation