Buying guide

Ghost (Ghost-X) vs Shield AI V-BAT in 2026

Comparing 2 humanoid robots across availability, pricing, capabilities, and verified deployments. Current as of 2026.

Key differences

Shield AI V-BAT has more capabilities independently verified as autonomous (1 vs 0).
Shield AI V-BAT has more verified real-world deployments (3 vs 2).

Attribute	No image on file Ghost (Ghost-X)View full model page →	Shield AI V-BAT View full model page →
Manufacturer	Anduril Industries	Shield AI
Form factor	aerial	aerial
Maturity	production	production
Autonomy	—	✓ 1 verified autonomous
Availability	internal-onlyenterprise	internal-onlyenterprise
Price	Not announced	Not announced
Capability claims	—	flight in GPS- and communications-denied environments (autonomous, verified) Multi-drone autonomous team operations (autonomous, demonstrated-once)
Brain	Anduril Lattice (os-layer)	Shield AI Hivemind (foundation-model)
Verified deployments	2Anduril Industries, Anduril Industries	3
Privacy practices	—	—
Sources on file	9	14

Track this matchup

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Ghost (Ghost-X)

Shield AI V-BAT

Editorial summaries

Ghost (Ghost-X)

Anduril's Ghost (current Ghost-X variant) is a helicopter-style single-rotor autonomous VTOL small drone for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, redesigned on Ukrainian combat feedback from the 2020 Ghost 4. It carries about 20 to 25 pounds over roughly 75 to 90 minutes and 25 kilometers, runs Anduril's Lattice autonomy, and sits on the Defense Innovation Unit's China-free Blue UAS list.

Its autonomy is verified-substantive, not marketing: Lattice delivers fielded onboard autonomy including radio-silent flight, single-operator multi-drone teaming, and automatic low-battery mission hand-off, and the registry wires Ghost to the Lattice brain (not to Shield AI's Hivemind). The deployment record is strong: a September 2024 US Army Company-Level small-UAS Tranche 1 selection under a $14.417 million ten-year contract, Replicator fielding to Brigade Combat Teams, more than 1,200 unit-hours across thirteen Army units, and combat use in Ukraine since 2022. It is defense procurement equipment sold on contract; there is no consumer price.

Shield AI V-BAT

Shield AI's V-BAT (military designation MQ-35) is a Group 3 VTOL fixed-wing ISR and targeting drone that takes off and lands vertically from a small footprint, powered by the Hivemind autonomy stack and built to operate in GPS- and communications-denied environments. Its autonomy is verified-substantive: Hivemind is genuine fielded onboard autonomy, and V-BAT is the new-defense cohort's strongest deployment anchor with two verified deployments on the registry (the US Coast Guard and Ukraine).

The Block upgrade adds SATCOM and a heavy-fuel engine. Shield AI, founded in San Diego in 2015, sells V-BAT as defense procurement equipment on contract; there is no consumer price.

Common questions

How do Ghost (Ghost-X) and Shield AI V-BAT differ?

On DEPLOY's record, Shield AI V-BAT has more verified real-world deployments (3 versus 2) than Ghost (Ghost-X) as of 2026; DEPLOY counts a deployment only when confirmed at a named site with a primary source. Shield AI V-BAT has more capabilities independently verified as autonomous (1 vs 0). Shield AI V-BAT has more verified real-world deployments (3 vs 2).

What is the difference between Ghost (Ghost-X) and Shield AI V-BAT?

Ghost (Ghost-X) and Shield AI V-BAT are both aerial robots on the DEPLOY registry. They differ in maker, maturity, price, verified deployments, and how much of their autonomy is independently verified. See the table above for the full head-to-head; each figure is sourced.

Is Ghost (Ghost-X) or Shield AI V-BAT more autonomous?

Shield AI V-BAT has more capabilities independently verified as autonomous on the DEPLOY registry than Ghost (Ghost-X). DEPLOY counts a capability as autonomous only when verified at a real deployment, not from a demo or a vendor claim.

Which has more verified deployments, Ghost (Ghost-X) or Shield AI V-BAT?

Shield AI V-BAT has more verified deployments (3) on the DEPLOY registry than Ghost (Ghost-X) (2). DEPLOY counts a deployment only when confirmed at a named site with a primary source.

Recent coverage

Shield AI and Taiwan's NCSIST complete autonomous swarm exercise and expand sovereign AI and Autonomy effortsShield AI V-BAT · shield.ai · 2026-08-05
L3Harris and Shield AI complete autonomous electronic warfare flight testShield AI V-BAT · shield.ai · 2026-07-16
An Explosion Knocked Out Anduril’s Rocket Motor Test Site in MississippiGhost (Ghost-X) · Wired · 2026-07-01
New Pentagon unmanned czar will oversee most drone programsGhost (Ghost-X) · Ben Smith, Deploy Editor · 2026-07-01

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All dronesRegistry Every verified record in the category.Ghost (Ghost-X)Model The full model page.Shield AI V-BATModel The full model page.Anduril IndustriesRecord The maker's verified record.Anduril LatticeBrain The AI system behind it.Shield AIRecord The maker's verified record.

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