Miles Jamison
Booz Allen Hamilton and Meta have conducted a demonstration of Space Llama, a novel artificial intelligence-powered tech stack.
Booz Allen said Friday the Space Llama, which leverages the power of NVIDIA CUDA GPUs, is intended to enable critical onboard repairs to the International Space Station, or ISS, National Laboratory. The initiative paves the way for enhanced space exploration and operations across various disconnected environments.
Enhancing ISS Operations Through AI
Space Llama enhances operations onboard the ISS National Lab by negating the need for paper documents and reducing dependence on instructions from Earth while deployed at the edge. The energy-sufficient, satellite-like system also doesn’t require Earth-based power, communication or computation. It is intended to reduce operational costs and power requirements while enhancing capabilities to rapidly respond to anomalies or maintenance needs.
What Is Space Llama?
Space Llama is an AI system made up of Booz Allen’s AI for Edge Environments, or A2E2, modular open architecture platform and a fine-tuned version of Meta’s Llama 3.2 large language model, running on Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s Spaceborne Computer-2 and NVIDIA CUDA software.
The system provides rapid and reliable access to technical references, manuals and instructions in deep space by analyzing images and text using generative and vision AI. The flexible, open architecture enhances technical performance and enables predictive maintenance and quick repairs.
“In the power and communications-constrained environment of space, the ability to quickly assess, research and solve onboard 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,” he added.
“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, vice president and head of GenAI at Meta.
