The future is now at DRDC
April 1, 2026 – Defence Stories
Estimated read time – 00:54
Caption
A naval vessel transits Halifax Harbour with tugboat assistance as the downtown skyline rises in the background.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) may be getting more public attention now, but at Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC), the work has been underway for years. Since 2000, DRDC has been exploring how AI can be used to support defence. Today, that work is taking shape in tools and research that touch everything from document redaction to health science to vessel tracking to cyber-defence and threat detection.
One example is Shadow Maker, a secure AI tool developed to help redact sensitive information in Access to Information and Privacy requests. Other projects are looking at how AI can support a wide breadth of requirements that include trauma care in the field, distinguishing between post-traumatic stress disorder and concussion, and improving maritime intelligence through vessel tracking and synthetic data. DRDC is applying AI in practical ways across their research centers.
“AI has the capability to see patterns within data that humans can’t, which in warfare can be a game changer,” said Jessica Campbell, AI subject matter expert at DRDC’s Atlantic Research Centre.
While the technology is evolving quickly, DRDC’s focus remains the same: developing AI tools that are practical, secure and aligned with Canadian defence needs.
Find out more about DRDC’s work in AI by reading DRDC spotlight (Accessible only on the National Defence network).