Infleqtion has secured a new $2 million U.S. Army contract to advance artificial intelligence capabilities designed to operate reliably in contested and disconnected environments, reinforcing the growing role of edge AI in modern defense systems. The development of Secured AI for Positioning at the Edge, Navigation, and Timing will be supported by an 18-month Direct-to-Phase II Small Business Innovation Research award.
The contract follows Infleqtion’s recent announcement that it plans to become a publicly listed company through a merger with Churchill Capital Corp X. It also builds on the company’s momentum after finishing first in the U.S. Army’s xTechScalable AI Challenge, where SAPIENT was selected as one of just four winners from 133 submissions. That competition served as an early proving ground for the technology, allowing Infleqtion to move quickly from concept to operational validation.
At the core of SAPIENT is Infleqtion’s Contextual Machine Learning approach, a method designed to help AI systems learn from diverse data sources over extended time horizons. First introduced publicly at NVIDIA GTC earlier this year, CML is intended to go beyond conventional models that rely on narrow or static datasets. Instead, it enables adaptive learning that accounts for changing conditions, an increasingly important capability for military operations conducted in adversarial environments.
Modern navigation at the tactical edge depends on fusing multiple streams of information, including GPS or GNSS signals, inertial navigation systems, and computer vision. In real-world conditions, those inputs may be degraded, denied, or deliberately manipulated. SAPIENT addresses this problem by combining quantum-inspired multimodal learning techniques with Boltzmann Machine-based models, allowing the system to infer reliable positioning and timing even when some signals are unavailable or compromised. The AI is designed to run on compact, power-efficient hardware suitable for deployment in constrained field environments.
The xTechScalable AI Program
The Army’s decision to issue a Direct-to-Phase II award reflects confidence in the technical feasibility demonstrated during the xTechScalable AI program, which ran from late 2023 through mid-2024. Under the new contract, Infleqtion will complete full system development and testing through October 2026, transitioning the technology toward operational readiness.
For Infleqtion, the award reinforces its positioning at the intersection of quantum technology, artificial intelligence, and high-performance computing. The company’s work leverages quantum-inspired algorithms and NVIDIA’s CUDA-Q platform to enhance how AI systems process complex, real-time data. Beyond SAPIENT, Infleqtion has already applied CML in other defense initiatives, including Navy and Army programs such as QuIRC, which focuses on radio-frequency signal processing.
As governments and enterprises alike grapple with operating AI systems closer to the edge, the SAPIENT contract highlights how context-aware, resilient intelligence is becoming a strategic priority, not only for defense, but for any mission-critical environment where data integrity cannot be assumed.
Executive Insights FAQ
What is the SAPIENT program focused on?
It aims to deliver resilient positioning, navigation, and timing data using AI at the tactical edge.
Why is edge AI critical for modern defense operations?
Edge systems must function reliably even when connectivity is limited or signals are compromised.
What differentiates Infleqtion’s Contextual Machine Learning?
It allows AI models to adapt using diverse data sources across extended timeframes.
How was the technology validated before this contract?
Through the Army’s xTechScalable AI Challenge, where Infleqtion finished first among 133 entrants.
What is the broader significance for the AI market?
It signals growing demand for context-aware, resilient AI systems beyond traditional cloud environments.
