Dutch air force reads pilots brainwaves to make tra...

What’s Happening

Alright so While pilots are flying in a VR simulation, their brainwave patterns can be fed into an AI model that assesses how challenging they are finding a task and adjusts the difficulty accordingly Technology Dutch air force reads pilots’ brainwaves to make training harder While pilots are flying in a VR simulation, their brainwave patterns can be fed into an AI model that assesses how challenging they are finding a task and adjusts the difficulty accordingly By Matthew Sparkes 3 February 2026 Facebook / Meta Twitter / X icon Linkedin Reddit Email Royal Netherlands Air Force pilots tested brain-reading technology in a simulator Alireza Boeini/Alamy Fighter pilots in training are having their brainwaves read they fly in virtual reality to measure how difficult they find tasks and ramp up the complexity if needed.

Experiments show that trainee fighter pilots prefer this adaptive system to a rigid, pre-programmed alternative, but that it doesnt necessarily improve their skills. Training pilots in simulators and virtual reality is cheaper and safer than real flights, but these teaching scenarios need to be adjusted in real time so tasks sit in the sweet spot between comfort and overload. (and honestly, same)

How the US military wants to use the worlds largest aircraft Evy van Weelden at the Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre, Amsterdam, and her colleagues used a brain-computer interface to read student pilots brainwaves via electrodes attached to the scalp.

The Details

An AI model analysed that data to determine how difficult the pilots were finding the task. We are continuously working on improving [pilot] training, and what that looks like can be different, says van Weelden.

If youre not in the field, it sounds sci-fi, I guess. But, for me, its fr normal because I just see data.

Why This Matters

Fifteen Royal Netherlands Air Force pilots went through training while the system switched between five different levels of difficulty accomplished decreasing the visibility within the simulation depending on how hard the AI model determined they were finding missions. Free to The Daily The latest on what’s new in science and why it matters each day.

Scientists and researchers are watching this development closely.

The Bottom Line

This story is still developing, and we’ll keep you updated as more info drops.

Is this a W or an L? You decide.