A Canadian artificial intelligence startup is using Pittsburgh International Airport as a proving ground for technology designed to automatically detect foreign object debris during routine airfield inspections. The trial represents some of the most advanced public testing of AI FOD detection at a major commercial hub in North America.
Illuminex AI began testing its FOD-AI system at Pittsburgh International (PIT) in April through the airport’s xBridge innovation program, according to Blue Sky News, the Allegheny County Airport Authority‘s news service. Testing is expected to continue through late September or early October 2026.
How the AI FOD Detection System Works
The FOD-AI system mounts to an existing airport inspection vehicle — no specialized equipment required. A camera and sensor on the front bumper feed data to an embedded Nvidia computing unit inside the vehicle. A tablet on the center console gives inspectors a live airfield map with flagged detections.
The system uses computer vision and machine learning to automatically detect, geo-locate, and log debris in real time, triggering alerts the inspector can review on-screen. The operational impact on staff is minimal. “All that is required of the user is to turn on the system and press the start and stop buttons before and after routine inspections,” according to Blue Sky News.
All detections sync automatically to Illuminex’s InspectEx Cloud platform for later review, trend analysis, and data-driven maintenance planning.
Inside the xBridge Partnership
The xBridge program, run by the Allegheny County Airport Authority, is designed to test new technologies alongside early-stage companies. For Illuminex AI, that means access to a real operational environment rather than a controlled lab.
“By giving us a true operational environment to test and refine the system alongside their experienced Operations Team, PIT is helping ensure our solution meaningfully assists inspectors and seamlessly integrates into existing operational processes,” said Brian Freed, CEO of Illuminex AI.
PIT operations staff use the system at least twice a week during regular airfield inspections and provide feedback to guide development. For the airport, the trial is an evaluation — not a commitment.
“Testing this technology helps our Operations Team assess whether it can complement our existing inspection procedures by identifying debris faster and allowing us to respond before it becomes a hazard,” said Bill Calhoon, airport duty manager at the Allegheny County Airport Authority.
AI FOD Detection Across a Growing Trial Network
Pittsburgh is not the only site in the trial. According to Blue Sky News, FOD-AI is concurrently deployed at Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ), Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (SAV), Columbus Municipal Airport (CLU), Morristown Municipal Airport (MMU), and two unnamed top-10 global hubs. Illuminex says the multi-airport deployment is designed to validate performance across diverse environmental conditions.
That footprint places FOD-AI among a growing number of AI airfield tools working toward operational validation. The U.S. Air Force’s AFWERX program has backed a parallel effort to build AI-ready datasets for airfield FOD detection — a project FODNews covered in its report on the SAFE Pro AFWERX SBIR airfield FOD detection initiative. Both programs face the same core challenge: training machine-vision systems to reliably flag debris across variable lighting, surface conditions, and object types.
The stakes are significant. The FAA estimates that FOD costs the global aviation industry roughly $4 billion annually in damage and operational disruption — a figure cited in the PIT announcement and consistent with FAA guidance in Advisory Circular 150/5210-24 on airport FOD management.
Illuminex frames FOD-AI as an augmentation layer rather than a replacement for human inspectors. The system handles detection and logging while inspectors focus on response and remediation. The PIT trial — which contrasts with more labor-intensive approaches such as traditional runway FOD walks — is designed to determine whether that model holds under real-world operating conditions.
Results from the trial will inform further development of the InspectEx platform. Illuminex says the platform is also expanding into pavement maintenance monitoring, winter operations, and perimeter security applications.
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