GE Aerospace is showing investors what artificial intelligence looks like when applied to one of the world’s most technically demanding industries. Shares rose 1.58% Tuesday as the company revealed that researchers at its Niskayuna, New York, facility used an in-house generative AI tool to produce a preliminary hypersonic ramjet engine design, compressing a process that would have taken months into a matter of seconds. Here is what the breakthrough means for GE’s defense business and why aerospace may be one of the strongest long-term beneficiaries of AI-driven engineering.
The AI tool rapidly generates hundreds of design iterations, allowing engineers to test and refine concepts far faster than traditional processes allow. The ramjet in question uses an aircraft’s speed to compress incoming air before injecting fuel, producing powerful thrust that makes the technology well-suited for hypersonic cruise missiles. Ramjets only function at high speeds, meaning they cannot power a conventional takeoff, but their efficiency at extreme velocities makes them a priority for next-generation defense applications.
GE’s defense segment, called Defense Propulsion Technologies, is expected to generate approximately $13 billion in sales and $1.6 billion in operating profit in 2026. The company currently has around 30,000 engines in service and delivers approximately 700 per year. Jefferies projects that the figure will exceed 1,000 annual deliveries by 2028, driven by hypersonic propulsion programs and power systems for autonomous, collaborative combat aircraft.
The commercial aerospace division is the larger business, projected to produce approximately $37 billion in sales and $10 billion in operating profit. Jefferies has argued that aerospace is particularly well-positioned to benefit from AI, given its high capital intensity, specialized manufacturing requirements, and heavily regulated operating environment, all of which create barriers that make AI-driven efficiency gains more durable than in less complex industries.
GE stock has declined approximately 7% year-to-date but remains up 23% over the past 12 months. The pullback has been driven largely by higher oil prices tied to the Iran conflict, which has raised concerns about global air travel demand.
