Published on Forbes by Luis E. Romero Mar 17, 2025, 12:52pm EDT

Every minute of every day, our cars and phones look to the heavens for guidance. But what if they could navigate by listening to the earth instead? Austin-based startup Tern AI has demonstrated a groundbreaking positioning system that can navigate without satellites—potentially transforming how we move through the world while addressing critical national security concerns.

When The Sky Becomes a Target

We’ve built our modern world on a surprisingly fragile foundation. From aviation and road networks to emergency services and power grids, countless critical systems depend entirely on Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites orbiting 12,000 miles above us.

“We’ve got an increased threat from foreign adversaries who have shown capabilities to jam, to destroy, to spoof the signals of GPS, which is scary,” said Shaun Moore, CEO and co-founder of Tern AI. “The economic impact in the United States, if that were to happen, would be catastrophic.”

These concerns aren’t theoretical. Just last month, House Intelligence Committee leaders warned of “a serious national security threat” involving Russian capabilities to target satellites, including GPS systems. When navigation systems go dark, everything from food deliveries to military operations grinds to a halt.

But what if we could navigate without ever looking up?

Finding Your Way Without Stars

Tern AI’s solution sounds almost impossibly simple: use artificial intelligence to determine location solely from vehicle sensor data and map information—no satellite connection required.

The company’s Independently Derived Positioning System (IDPS™) works by running proprietary AI on third-party base maps and analyzing data from existing sensors in vehicles and smartphones—the accelerometers, gyroscopes, and other motion sensors already built into modern devices. By combining this data with sophisticated maps, Tern’s AI can pinpoint location with remarkable accuracy.

“We can do GPS’s job without having to call to space and say, ‘Where am I?’“ explains Moore.

At SXSW last week, Tern demonstrated that it could “derive a position from nothing” during a real-world drive through Austin. Starting with just a cached map and vehicle sensor data, the system successfully tracked the car’s movements—even outperforming GPS in downtown areas with tall buildings that typically cause conventional systems to falter.

The technology works in places GPS can’t reach: parking garages, tunnels, mountain valleys. And unlike GPS, it can’t be jammed or spoofed by adversaries.

From Concept to Reality

Skepticism about alternatives to GPS is natural—we’ve relied on this technology for decades. But Tern AI is rapidly moving from concept to commercial reality.

After emerging from stealth in February 2024, Tern secured $4.4 million in seed funding from Scout Ventures, Shadow Capital, Bravo Victor VC, and Veteran Fund. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has taken notice, awarding Tern AI a contract after evaluating their technology alongside nine other companies from around the world. Diana Furchtgott-Roth, former deputy assistant secretary for Research and Technology at the DOT, called Tern’s approach “a low-cost answer to a problem that the [DOT] has been working on for decades.”

Unlike other GPS alternatives such as low Earth orbit satellites or terrestrial beacons, Tern’s solution requires no expensive new infrastructure—just a software download to compatible vehicles or smartphones.

As geopolitical tensions rise and threats to satellite infrastructure grow more pronounced, Tern AI’s earth-bound navigation system may soon prove that sometimes, the best way to move forward is to keep your feet—and your technology—firmly on the ground.

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