In case you haven’t noticed, there’s been a bit of a shakeup in the DoD innovation world in the past week. The head of DIU is out, critical technology areas are changing, the Navy is overhauling how it develops and adopts new tech, and JCIDS is dead. Oh yeah, and then there’s the whole Defense […]
Forget drones, aviation autonomy might just be the hottest sector in defense tech these days. (We kid—kind of.) On Tuesday, automation company Reliable Robotics won a $17.4M AFWERX contract to turn the Cessna 208B Caravan into a remotely piloted cargo hauler for the Air Force. For a startup founded by a pair of SpaceX alums […]
The defense world is (understandably) enthralled by innovation and new tech, but the older, less exciting stuff is just as important in modern warfighting—especially the 155mm artillery shell. The problem is that the US has struggled to produce them, and munition stocks have become a hot topic (just ask Bridge Colby). On Wednesday, the Army […]
You can buy pretty much anything on Amazon, but military equipment is so far off-limits. Luckily for all of the shopaholic soldiers out there, the US Army is taking a page out of Amazon’s book and building Prime for the primes (and startups). Earlier this month, the Army announced it’s planning to roll out an […]
Another day, another big shakeup at the Pentagon. On Monday, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin unexpectedly announced his retirement halfway into his four-year term. The Air Force said Allvin—the service’s highest-ranking uniformed officer—will continue serving until his successor is confirmed to minimize disruption. Never a dull moment, huh? Allvin is the latest […]
Well, solid rocket motors (SRMs) are certainly having a moment. Yesterday afternoon, SRM production startup X-Bow Systems announced a $13.9M joint investment with the US Army to “design, prototype, and test an advanced manufactured SRM for the standard-range Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS),” which is produced by Lockheed Martin. The joint investment is facilitated […]
It’s training season, baby. This morning, augmented reality flight training company Red 6 announced that they’ve scored a contract with the US Air Force to integrate their ATARS (Airborne Tactical Augmented Reality System) into the F-16 Fighting Falcon. That means that fighter jet pilots will now be able to simulate real-world engagements—like dogfights—using augmented reality […]
Well, we’re back to remind you that maritime autonomy is all the rage. This morning, Saildrone announced in an exclusive release to Tectonic that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has signed a blanket purchase agreement (BPA) with a cap of $37M to buy the company’s unmanned vessels in support of the US Coast Guard […]
There’s no shortage of companies promising to automate aviation, but Beacon AI just wants to make the human pilots better. And so far, the DoD is loving it. On Tuesday, the aviation decision-making startup announced it won its twelfth contract, this time a Direct-to-Phase II SBIR with the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). Beacon, […]
As if one new military branch wasn’t enough—looking at you, Space Force—Trump may soon get a shot at another: Cyber Force. And the think tanks are already on the case. This week, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) announced they’re launching a new commission next […]
