Defense Policy Newsletter

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May 1, 2019 | Lewis-Burke Associates LLC

IN THIS ISSUE

On the Front Lines: Air Force Reveals 2030 S&T Strategy for Future Dominance
After a yearlong study involving regional meetings across the nation with customers and stakeholders, Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson–in one of her final acts before leaving office– debuted the Air Force 2030 Science and Technology (S&T) Strategy. The strategy defines three objectives that will enable the Air Force to “dominate time, space, and complexity in future conflicts across all operating domains to project power and defend the home land” in preparation for great power competition with Russia and China.
 
The first objective – develop and deliver transformational strategic capabilities – defines five new technical capabilities that will enable the Air Force to be a global air and space power:

  1. Global Persistent Awareness
  2. Resilient Information Sharing
  3. Rapid, Effective Decision-Making
  4. Complexity, Unpredictability, and Mass
  5. Speed and Reach of Disruption and Lethality

Lewis-Burke highlighted in its detailed analysis of the President’s FY 2020 Budget Request that these areas were presented together in the Air Force request for applied research and advanced technology development (6.2 and 6.3) budget activities, with new funding included for prototyping and experimentation to advance the development of Air Force weapons systems and warfighting concepts. The S&T strategy refers to this technology maturation effort as “vanguard” programs that seek to integrate multiple programs across Air Force S&T to enable and demonstrate new warfighter concepts.  These “vanguard” programs will be conducted independently by portfolio managers working with warfighters and future force designers.  “High-risk by design, their [vanguard] goal answers specific questions and informs future decisions by including the direction of future acquisition programs and identifying gaps where more research is still needed,” according to the S&T strategy.  In further support of the strategy, many research and development programs contained in the Air Force’s proposed FY 2020 budget prioritize high-tech efforts like multi-source, multi-intelligence analytics while cutting traditional sensor and imaging fusion programs.
 
The second objective defines reforms to the management of Air Force S&T with the creation of a chief technology officer (CTO).  The CTO is charged to lead the planning of S&T, coordinate with all stakeholders and customers, and manage the Air Force enterprise to include direct oversight of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). This objective unifies the multiple voices and dispersion of efforts across the Air Force to create a cohesive effort internally and a single face to outside stakeholders.
 
The third objective is to “deepen and expand the scientific and technical enterprise.” This objective speaks to enhancing recruitment and retention of scientists and engineers to include active duty Air Force STEM personnel by expanding the Air Force’s presence through technical personnel exchanges with universities, leveraging and expanding the Army Research Laboratory’s open campus concept for the Air Force, and creating partnerships with other government agencies, universities and industry.
 
For the university community, specific initiatives of interest include:

  1. “Maintain a higher percentage of research sponsored by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research at universities in order to connect the Air Force to the broader scientific community and ensure access to the most competitive research laboratories.”
  2. “Significantly expand competition for and engagement of university-based Air Force research through competitive grants awards, including the funding of doctoral students, summer faculty research experiences, and sabbaticals at Air Force laboratories in order to connect basic scientific talent outside of the Air Force to important Air Force problems.”
  3. “Evaluate service pilots like the U.S. Army Research Laboratory’s open campus program potentially expanding engagement and formally integrating them into Air Force procedures.”
  4. “Establish visiting professor or research faculty positions for Air Force researchers in research universities.”
  5. “Provide a service to connect industry, individuals, universities, and government research centers with experts inside the Air Force science and technology enterprise. Encourage deeper dialogue between the Air Force science and technology enterprise and new connections to identify novel partnerships and potential opportunities for innovation.”
  6. “Strengthen partnerships to increase tech transition – expand constructs such as centers of excellence (COE) to capitalize on basic research successes and provide opportunities for deeper university engagement at the applied research level where the Air Force can gain technological advantage.”
  7. “Identify and support opportunities for multi-service or multi-agency funded research initiatives to create new synergies and leverage resources and technical talent.”

Given this is a strategy document and the Secretary is soon to depart, Lewis-Burke encourages clients to work with Lewis-Burke on ways to reach out to program managers and Air Force S&T leaders to offer support for strategy implementation.  Potential ideas to support implementation of the strategy include discussing COE topic areas, sabbatical opportunities, and policies that would enable an “open door” to the academic community.  Additionally, the AFOSR Director position is open to applications until May 9, 2019.
 
Sources and Additional Information:

VIEW FROM THE HILL

Space Force Faces Skepticism from Congress
Members of House and Senate Armed Services Committees (HASC/SASC) voiced bipartisan concern about the redundancy of the proposed U.S. Space Force with existing national security space programs during separate hearings in April on fiscal year (FY) 2020 budget priorities.  At an April 3rd HASC hearing, General John “Jay” Raymond, Commander of Air Force Space Command, defended the unique, essential roles of the U.S. Space Force and the Space Development Agency (SDA).  Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Global Security Kenneth Rapuano added that Space Force is a “fundamental component” to meeting U.S. national security needs.  Rapuano’s opening statement addressed concerns about maintaining U.S. superiority in space, stating that both U.S. reliance on space and adversarial international competition are at an “all-time high.”  Rapuano emphasized that the U.S. is losing its marginal advantage and continuously stated that we are not postured for the current global competition in space. 
 
Members of SASC echoed HASC members’ skepticism at an April 11th hearing on the proposal to establish a U.S. Space Force.  Senators stressed that creating a separate structure risks isolating space from the other military Services and would create more bureaucracy.  Although research was not discussed at length, Senator Martin Heinrich (D-NM) raised specific concerns about duplication of efforts related to the role of the newly-established Space Development Agency (SDA) within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (USD(R&E)).  More details regarding the SDA are provided in the article below.  Members at both hearings expressed confusion about the differentiation between U.S. Space Command and the U.S. Space Force.  General Joseph Dunford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, clarified for the Senate that U.S. Space Command would be singularly focused on integrating all space-related operations, while Space Force would oversee training, acquisition, and organization.

Congress to Army Futures Command: Proceed with Caution
Congressional leaders urged the Army to educate and include them in decisions related to its massive reorganization and establishment of Army Futures Command (AFC), particularly since it involves reducing, delaying, and eliminating 186 programs to divert funding toward its six modernization priorities.  Army leadership testified on its modernization efforts in a series of hearings last month before the House Armed Services Committee (HASC), Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) Subcommittee on Airland, and the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense (HAC-D). 
 
While appropriators and authorizers generally supported the Army’s efforts to better position themselves for great power competition, HAC-D Chairman Pete Visclosky (D-IN) and Ranking Member Ken Calvert (R-CA) noted that the Army’s previous attempts at large modernization efforts had failed and questioned the witnesses on what they were doing to mitigate risk and ensure the organization would function properly.  Rep. Visclosky and SASC Airland Subcommittee Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) both encouraged the Army to educate Congress and state delegations to build support among Members whose constituents may be impacted by the reorganization.  Members asked what the Army is doing to balance its modernization priorities for future conflicts with the current needs of warfighters and how the Army would continue to interact with small businesses and non-traditional partners to address its science and technology needs.
 
AFC, headquartered at the University of Texas in Austin, is designed to bring together warfighters, scientists, concept developers and field testers, requirements writers, and acquisition officials to significantly hasten the development of new tactics and technologies.  To pursue this goal, AFC is reorganizing multiple Army research, acquisition, and operational requirements around its six modernization priorities, in order to break down the bureaucratic barriers impeding rapid fielding of new systems for the warfighter.  In the hearings, witnesses noted that AFC seeks to be fully operational by the end of July with 500 new hires, 400 civilians and 100 military, at its Austin headquarters.  AFC is currently at about 40 percent capacity, according to Lt. Gen James Richardson, AFC’s Deputy Commander.  Richardson noted that most personnel associated with the eight cross functional teams, who are leading the efforts around the Army’s modernization priorities, would not be relocating to Austin.

Congress Announces NDAA Markup Schedule
The House and Senate Armed Services Committees (HASC/SASC) have announced their markup schedules for the fiscal year (FY) 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).  In the House of Representatives, HASC scheduled its subcommittee markups for June 4-5, 2019 and its full committee markup for June 12, 2019.  Chairman Adam Smith (D-WA) anticipates full House consideration of the FY 2020 NDAA to take place in July 2019.
 
SASC scheduled its subcommittee markups for the week of May 20, 2019, most of which are closed to the public.  The full committee markup is scheduled for May 22-23, which is also closed and classified at the Secret level.  The House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee (HAC-D) has scheduled its defense appropriations bill markup for May 15, 2019.
 
Sources and Additional Information:

The SASC markup schedule can be found at https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/hearings/19-05-22-schedule-for-armed-services-full-committee-markup-of-the-national-defense-authorization-act-for-fiscal-year-2020.

NATIONAL SECURITY NEWS

Space Development Agency Director Outlines Plans for New LEO Space Architecture
The Department of Defense’s (DOD) new Space Development Agency (SDA) has announced the broad contours of its proposed communications and transport network in low-Earth orbit (LEO).  SDA Director Fred Kennedy, who unveiled the concept at the 35th annual Space Symposium in early April in Colorado Springs, asserted that development of this new network would be the main priority for the nascent SDA and will address eight key priorities identified in a recent DOD report on national security space:

  1. “Persistent global surveillance for advanced missile targeting;
  2. Indications, warning, targeting, and tracking for defense against advanced missile threats;
  3. Alternative positioning, navigating, and timing (PNT) for a GPS-denied environment;
  4. Global and near-real time space situational awareness;
  5. Development of deterrent capability;
  6. Responsive, resilient, common ground-based space support infrastructure (e.g., ground stations and launch capability);
  7. Cross-domain, networked, node-independent battle management command, control, and communications (BMC3), including nuclear command, control, and communications (NC3); and 
  8. Highly-scaled, low-latency, persistent, artificial intelligence-enabled global surveillance.”

Kennedy noted that the new architecture would borrow significantly from innovations already pioneered by the commercial sector.  This position aligns with those articulated by high-level DOD officials, who noted that SDA’s primary emphasis would center on systems and architectures for space operations rather than the development of new technologies, at a recent Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing.  Kennedy expanded on this by outlining SDA’s intent to build resilience into this new system by working with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and commercial partners to manufacture “commodities which we can update and replace or upgrade on short order.” 

Not all current DOD officials are supportive of the plan.  Outgoing Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson was particularly critical of what she characterized as a “one size fits all” approach that is an insufficient alternative to more complex architectures.  A more detailed plan will be presented to DOD leadership by the end of fiscal year (FY) 2019 with initial deployments planned for 2022. 

Source and Additional Information:

Defense Innovation Board Solicits Public Input on DOD Principles for Ethical AI
In an effort to increase transparency and build public trust, the Defense Innovation Board (DIB) held a public listening session on April 25th in Stanford, CA, to obtain feedback on DIB’s efforts to create principles for ethical and responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) at the Department of Defense (DOD).  DIB, chaired by Alphabet Inc.’s former executive chairman Eric Schmidt, is DOD’s advisory committee tasked with considering how to improve the internal operations and culture of the Department.  DIB was tasked by DOD in July 2018 to consult the public in developing recommendations for AI Principles for Defense.  This effort follows public and industry concerns about DOD’s use of AI.  Most notably, this includes reports of Google ending its contract with the Pentagon to work on Project Maven, a DOD program to develop AI for analyzing images from drones, after employees protested that their work would be used to support lethal military operations.
 
During the listening session, the Board said it would not shy away from hearing from AI skeptics, DOD critics, and non-traditional DOD partners as it wants to engage all stakeholders to build public trust in DOD’s use of AI.  Chuck Allen, DOD’s Deputy General Counsel for International Affairs, discussed the Department’s strong commitment to ethics and legality across all DOD programs.  He noted that DOD’s AI Strategy, released in 2018, focuses on leading the way in military ethics and compliance with the laws of war, known as International Humanitarian Law.  Allen noted that AI, if used responsibly, can provide better situational awareness to make more accurate decisions and prevent collateral damage.  DOD is developing AI support for first responders and humanitarian operations, he said.  However, he acknowledged DOD’s awareness that if AI is not used responsibly, it can lead to unintended engagements that may cause civilian casualties and collateral damage.  For this reason, DOD recognizes the need to embrace a diversity of ideas when developing AI.
 
Attendees included several academic AI researchers, civil society groups, and former members of the military.  While attendees’ views on AI varied, many expressed concerns over a number of technical issues such as keeping humans in the decision-making loop for AI systems, preventing warfighters’ overreliance on AI in decision making, preventing the manipulation of data to disrupt AI systems (known as adversarial AI), and ensuring that AI systems explained their decisions in a transparent matter. 
 
DIB will continue to collect written public comments until September 30, 2019. Those interested in submitting comments may do so on the public listening session’s webpage, linked above, or via email at osd.innovation@mail.mil.

OUSD(R&E) Launches New Website
The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD(R&E)) launched a new public website, https://www.cto.mil.  Dr. Lisa Porter, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for R&E, stated that the website’s goal is to engage with the broader research and development community to bring “new capabilities and technology” to the warfighter.  The website launch follows the April 25th DOD Lab Day, which showcased innovative R&D in Department labs, warfare centers, and engineering centers.

President Trump Announces Military Nominations
Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan announced on April 9th that President Trump made the following General Officer nominations:

  • Army Gen. Mark A. Milley for appointment to the rank of general, and assignment as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, Washington, District of Columbia.  
  • Air Force Gen. John E. Hyten for appointment to the rank of general, and assignment as vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, Washington, District of Columbia. 
  • Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Eric M. Smith for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general, and assignment as deputy commandant for Combat Development and Integration, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps; and commanding general, Marine Corps Combat Development Command.  
  • Air Force Maj. Gen. Eric T. Fick for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general, and assignment as director, Joint Strike Fighter Program, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Arlington, Virginia.
  • Air Force Maj. Gen. Marc H. Sasseville for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general, and assignment as commander, Continental U.S. North American Aerospace Defense Command Region; and commander, First Air Force (Air Forces Northern), Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.  

An additional 23 nominations for the rank of major general were announced on April 3rd.

Sources and Additional Information:

Defense Personnel Changes
Dr. Justin Sanchez, Director of the Biological Technologies Office (BTO) at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), is joining Battelle as a technical fellow.  Sanchez will be the company’s second fellow and joining Dr. Amy Heintz, who is an expert in advanced materials.  Battelle’s technical fellows lead the company’s technical investment strategies across industry, government, and academia.  Dr. Brad Ringeisen, the Deputy Director of DARPA BTO, is serving as Acting Director.

Dr. Alexander Titus, who handled defense and national security matters at McKinsey & Company, was named Assistant Director of Defense Research & Engineering (R&E) for Biotechnology at the Department of Defense (DOD).  As Assistant Director, Titus leads all R&E efforts within the biotechnology portfolio, including DOD’s modernization efforts and innovation strategy.

Dr. Matthew Daniels, advisor in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and the office of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator, was named the new Technical Director of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in the office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (USD(R&E)).  In this new role, Daniels will develop a Department-wide AI/ML strategy.

Mr. Brett Goldstein, advisor to the Navy on cybersecurity and former Chief Data Officer and Chief Information Officer for the City of Chicago, will be the new Director of the Defense Digital Service (DDS).  Goldstein will leave his tech investment firm, Ekistic Ventures, to take on the role.  Goldstein is replacing DDS Director Chris Lynch, who led the launch of the “hacking contests” across the Services, which led to the discovery of thousands of vulnerabilities in DOD websites.  DDS is known for its commitment to solving digital issues in the DOD, including fixing issues with the JEDI cloud contract and the Defense Travel System (DTS). 

Dr. Barton Halpern, former Picatinny Arsenal scientist, will be the new director of the Army Research Office (ARO).  Halpern will oversee ARO’s annual budget of $450 million and lead ARO’s development and discovery of Army defense technologies and capabilities.  Halpern was also named a member of the Senior Executive Service.  At Picatinny, Halpern served as a portfolio manager for science and technology (S&T).

FUNDING AND ENGAGEMENT OPPORTUNITIES

AFOSR Releases BAA for Research Interests
The Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for research interests in two broad areas: Engineering and Information Sciences (RTA) and Physical and Biological Sciences (RTB).  The announcement remains open until superseded and proposals are reviewed on a rolling basis, although some specific topics may recommend specific dates.  Of note, the solicitation lists its international offices to include the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP).  The solicitation also states that AFOSR may award commercial grants to for-profit organizations.  Additionally, there may be an opportunity for short-term efforts called “Sprints,” which are defined as an opportunity to showcase basic research impact in performing grant-relevant research and development activities within the context of the Department of Defense (DOD) or sub-component experiments and initiatives at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) or other DOD facilities.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “FA9550-19-S-0003” on www.grants.gov.
 
ARO Releases BAA for Development of Quantum Algorithms
The Army Research Office (ARO) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for the development of quantum algorithms.  The solicitation seeks proposals that will develop new quantum computing algorithms for “hard computational problems, develop insights into the power of quantum computation, and consider issues of quantum complexity and computability.”  ARO anticipates multiple three-year awards, and proposals are expected to request up to a total of $750,000 over the three-year period.  White papers, which are not required but strongly encouraged, are due on June 5, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET and proposals are due on August 1, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “W911NF-19-S-0010” on www.grants.gov. 

ARO Releases BAA for Trapped Ion Quantum Computing Systems
The Army Research Office (ARO) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for Trapped Ion Qubits to address challenges associated with implementing high-fidelity and high-stability gates with trapped ion systems.  The BAA seeks to reduce noise levels, explore novel quantum information, and develop critical supporting technology for specific ion systems.  Proposals should address one of the three BAA goals:

  1. Highly stable high fidelity trapped ion systems
  2. Novel encoding and entanglement generation schemes
  3. Key supporting technology to enable highly stable high fidelity trapped ion systems

ARO anticipates multiple three-year awards, and proposals are expected to request less than $1.5 million per year for goals 1 and 2 and less than $500,000 per year for goal 3.  White papers are due on June 11, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET, and full proposals are due on August 16, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “W911NF-19-S-0011” on www.grants.gov. 

AFRL Seeks Research on Robust and Efficient Computing Architectures, Algorithms, and Applications for Embedded Deep Learning
The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) released a funding opportunity for “Robust and Efficient Computing Architectures, Algorithms, and Applications for Embedded Deep Learning.”  AFRL seeks to achieve significantly reduced size, weight, and power consumption (SWaP) for deployable artificial intelligence and machine learning embedded computing capabilities for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) applications and SWaP-constrained aircraft.  Of particular interest are advanced computing architectures, algorithms, and brain-inspired processing called neuromorphic computing.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “FA875019S7007” at www.fbo.gov.

IARPA Announces Proposers Day for Space-Based Machine Automated Recognition Technique (SMART) Program
The Intelligence Advance Research Projects Activity (IARPA) announced it will host a proposers day on May 29, 2019 in Washington, DC in anticipation of its new broad agency announcement (BAA) for the Space-Based Machine Automated Recognition Technique (SMART) Program.  The SMART program seeks to develop tools for “broad-area search (BAS) over diverse environments to detect construction and other anthropogenic activities using time-series spectral imagery.”  The SMART program relies on spatial information as well as multi-spectral and multi-temporal capabilities.  Attendees must register by close of business on May 22, 2019 on this site.  The full proposers day announcement and draft BAA can be found under solicitation number “IARPA-BAA-19-04” on www.fbo.gov.

DHS CISA/S&T Solicits Secure and Resilient Mobile Network Infrastructure (SRMNI)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) jointly published a five-year broad agency announcement (BAA) looking to develop new mobile communications security standards.  The solicitation would establish a research and development (R&D) project for a Secure and Resilient Mobile Network Infrastructure (SRMNI).  The project would investigate emerging and current challenges that slow down the federal adoption of mobile communications technologies, including risks associated with 5G innovation.  CISA and S&T will be holding a joint SRMNI Industry Day on May 16, 2019 to introduce the solicitation to mobile security leaders and experts.  The solicitation can be found under solicitation number “70RSAT19RB00000001” on www.fbo.gov.  

DARPA Announces Proposers Day for GEO Robotic Servicing Program
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) plans to host a proposers day on May 22, 2019 at the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) in Washington, DC for its Robotic Servicing of Geosynchronous Satellites (RSGS) program.  The RSGS program’s goal is to increase the resilience of U.S. space assets through building robots that can “operate in orbit to support satellites and other space-based infrastructure.”  The proposers day will provide an overview of the program, and registration for the RSGS proposers day ends on May 6, 2019 at 12:00 PM ET.  Attendance is limited to three per organization.  More information on how to register can be found in the full solicitation under solicitation number “DARPA-SN-19-49” on www.fbo.gov.

DARPA Announces Second ERI Summit 
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced its second annual Electronics Resurgence Initiative (ERI) Summit, which will be held in Detroit, Michigan on July 15-17, 2019.  ERI is DARPA’s five-year investment to improve electronics performance through collaboration among industry, university researchers, and the defense industrial base.  The 2019 Summit presentations will highlight the current achievements and collaborations of ERI programs, especially for semiconductor designers, manufacturers, and the electronics user base.  Registration is required and will close on June 24, 2019, or until the full capacity of 900 attendees is reached.  More information can be found here.
 
DARPA BTO Releases Office-wide BAA
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Biological Technologies Office (BTO) released an office-wide broad agency announcement (BAA) on April 23 for research ideas for new topics not already covered by current BTO programs or solicitations.  BTO’s mission is to conduct research in the cross-section of biology, engineering, computer science, mathematics, and the physical sciences, which includes breakthrough research in medicine, human-machine interfaces, environmental readiness and capabilities, and other research areas.  BTO anticipates making multiple awards, and proposal abstracts and full proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis until April 23, 2020 at 4:00 PM ET.  More information, including eligibility and submission information, can be found under solicitation number “HR001119S0048” on www.grants.gov. 

DARPA DSO Releases Opportunity on Teaching AI to Leverage Overlooked Residuals (TAILOR)
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) released a solicitation on Teaching AI to Leverage Overlooked Residuals (TAILOR) under its Artificial Intelligence Exploration (AIE) program.  Under this opportunity, DARPA seeks to explore how AI systems can incorporate contextual reasoning and make counterfactual predictions, in order to help humans think through complex issues such as human performance optimization.  DARPA anticipates funding awards of up to $1 million but does not specify the number of proposals it will fund.  Proposals should be submitted through http://baa.darpa.mil no later than May 28, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET.  TAILOR is one of a series of opportunities that DARPA has released under the AIE program, a key facet of DARPA’s effort to ensure that the U.S. maintains a technological advantage in artificial intelligence (AI) research, development, and innovation.  More information on the TAILOR opportunity can be found under solicitation number “DARPA-PA-18-02-07” on www.fbo.gov.

DARPA I2O Releases BAA for ASIST Program
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Information Innovation Office (I2O) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for its Artificial Social Intelligence for Successful Teams (ASIST) program.  The ASIST program will “develop foundational AI theory and systems that demonstrate the basic machine social skills needed to infer the goals and situational knowledge of human partners, predict what they will need, and offer context aware actions in order to perform as adaptable and resilient AI teammates.”  Therefore, research proposals should focus on machine social intelligence in a teaming context.  The ASIST program includes three technical areas (TAs):

  • TA1: AI Agent Architectures
  • TA2: Cognitive Modeling of Individuals and Teams
  • TA3: Environment and Evaluation

DARPA anticipates making four to six awards for TA1, multiple smaller awards for TA2, and one award for TA3.  Proposals are due on May 17, 2019 at 12:00 PM ET.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “HR001119S0034” on www.grants.gov.

DARPA MTO Releases BAA for AISS Program
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Microsystems Technology Office (MTO) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for its Automatic Implementation of Secure Silicon (AISS) program.  The AISS program seeks to develop a “novel design flow for digital integrated circuits” to protect advanced chips from attacks.  The program’s two specific goals are the development of 1) automatic generation of on-chip security subsystems and 2) automatic generation of processor systems or platforms.  The AISS program also emphasizes the importance of security and design economics in Power, Area, Speed, and Security (PASS).  Full proposals are due on May 20, 2019.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “HR001119S0044” on www.grants.gov.

DARPA DSO Releases BAA for ONISQ Program
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for its Optimization with Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum devices (ONISQ) program.  The ONISQ program seeks to establish that Quantum Information Processing (QIP) using Noisy Intermediate-Scale Quantum (NISQ) devices has a “quantitative advantage” for solving combinatorial optimization problems.  The BAA states a particular interest in quantum heuristics for low-depth quantum circuits in addition to its interest in hybrid optimization approaches.  DARPA anticipates making multiple awards for a total of $33 million.  Full proposals are due on June 10, 2019 at 4:00 PM ET.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “HR001119S0052” on www.grants.gov.

MForesight Announces Fourth National Manufacturing Summit
The Alliance for Manufacturing Foresight (MForesight) announced that its fourth annual summit will take place on June 18, 2019 in Washington, DC.  MForesight is a national consortium that focuses on advanced manufacturing technologies to strengthen U.S. manufacturing competitiveness.  This year’s summit theme is “Restoring the U.S. Innovation Ecosystem,” which will focus on promoting American leadership in advanced manufacturing domestically.  MForesight plans to release its summit agenda and registration in the next few weeks, which can be found on its website.

MDA Releases BAA for Applied Research and Advanced Technology Development Services
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) released a broad agency announcement (BAA) for Advanced Technology Innovation (ATI) seeking white papers for ballistic missile defense research and development (R&D).  MDA’s Ballistic Missile Defense focuses on advanced research technology development, including sensors, kinetic energy systems, directed energy systems, battle management, and command control elements to protect the U.S. and its allies from ballistic missile threats.  The BAA is seeking white papers in eleven topic areas (listed in the full solicitation), which include radar and radio frequency, directed energy systems, computer science, mathematics, materials, modeling and simulation, AI related to machine learning, and other important research areas for MDA.  The solicitation is open to applicants from private industry, qualified accredited domestic educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations.  White papers may be submitted until April 1, 2021.  The full solicitation can be found under solicitation number “HQ0147-19-S-0002” on www.fbo.gov.

WHAT WE’RE READING

Solving One of the Hardest Problems of Military AI: Trust
DefenseOne reports on the emergence of trust in artificial intelligence (AI) issues as new technologies emerge.  The article cites the “trust gap” between humans and machine learning (ML), which powers AI, and suggests that human-machine trust issues can be addressed through technical improvements and building a better human-machine interface.  Read more here.

Current AI Projects at DHS
Emerj reports on how the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has integrated AI into its operations.  Currently, DHS uses artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technology in border security, emergency response, and prevention of domestic terrorism. The article cites the agency’s participation in the Silicon Valley Innovations Program (SVIP), which helps DHS update and sophisticate its technology.  Read more here.

Government Blockchain Spending to Increase Greatly by 2022
Nextgov reports that the federal government’s spending on blockchain will grow to $123.5 million by 2022, which is a nearly $113 million increase since 2017.  Blockchain is expected to be a go-to solution for asset management, identity management, and smart contracts within the federal government.  Blockchain will also likely become used as a “reference point” in future trade legislation.  Read more here.

The Army Is Getting Driverless Vehicles Ahead of the Public
Observer reports that the Pentagon has allocated an additional $3.7 billion for research in unmanned and autonomous technologies.  The Army plans to use autonomous combat trucks to avoid accidental casualties caused by driving.  Dr. Michael D. Griffin, the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, has predicted that the Army will have self-driving cars before the public.  Read more here.

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