New Navy council to tackle foreign investment risks

On the same subject

• 

  January 15, 2019 | International, C4ISR

  With China looming, intelligence community backs AI research

  By: Justin Lynch The U.S. government wants to boost its artificial intelligence capabilities or risks being left behind by the private sector and China. In the last two years, that's meant new AI initiatives from the Pentagon, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the intelligence community. Now, the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity is requesting information about research efforts on “cutting-edge machine learning techniques.” IARPA posted the formal request for information Dec. 4. The deadline for industry to submit information is Jan. 17. “Of specific interest is the respondent's knowledge of, and experience implementing, current, cutting-edge machine learning techniques,” the intelligence community's research arm said. Respondents are required to have top secret clearances to work on the project, according to the IARPA listing. In addition to its deep learning program, IARPA leaders want information about research into “future computing systems” that can self-learn. Such a move could have implications for improving government cybersecurity. “The need for real-time (or near-real-time) analysis of massive amounts of heterogeneous data in this new era of explosive data growth has dramatically broadened the application space for advanced computers,” IARPA said. “The current volume and variety of data are already beginning to exceed the ability of today's most advanced classical systems to deliver optimal solutions.” Most cyber threat detection platforms use some form of artificial intelligence to create warning indicators, according to public and private sector officials. However, the U.S. government is behind the private sector when it comes to use of AI, said James Yeager, the public sector vice president at cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike. “There is, by design, a more staggered type of approach to some of these advances in technology in the public sector, and as a result, the government is going to be behind the private sector,” Yeager said. IARPA has a “very high-risk-but-high-reward approach to solving complex problems. They take a lot of time and take a lot of resources,” said Yeager. “But If they can come out of that research project with a silver bullet, it is going to benefit everyone.” Andrew Laskow, a senior manager at Blue Prism, which provides AI products to federal government and defense agencies, said that in the U.S. government many people are “looking to AI for problems that they cannot solve.” “There is still a misunderstanding at the highest levels of what AI can and cannot do,” Laskow said. Public and private sector officials warn that AI-backed threat network indicators can overload users and create too many warnings. Michael McGeehan, head of business development at Blue Prism, described intelligent automation being broken down into the “thinking side” and the “execution side.” The artificial intelligence platform is the “thinking side” that makes decisions and is analogous to the human brain. On the other hand, robotic processing automation is the “execution side” that carries out tasks, like an arm or a leg. https://www.fifthdomain.com/dod/2019/01/12/with-china-looming-intelligence-community-backs-ai-research

• 

  August 4, 2020 | International, Aerospace

  Japan confirms single prime contractor for F-X

  by Jon Grevatt Japan's Defence Minister Taro Kono confirmed on 31 July plans to nominate a “single prime” Japanese contractor to oversee the development of the country's next-generation fighter aircraft. In comments in a media briefing in Tokyo, Kono said the prime contractor – almost certainly Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) – will be expected to act as the lead systems integrator on the project, which has been dubbed F-X. “The MoD will adopt a single-prime system. [The selected company] will be responsible for integrating systems and the engine,” said Kono in comments published by the Ministry of Defense (MoD). Kano indicated that the MoD had now commenced the process for selecting companies to be involved in the development project but did not elaborate. In the media briefing, Kono also confirmed that the MoD is currently considering developing the F-X alongside the United Kingdom and the United States. The latter is regarded as leading candidate, given its strong diplomatic, economic, strategic, and industrial ties with Japan. The F-X project is led within the MoD by a dedicated office set up in April. According to the MoD, its responsibilities include technical investigations, budget execution, information security issues, and the control of intellectual property. https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/japan-confirms-single-prime-contractor-for-f-x

• 

  May 31, 2019 | International, Aerospace

  Spanish defense contractors are itching to get a piece of FCAS

  By: Sebastian Sprenger MADRID — Spanish defense companies are chomping at the bit to get into the business of building Europe's next-generation combat aircraft, just as the government is about to formally enter the Franco-German project. While the extent of the Spanish industry participation in the Future Combat Air System program is still an open question, some of the companies at the inaugural FEINDEF defense expo in Madrid, Spain, are beginning to jockey for position. Brig Gen. Juan Pablo Sanchez de Lara, chief of the Spanish Air Force's plans division, told reporters at the expo that industrial cooperation is “essential for us.” “We are not new in the business,” he said. “Of course Spanish companies are very keen to participate.” Airbus, for example, which is already a prime contractor besides Dassault from France, is looking to bring into play its local work with the Spanish Air Force for the cockpit design of the future fighter aircraft. The Spanish air service presented an Airbus-made cockpit prototype — part futuristic lab, part test bed for additional design work — at its booth, pitching it as a contender for the FCAS program. The setup features a large, panoramic screen similar to that in the F-35, sprinkling in some traditional controls beside the pilot. Officials said the cockpit is the result of previous concept work, concluding that fusing information and commanding nearby drones, for example, are key requirements. Tests are ongoing based on operational vignettes crafted by the Air Force to see how pilots handle workload, stress and the torrent of information thrown at them during flight. When the first FCAS aircraft takes to the skies around 2040, “the scenarios will be more complex,” Ignacio de Castro Vidal, Airbus Defence and Space future capabilities program manager at the defense giant's Madrid location, predicted in an interview with Defense News. That is a reference to the expectation that warfare itself will be more complicated, but it's also an acknowledgment that the program is designed with so much networked technology that the task of flying the aircraft must be kept manageable. To increase the ease of use for pilots, the company plans to lean heavily on voice commands to operate the aircraft's systems, de Castro Vidal said. Spanish electronics specialist Indra is also eyeing work on elements of the next-gen fighter aircraft. “Indra is the second provider of avionic systems for the Eurofighter,” Pedro Barco, the company's director of platforms, wrote in a statement to Defense News. “The experience gained in this project allows us to play a key role as integrator of the system of systems for the FCAS. “In particular, we have a strong experience in electronic warfare systems, voice and data communications, and radar detection and identification systems.” Eurofighter Typhoon-maker Airbus has pitched upgraded versions of that jet as a gap filler until the new aircraft is developed and built, saying that the planned upgrades would serve as something of a sandbox to try new air warfare concepts. Spain and Germany fly that aircraft, while France has the Rafale. As for engines, ITP Aero, based north of Madrid, hopes to share development work with France's Safran and Germany's MTU. “ITP is looking forward to the next step of the program, and we want to be a part of it from the beginning,” Marta Gimeno Garcia-Andrade, director of the company's defense business unit, told Defense News. She said a key area of expertise for ITP Aero lies in low-pressure turbines and movable, “thrust-vectoring” nozzles. Several Spanish defense executives at the FEINDEF expo said expect Spain's formal integration into FCAS to take place at the Paris Air Show in mid-June. Officials in Germany, however, said earlier this week the exact sequence of extending the program's framework agreement to include Madrid was still in flux. That is because the German parliament has yet to greenlight funding for an ongoing study contract and because legal issues with the agreement text may not be fully sorted out in time. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2019/05/30/spanish-defense-contractors-are-itching-to-get-a-piece-of-fcas/