3 février 2020 | International, C4ISR

Pentagon’s top artificial intelligence official to retire

By: Mike Gruss and Jeff Martin

The Pentagon plans to announce Jan. 31 that Lt. Gen. Jack Shanahan, the Department of Defense's top artificial intelligence official, will retire from the Air Force this summer, C4ISRNET has learned.

Shanahan has served as the first director of the Pentagon's Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, an effort to accelerate the Pentagon's adoption and integration of AI at scale, since December 2018.

Lt. Cmdr. Arlo Abrahamson, a spokesman for the center, confirmed the retirement in a Jan. 30 email and said a search for the next director is underway.

Shanahan previously oversaw the Pentagon's algorithmic warfare cross-functional team, better known as Project Maven, a pathfinder effort to apply AI and machine learning in analyzing full-motion video.

Pentagon leaders created the JAIC after noting nearly 600 projects and programs across the department had come to touch on artificial intelligence in some way. Officials wanted a central hub to help facilitate progress. In late 2018, Dana Deasy, the Defense Department's chief information officer, appointed Shanahan to lead the new center.

During his tenure, Shanahan served as a voice of reason on how artificial intelligence could be used by the military and avoided the often popular science fiction comparisons that accompany discussions of AI. In an interview with C4ISRNET last year, Shanahan said the center has focused on using artificial intelligence for predictive maintenance efforts and to improve humanitarian relief. He also advocated for a greater understanding of the subject.

“On one side of the emerging tech equation, we need far more national security professionals who understand what this technology can do or, equally important, what it cannot do,” Shanahan said during a talk at the Naval War College in December. “On the other side of the equation, we desperately need more people who grasp the societal implications of new technology, who are capable of looking at this new data-driven world through geopolitical, international relations, humanitarian and even philosophical lenses,” he said.

Lawmakers approved $183 million for the center in the fiscal year 2020 budget.

Shanahan also has been a vocal proponent for improving the department's cloud capabilities and specifically the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI) contract, which is expected to provide the infrastructure the Pentagon needs to boost artificial intelligence.

https://www.c4isrnet.com/artificial-intelligence/2020/01/31/pentagons-top-artificial-intelligence-official-to-retire/

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15 mars 2019 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité, Autre défense

UK Defence Secretary sets out ambitious Defence Prosperity Programme
Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has reaffirmed his commitment to growing Defence's contribution to UK economic growth, setting out a new package of measures to drive productivity and innovation in the sector. In July 2018, Philip Dunne MP published a review of the economic value of Defence, highlighting the crucial role the sector plays in supporting over 260,000 jobs and contributing on average £7bn in exports each year. The Ministry of Defence invested £18.9bn with UK industry in 2017/18, equating to £290 per resident, which supported 115,000 jobs across the country. Ahead of today's Prosperity Conference, bringing together leading defence industry partners in the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry, the Defence Secretary has announced: £500k investment from the Defence Innovation Fund for a pilot programme with industry to further strengthen the international competitiveness and productivity of the UK defence sector. A joint programme supported by Invest Northern Ireland and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to pilot a Defence Technology Exploitation Programme (DTEP) in Northern Ireland, worth an expected £1.2m in Research and Development investment. A commitment to working with the Welsh Government on the potential for an Advanced Manufacturing Research Institute alongside the Defence Electronics and Components Agency (DECA) in North Wales to cement the region as a centre of excellence for innovation. Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said: These announcements demonstrate the progress we are making in our commitment to boost Defence's contribution to national prosperity. Our world-class defence sector operates at the very forefront of innovation, supporting 260,000 jobs and increasing economic growth throughout the UK. The MOD is playing a central role in the Government's Modern Industrial Strategy and prosperity agenda, ensuring the UK remains a world-leader in defence technology in the years to come. Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said: The Ministry of Defence plays a crucial role in Wales and supports thousands of jobs across the country. It is Welsh expertise which ensures the Armed Forces are equipped with the latest technology, and DECA Sealand and companies like AerFin are proving Wales' credentials as a global leader in aviation technology. The UK Government is committed to ensuring this trend continues, and through the Industrial Strategy aims to invest in key industries and infrastructure in Wales to boost productivity and support businesses in creating well-paid jobs. In recognition of the need to improve the quality of data on the UK defence sector available to decision-makers by stimulating greater academic involvement in the area, the Defence Secretary also announced: The proposal to create a Joint Economic Data Hub with industry, sitting within the UK Defence Solution Centre and overseen by a new independent advisory panel, to collect and aggregate economic data from across the defence sector. A commitment to sponsor an international Defence Economics Conference at Kings College London later this year, as the first of a series of events to develop understanding of the significant economic value of Defence. Earl Howe outlined these proposals in more detail at the Defence Prosperity Conference today, before taking part in a panel event with senior industry and government officials. The initiatives build on the Philip Dunne report commissioned by the Defence Secretary, entitled ‘Growing the Contribution of Defence to UK Prosperity', which has been widely welcomed by Government and Industry. Full article: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/defence-secretary-sets-out-ambitious-defence-prosperity-programme--2
29 octobre 2020 | International, C4ISR, Sécurité, Autre défense

ITAR : Comment les Etats-Unis jouent contre l'autonomie stratégique française et européenne
Michel Cabirol Les Etats-Unis tentent d'entraver des initiatives françaises et européennes en vue de desserrer le nœud coulant de la réglementation extraterritoriale américaine ITAR. Les Etats-Unis ne desserrent jamais leur leadership mondial. C'est notamment le cas sur le plan technologique. Ainsi, Washington cherche à maintenir la France et l'Europe sous son emprise technologique afin de contrôler, voire de limiter, les exportation de systèmes d'armes de leurs alliés européens, via notamment la réglementation extraterritoriale ITAR (International traffics in arms regulation). Dans une réponse adressée au député LR François Cornut-Gentille dans le cadre du projet de loi de finances 2021 et rendue publique, le ministère des Armées fait explicitement mention d'entraves de la part des Etats-Unis pour contrecarrer des initiatives européennes pour développer des filières européennes de composants critiques permettant de disposer d'un premier niveau d'autonomie. "Naturellement les États-Unis cherchent à les entraver et misent sur la frilosité de certains États où leur influence est forte", explique le... https://www.latribune.fr/entreprises-finance/industrie/aeronautique-defense/itar-comment-les-etats-unis-jouent-contre-l-autonomie-strategique-francaise-et-europe
6 décembre 2019 | International, Aérospatial

Safran and MTU agree on way ahead for next-gen fighter aircraft engine
By: Christina Mackenzie PARIS — A 50-50 joint venture between France's Safran and Germany's MTU will be incorporated by the end of 2021 to manage the development and production of an engine that will power the Next Generation Fighter, a key segment of Europe's Future Combat Air System program, the companies announced this week. Safran Aircraft Engines will be the prime contractor, taking the lead in engine design and integration, while MTU Aero Engines, as the main partner for the first phase of research and technology, will take the lead in engine services. The industrial agreement is based on the principles that were set out in a letter of intent signed between the two companies last February. "This agreement is a major step forward, which reflects Safran Aircraft Engines and MTU Aero Engines' willingness to ensure a strong and effective management of the program relying on a balanced partnership and clear accountabilities,” Olivier Andriès, CEO of Safran Aircraft Engines, and Michael Schreyögg, chief program officer of MTU Aero Engines, were quoted as saying in a joint statement. The agreement lifts the last impediments that were standing in the way of contracts being signed by the French, German and Spanish governments; now companies can get the Future Combat Air System program underway. Joël Barre, the director of France's procurement agency, the DGA, said on Oct. 2 that appointing Safran as prime contractor on the engine program with MTU Aero Engines as principal industrial partner was one of the two elements that remained before launching work on a technology demonstrator for the New Generation Fighter. The other element is organizing the entry of Spain into the program. Although Spain signed up for the program during the Paris Air Show last June, the industrial aspect of its participation has not been settled. https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2019/12/05/safran-and-mtu-agree-on-way-ahead-for-next-gen-fighter-aircraft-engine

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