Economic Development Administration, DIU Partner to Expand Tech Hubs Program
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Economic Development Administration, DIU Partner to Expand Tech Hubs Program

A memorandum of understanding has been signed between the Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration and the Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit.

The aim of the MOU is to integrate the Tech Hubs Program of the EDA — which seeks to invest in U.S. regions that could become globally competitive in critical technologies and industries — with the regional outreach initiatives of the DIU, according to a news article posted Monday on the DIU website.

The ultimate goal of the effort is to help connect U.S. innovations to scaling, commercialization and procurement opportunities.

EDA Deputy Assistant Secretary Cristina Killingsworth commented on the agreement, saying it will help innovators in the U.S. better take advantage of connections, assets and resources. She went on to say that members of the Tech Hub consortia “will gain insights into DoD needs, have opportunities to showcase cutting-edge technologies—from autonomous systems to durable batteries—and hopefully secure contracts to supply these critical innovations to DoD.”

For her part, DIU Deputy Director for Commercial Operations Liz Young McNally said the agreement will allow her agency to better act as an “on-ramp” for organizations that seek to work with the DOD and the rest of the government.

McNally added that because of its regional economic development work, EDA is “an ideal partner” for the DIU, which helps commercial companies scale their work and deliver capabilities to warfighters.

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Isabel Casillas Guzman, Lina Khan on SBA & FTC Small Business Competition Efforts
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Isabel Casillas Guzman, Lina Khan on SBA & FTC Small Business Competition Efforts

Isabel Casillas Guzman, head of the Small Business Administration, and Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan discussed the efforts of SBA and FTC to help improve the competitiveness of small businesses.

SBA said Monday that Guzman cited the agency’s work to enhance competition in government contracting and small business lending.

In fiscal year 2023, small enterprises accounted for 28.4 percent of all contracting dollars.

SBA noted that its rulemaking that sought to simplify loan programs has resulted in a doubling of small-dollar loans under the 7(a) loan program.

“Under the Biden-Harris Administration, the SBA, the FTC, and other federal agencies have worked to ensure equitable market opportunity, and discussions like today’s are a crucial part of our continued work together to prioritize competition and a level playing field for our small businesses,” said Guzman.

“Equipping entrepreneurs with knowledge, networks, and resources to navigate federal agencies and regulation strengthens them so they can compete successfully in the marketplace,” she added.

Meanwhile, FTC has developed a final rule to prohibit noncompete clauses, a measure that could lead to the formation of 8,500 new businesses each year.

“A key part of the FTC’s work is making sure our markets are open, fair, and competitive so that small businesses and entrepreneurs have a fair shot,” said Khan.

“The ability to start and run your own business is a core part of our American economic freedoms, and the FTC is going to keep using all of our tools to make sure small businesses and entrepreneurs can compete,” the chairwoman added.

Guzman and Khan held the discussion during the annual meeting of SBA’s Regional Regulatory Fairness Boards.

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CISA Guidebook Lists Federal Agencies’ Cybersecurity Priority Areas
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CISA Guidebook Lists Federal Agencies’ Cybersecurity Priority Areas

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has developed a guidebook by which it will coordinate and support the cybersecurity efforts of the federal civilian executive branch. 

Titled “FCEB Operational Cybersecurity Alignment,” or FOCAL, the CISA plan provides the broad concepts for organizing federal cybersecurity and identifies action steps in five priority areas that agencies can take in 2025, CISA said Monday.    

The FOCAL plan’s priorities are aligned with each agency’s standards and reporting requirements, with each priority area addressing a goal, such as building a cybersecurity architecture resilient to evolving cyberthreats. 

FOCAL’s other priorities include the management of the vulnerabilities of the FCEB’s interconnected assets in the cyber environment. The plan also prioritizes the creation of a cyber supply chain risk management system, including third-party structures.

According to Jeff Greene, CISA executive assistant director for cybersecurity, FCEB agencies must be proactive and united to counter the persistent cyberthreats hanging over interconnected federal data and systems. “The actions in the FOCAL plan orient and guide FCEB agencies toward effective and collaborative operational cybersecurity and will build resilience,” he added.   

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Carlos Del Toro on CR’s Impact on Submarine Deliveries, Other Navy Programs
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Carlos Del Toro on CR’s Impact on Submarine Deliveries, Other Navy Programs

Carlos Del Toro, secretary of the Navy and a 2024 Wash100 awardee, said a six-month continuing resolution would result in delays in the construction and delivery of Virginia-class and Columbia-class submarines and would have negative impacts on the Marine Corps Force Design efforts.

The Department of the Navy said Monday Del Toro detailed his concerns with the CR in a Sept. 12 letter addressed to congressional leaders.

According to the Navy secretary, the stopgap funding measure would delay planned and ongoing nuclear command, control and communications engineering activities supporting U.S. Strategic Command, the procurement of munitions and investments in critical infrastructure, among others.

“This lengthy delay in new funding would force the Department of the Navy (DON) to operate at last year’s funding levels with the negative consequences lasting far beyond the time frame of the CR, impeding our ability to field the force needed to defend our nation while imposing unnecessary stress on our Sailors, Marines, Civilians, and their families,” Del Toro wrote in the letter.

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NSF Announces Funding for Future of Semiconductors Competition Projects
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NSF Announces Funding for Future of Semiconductors Competition Projects

The National Science Foundation is awarding 23 research projects a total of $42.4 million in grants under the second iteration of the Future of Semiconductors competition, or FuSe2.

The competition aims to advance semiconductor technology, strengthen the chips industry in the U.S. and support the objectives of the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, which include ensuring U.S. leadership in microelectronics, the NSF said Monday. The competition was launched in September last year, providing $45.6 million in total funding for 24 projects.

This year’s beneficiary projects cover three overarching topics, namely collaborative research in domain-specific computing; advanced function and high performance by heterogenous integration; and new materials for energy-efficient, enhanced-performance and sustainable semiconductor-based systems.

The various projects are being overseen by a total of 20 institutions, including Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Purdue University, Texas A&M University and Stanford University.

Commenting on the awards, NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan said, “These investments are not only supporting the future of semiconductors as a driver of our economy but also our national security.”

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Air Force Activates Provisional Integrated Capabilities Command
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Air Force Activates Provisional Integrated Capabilities Command

The newly created Integrated Capabilities Command within the U.S. Air Force will begin leading key modernization efforts following its activation.

The ICC, which operates in a provisional status, is expected to reach final operational capability as a new institutional command in 2025, the Air Force said Monday.

It will be responsible for testing competitive operational concepts and aligning capability development efforts to prioritize system-of-systems mission outcomes over functional solutions; developing alternative force structures with variable trade-offs and risks to support funding decisions; generating requirements to outpace threats and integrate across missions; and providing a unified demand signal for science, technology, experimentation and industry.

The ICC will establish detachments co-located with current Air Force operational centers of excellence and employ modernization and sustainment subject matter experts focused on mission integration and operational concept definition, integrated capability development, and force analysis and planning.

“Given the dynamic and challenging threat environment we face today, we know our current processes are not competitive enough,” said Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall, a 2024 Wash100 recipient. “This organization is a key part of the competitive ecosystem we are creating to reoptimize for Great Power Competition. With other DAF organizations, ICC will ensure the Air Force keeps pace with our pacing challenge, China, and acute threat, Russia.”

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AE Industrial Taps Former Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy as Operating Partner
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AE Industrial Taps Former Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy as Operating Partner

Ryan McCarthy, a 2020 Wash100 awardee, has been appointed as operating partner at AE Industrial Partners.

In this new role, McCarthy will look to leverage his many years of military, government and private sector experience to advance AEI’s global defense unit, the Boca Raton, Florida-based company announced Tuesday. 

David Rowe, co-CEO and managing partner at AEI, said, “We are thrilled to welcome Ryan to the firm as we continue to enhance our national security team and focus on building innovative companies that are providing the technologies critical to the nation’s defense.”

Prior to joining AEI, McCarthy served as the 33rd undersecretary of the U.S. Army and was confirmed unanimously as the 24th secretary of the Army in September 2019. He also worked for Lockheed Martin Corporation in sequential vice president roles, overseeing the sustainment, customer services and system integration of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.  

McCarthy said he looks forward to working with AEI as the company seeks new national security opportunities. 

“Global events continue to illustrate that there is sustained need for innovative technologies to combat complex and evolving threats,” McCarthy stated. “I look forward to partnering with AEI’s portfolio companies operating within the national security space to capitalize on new opportunities and create value.”

McCarthy was also a special assistant to the former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates under Presidents Bush and Obama.

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FBI in Search of Vendors for Facial Recognition Capabilities
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FBI in Search of Vendors for Facial Recognition Capabilities

The FBI is conducting market research to identify qualified sources that can provide advanced facial recognition technology for its law enforcement operations.

FRT enables the development of investigative leads and detection of relevant case information, which could prove critical to catching perpetrators and mitigating threats, the agency said Monday.

Through the request for information, the FBI wants to hear from parties with existing open-source and publicly available face image repositories and functioning FR capabilities to search the same database.

The potential vendors should also ensure they can deliver the required capabilities in a software-as-a-service package.

The FBI envisions that open-source FRT would support its mission of safeguarding national security, protecting the American people and upholding the Constitution.

The data gathered through the RFI will inform the bureau’s acquisition approach for an upcoming solicitation.

Interested businesses are invited to submit their capability statements no later than Oct. 15.

FBI in Search of Vendors for Facial Recognition Capabilities

The Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Intel Summit will bring together top intelligence community officials, government decision-makers and industry executives on Sept. 19 to discuss the challenges, opportunities, innovation initiatives and technologies shaping the future of U.S. intelligence.

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How Intel Agencies Are Building Closer Industry Partnerships
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How Intel Agencies Are Building Closer Industry Partnerships

U.S. intelligence agencies are working toward closer collaboration with government and industry partners. As a result, intelligence community leaders are increasingly vying for industry talent to fill capability gaps. 

Join us at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Intel Summit on Sept. 19 to connect with intelligence officials who spearhead efforts to transform the modern intelligence domain. Click here for additional information and register to attend the summit before it’s too late!

How Intel Agencies Are Building Closer Industry Partnerships

Avril Haines, the director of national intelligence and a 2024 Wash100 awardee, said, “We know that the private sector increasingly possesses certain unique and specialized talent, knowledge and capabilities in key fields of critical importance to national security that we don’t have access to in the government.”

Key Intelligence Community Collaboration Efforts

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence has established an Office of Partnership Engagement designed to foster closer industry collaboration and provide ODNI with access to commercial insights about AI, cybersecurity and space, among other areas. The office will train professionals in declassifying information for companies, develop guidance for better acquisition processes and communicate with external industry partners.

“There is no question that certain industries now wield substantial geopolitical influence, and as the threat landscape has diversified and power has become more diffuse, so has the potential impact of the private sector’s work,” Haines said. “This makes it crucial that we better understand developments in the private sector, as well as the overall balance of competitive strength and security within key sectors.”

Other IC agencies like the National Security Agency have established information exchange programs that help the government and industry get on the same page about cyber threats. NSA’s Cybersecurity Collaboration Center authorizes the government and the private sector to share information about cyber criminals and nation-state hackers. 

“The first phase of this is an expansion of the current and unclassified analytic exchange program in scale and scope, while simultaneously evaluating opportunities to conduct analytic exchanges that include classified information, which we know will take some time, but is absolutely worth it,” Haines emphasized.

ODNI has also recently issued new protocols for using the other transaction authority, which Haines said, “offers greater flexibility for IC elements to develop programs that leverage technological innovation.”

Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative 

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency stood up the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative in 2001. The group comprises industry and government officials who encourage cyber firms to team up with the government to detect and deter hacking threats.

In August 2023, the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative created the RMM Cyber Defense Plan. The strategy includes two key pillars — operational collaboration and cyber defense guidance — with the first pillar featuring two corresponding lines of effort that involve broadening data-sharing concerning threats and vulnerabilities. 

Learn more about the recent and future intelligence community efforts at the 2024 Intel Summit!

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SDA Eyes Linking Contractors’ Satellites to Form Mesh Network
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SDA Eyes Linking Contractors’ Satellites to Form Mesh Network

Derek Tournear, director of the Space Development Agency, said York Space Systems has made its laser communications system operational on its military satellites and that SDA’s next step is to link the company’s spacecraft with SpaceX’s satellites by laser, Breaking Defense reported Monday.

“I’m excited to report that, over the weekend, York was able to get optical communication networking working on their satellites,” he told reporters. “Now we have both a set of transport satellites and a set of tracking satellites with the optical connectivity.”

“The next step on that, obviously, is to have the York and SpaceX satellites talk to one another and form a complete mesh network,” said Tournear. “It’s critical that it works.”

The creation of the mesh network is key to operationalizing the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, also known as PWSA.

According to the previous Wash100 awardee, the concept behind PWSA is to transition away from the Department of Defense’s traditional “stovepipes” into one that adopts open architecture.

With open architecture, vendors can plug-and-play their capabilities to facilitate communications and machine-to-machine data-sharing, a capability that is key to advancing DOD’s Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control, or CJADC2.

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