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NSF to Host Workshop on Open-Source Software Ecosystem for Future Wireless R&D
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NSF to Host Workshop on Open-Source Software Ecosystem for Future Wireless R&D

The National Science Foundation will hold a workshop on Sept. 25 to examine the open-source software—or OSS—ecosystem that supports future wireless and spectrum research and development and identify opportunities to advance collaboration between R&D institutions and OSS communities to promote open-source platforms needed to drive wireless innovation.

According to a Federal Register notice published Wednesday, the workshop will be held at the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development National Coordination Office in Washington, D.C.

The event will also explore the objectives and limitations facing the diverse communities that play a role in shaping the direction of key OSS projects.

According to NSF, workshops sessions will address the current state of the wireless OSS ecosystem, emerging security and resilience requirements, transparency and confidence in OSS supply chains, and perspectives of researchers and experimenters on leveraging OSS to back wireless and spectrum R&D efforts.

Registration for the event will close on Sept. 24.

Industry Participation Critical to 6G Rollout & Regulation, ITI Says
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Industry Participation Critical to 6G Rollout & Regulation, ITI Says

For the Information Technology Industry Council, government efforts to regulate 6G will have to involve industry because it is industry that will drive the transition to the next-generation communications technology, which is anticipated for release in 2030.

ITI expressed this recommendation in a press release issued Wednesday, which summarizes the global technology trade association’s responses to a request for comment from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration regarding the advancement of 6G.

The organization also highlighted the role industry will play in ensuring 6G cybersecurity, establishing 6G standards and driving 6G innovations, including those related to sustainability.

“By relying on industry expertise, the U.S. can proactively address evolving challenges, while maximizing 6G’s transformative potential in areas like sustainability and AI for network performance,” said Katie McAuliffe, ITI senior director for telecommunications policy.

“ITI and our members look forward to continuing to work with policymakers to advance 6G in the United States and globally,” McAuliffe added.

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DHS Developing ‘Different’ Prototype Data Protection Method
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DHS Developing ‘Different’ Prototype Data Protection Method

The Department of Homeland Security‘s Science and Technology Directorate is prototyping a way to protect data that S&T Data Analytics Technology Center Director Alexandria Phounsavath describes as “a different way of thinking about security,” Federal News Network reported Wednesday.

Under the new method, the data that needs to be protected will feature components allowing owners to place access controls like expiration dates for self-deletion or billing elements that require payment depending on the user, Phounsavath explained on Federal Monthly Insights — Unleashing Data Insights to Drive Government Innovation.

The S&T official noted, however, that the effort, dubbed data autonomy, remains “an open ended problem” in that “to make this data autonomy concept realized, it’s going to require new products and services in the future, and a lot of thinking from all our partners in academia and industry, other government labs, to kind of solve this problem.”

“So I think it’s a very interesting space. It requires a lot of thought, but it’s really, really exciting,” Phounsavath added.

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DOD Hands Out 7 More Awards for Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program
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DOD Hands Out 7 More Awards for Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program

The Department of Defense has chosen seven more awardees for the Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program, or DBIMP, bringing the total to 13 awards with a combined value of $23 million.

The DOD said Tuesday the third batch of DBIMP awards was revealed during the National Defense Industrial Association’s Emerging Technologies Conference held on Aug. 7 in Washington, D.C.

The total number of awardees for the program is now 13 with the recent addition of the following bioindustrial companies:

  • Battelle in Columbus, Ohio
  • Modular Genetics in Cambridge, Massachusetts
  • Genomatica in San Diego
  • Industrial Microbes in Alameda, California
  • ZymoChem in San Leandro, California
  • The Better Meat Co. in West Sacramento, California
  • Biosphere, in Oakland, California

The DBIMP awards are part of Executive Order 14081, or “Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe and Secure American Bioeconomy,” which aims to enhance the nation’s bioeconomic strengths and defense capabilities.

Selected companies will receive funding to create business and technical plans for building domestic bioindustrial manufacturing facilities. These projects are part of the Defense Industrial Base Consortium Other Transaction Agreement, a contract vehicle managed by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy.

Chosen projects will receive follow-on awards worth up to $100 million, which will be used to construct their proposed facilities.

Four-time Wash100 Award winner Heidi Shyu, the under secretary of defense for research and engineering, said, “Expanding the Department of Defense’s biotechnology capabilities is key to maintaining the United States’ supply chain and military superiority.”

Carla Zeppieri, deputy assistant secretary of defense for industrial base resilience, also highlighted the need for more resilient supply chains to address emerging threats and bolster the nation’s security needs. She noted that the DIBC OTA “plays a pivotal role in DOD’s efforts to develop mission-critical materials domestically.”

Debut received the first award for the DBIMP in July 2024. The rest of the awards should be announced within the coming month.

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DTRA Names Robert Turk Its Chief Information Security Officer & Authorizing Official
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DTRA Names Robert Turk Its Chief Information Security Officer & Authorizing Official

Robert Turk, a retired U.S. Army colonel, has taken on the role of chief information security officer and authorizing official at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.

He announced his appointment in a LinkedIn post published Wednesday.

Prior to this position, Turk was deputy director and deputy chief information officer at DTRA’s Information Technology Directorate. In 2015, he joined the agency as head of the IT cybersecurity department.

Before moving to DTRA, he served as senior cybersecurity engineer at CACI International.

Turk’s 25 years of active duty in the Army included time serving as military assistant to the deputy assistant secretary of defense for research, Army inspector general, division chief for IT service support within U.S. Special Operations Command and division automation management officer for the 2nd Infantry Division.

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NIST Soliciting Comments on Updated Digital Identity Guidance
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NIST Soliciting Comments on Updated Digital Identity Guidance

The National Institute of Standards and Technology is seeking public comments on a draft version of its updated digital identity guidance.

The draft Digital Identity Guidelines Special Publication 800-63 Revision 4 aims to ensure security, privacy and accessibility during the identity-proofing process for people accessing government services, regardless of the means by which a person chooses to prove their identity, NIST said Wednesday.

NIST incorporated feedback gathered in 2023 from private industry, federal agencies, privacy and civil rights advocacy groups, and members of the public into the updated guidance which, according to Office of Management and Budget deputy director for management Jason Miller, will help federal agencies better defend against evolving threats while providing critical benefits and services to the American people.

“These improved guidelines are intended to help organizations of all kinds manage risk and prevent fraud while ensuring that digital services are lawfully accessible to all,” said NIST Director Laurie Locascio.

Comments on the latest guidance will be accepted until Oct. 7. NIST will hold a webinar on Wednesday to discuss the draft publication.

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DIU Taps 3 Contractors to Solve Electromagnetic Interference on Drone Communication
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DIU Taps 3 Contractors to Solve Electromagnetic Interference on Drone Communication

The Defense Innovation Unit has selected contractors Auterion, ModalAI and Neros to prototype hardware and software solutions to electromagnetic interference, or EMI, on small unmanned aircraft systems’ communication.

The three companies’ prototype demonstration and testing will start two months after their contract awards, with completion expected after nine months, the DIU said Wednesday.

The Department of Defense’s innovation arm added that electromagnetic interference project drew proposals from 99 companies, with the awardees chosen through a competitive process.

According to the DIU, the three winning contractors are tasked to provide a resilient baseline solution enabling drone operators’ rapid response in electromagnetically contested environments.

The EMI initiative follows the NATO-Ukraine Defense Innovators Summit in Krakow, Poland, in June, which highlighted how electromagnetic interference impacts the battlefield. It supports the Blue UAS program that the DIU initiated in 2020 for rapid assessment of commercial drones for potential DOD use.

The program’s cleared list of drones includes the sUAS platforms of Blue Halo, Wingtra, Ascent AeroSystems, senseFly and Freefly Systems. The DIU’s Blue UAS cleared list updated May 2024 identified drone platforms from 14 companies.

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Army Unveils 2 Initiatives Under 500-Day AI Implementation Plan
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Army Unveils 2 Initiatives Under 500-Day AI Implementation Plan

The U.S. Army launched two initiatives under two hashtags, #BreakAI and #CounterAI, as part of its 500-day implementation plan for artificial intelligence, Breaking Defense reported Wednesday.

Young Bang, principal deputy assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology, said the Break AI initiative seeks to test algorithms through the government’s verification and validation and testing and evaluation processes to ensure that the AI tools are free of flaws and fully operable before they reach the warfighters.

“It’s really about as we move towards AGI [artificial general intelligence], how do we actually test something that we don’t know what the outcome or the behaviors are going to be?” stated Bang, a 2024 Wash100 awardee.

He cited the need for industry’s help to advance the implementation of the Break AI initiative, particularly with building tools to evaluate its AI technologies.

The Counter AI initiative, meanwhile, focuses on defending against adversaries’ use of AI tools.

Jennifer Swanson, deputy assistant secretary of the Army for data, engineering and software, said the Counter AI initiative intends to make “sure our platforms and our algorithms and our capabilities are secure from attack and from threat.”

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GAO Reviews Evidence-Building Capacity Assessment Processes of Federal Agencies
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GAO Reviews Evidence-Building Capacity Assessment Processes of Federal Agencies

A Government Accountability Office has reviewed the assessment process of 23 federal agencies for collecting and using evidence and found that most are having difficulties in understanding Office of Management and Budget guidance for conducting the assessments.

Agencies are required to assess aspects of their statistics, evaluation, research and analysis efforts every four years under the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 to improve the collection and use of evidence, such as data and the results of studies, that help federal decision-makers determine whether federal programs and activities are achieving intended results, GAO said Tuesday.

According to GAO’s report, agency officials face challenges in identifying appropriate approaches for conducting the activity and understanding how the assessments would be used.

The government watchdog pointed to the use of different methodologies at the agencies in assessing their evidence-building capacity as a cause of such difficulties.

To resolve the issues, GAO recommends that OMB leverage the Evaluation Officer Council responsible for sharing information and helping agencies with Evidence Act implementation to identify agency officials’ needs for additional guidance on capacity assessments and address them accordingly.

GAO also recommended identifying, documenting and sharing lessons learned on capacity assessment methods.

OMB neither agreed nor disagreed with the recommendations and stated that it would take them into consideration moving forward.

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Roger Baird Appointed Associate Director of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center
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Roger Baird Appointed Associate Director of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center

Roger Baird has been appointed as associate director of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

NASA said Tuesday Baird will oversee the center’s business operations ensuring execution and integration of mission support enterprise functions and budget management. He will also be a senior adviser focused on advancing the center’s future direction.

In his new leadership role, Baird will be responsible for leading around 7,000 civil service and contract employees while also managing Marshall’s $5 billion annual budget. He will also offer his guidance and expertise to the center’s mission support areas and various human spaceflight, science and technology programs, which are vital to NASA’s missions.

Joseph Pelfrey, director of Marshall Space Flight Center, described Baird as an “excellent addition” to the center’s executive team.

“His dedication to NASA’s missions has helped shape Marshall into a powerful technical solutions provider for the agency and our industry partners. Roger’s leadership will be invaluable in this new era of space exploration,” Pelfrey said.

Prior to his appointment, Baird served as the associate director for operations at Marshall’s Directorate from 2020 to 2024, having been detailed to the position since 2019. In this role, Baird managed a team of 2,500 people and a yearly budget of $550 million. They were responsible for the planning and execution of engineering project management and integration activities for the center’s programs, including evaluating spacecraft, payloads and launch vehicle systems.

The Birmingham, Alabama native first joined NASA in 1990 and has been with the agency for 34 years now. He started out with Marshall’s Astrionics Laboratory as an avionics engineer before serving in various leadership roles in different departments. He eventually became the manager of the Engineering Resource Management Office in 2018.

Baird graduated from the University of Alabama in Birmingham with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering.

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