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GSA Unveils AI-Focused Cohort of Presidential Innovation Fellows; Robin Carnahan Quoted
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GSA Unveils AI-Focused Cohort of Presidential Innovation Fellows; Robin Carnahan Quoted

The General Services Administration has announced the latest class of 11 Presidential Innovation Fellows that will focus on advancing artificial intelligence capabilities to help the government deliver better services to citizens.

GSA said Monday the new class of fellows from tech companies will work at eight federal agencies for a year on AI-related projects, such as leveraging AI tools to improve access to justice and harnessing AI and data to improve the electric grid infrastructure.

“All of our fellows are making significant contributions to technology innovation and modernization across government – and this AI-focused cohort will do the same,” said GSA Administrator Robin Carnahan.

“This new class of fellows will focus on values-driven implementation aligned with the Executive Order on AI so that we can harness the benefits of this new technology, mitigate the risks, and ensure Americans get better service delivery from their government,” added Carnahan.

The latest class of PIFs is the second cohort of fellows this year. In March, GSA announced a cohort of 21 technology and innovation leaders focused on supporting technology modernization goals at 14 agencies.

The new fellows and their respective partner agencies are:

  • Anjali Patel, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
  • Arushi Saxena, Office of Management and Budget
  • Brian Karfunkel, Department of Justice
  • James Pavur, State Department
  • John Cronin, Department of Defense
  • Maria Botchkova, DOJ
  • Matthew Versaggi, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services
  • Nandini Nayak, Federal Housing Finance Agency
  • Pranava Raparla, Department of Energy
  • Rebecca White, DOJ
  • Scott Riffle, DOD
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US, India to Expand Strategic Cooperation in AI, Other Emerging Tech Areas
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US, India to Expand Strategic Cooperation in AI, Other Emerging Tech Areas

The U.S. and India have agreed to further enhance strategic cooperation in artificial intelligence, semiconductors, quantum, advanced telecommunications, space, biotechnology, clean energy and other critical technology sectors in a manner that aligns with democratic values, respects human rights and ensures the Indo-Pacific region’s security and prosperity.

During the second meeting of the U.S.-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology — a.k.a. iCET — in New Delhi, U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and his counterpart in India, Ajit Doval, emphasized their commitment to taking concrete measures in the next few months to address challenges to bilateral trade, industrial and technology cooperation, the White House said Monday.

The two countries will advance collaboration in several areas: bridging innovation ecosystems; deepening defense innovation and industrial cooperation; pursuing advanced telecommunications opportunities; combining capabilities in biotechnology and biomanufacturing; securing semiconductor supply chains; building a clean energy and a critical minerals partnership for the 21st century; and pursuing quantum, AI and high-performance computing collaboration.

Strengthening defense innovation efforts

To bolster defense innovation, the two countries are advancing discussions on India’s planned procurement of MQ-9B unmanned aerial systems and co-production of ground warfare systems. They are also accelerating the joint adoption of commercial technologies for military platforms by strengthening cooperation between the U.S. Defense Innovation Unit and India’s Innovations for Defense Excellence.

The U.S. and India will further expand defense industrial partnerships, such as pushing the launch of an artificial intelligence multidomain situational awareness platform developed by General Atomics and 114ai to support Combined Joint All-domain Command and Control.

In January 2023, iCET held its inaugural meeting, providing a venue for government officials from the U.S. and India to discuss opportunities to advance cooperation in critical technologies and strengthen connectivity across innovation ecosystems.

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GAO Says Pentagon Still Challenged With Slow Contracting Speed
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GAO Says Pentagon Still Challenged With Slow Contracting Speed

The Government Accountability Office has concluded its annual assessment of the Department of Defense’s weapon systems acquisition and found that the Pentagon continues to struggle with delivering new technologies in a timely manner.

GAO said that DOD has made changes to its department-wide acquisition policies, including creating the Adaptive Acquisition Framework, but “slow, linear development approaches” remain, hindering its ability to deliver innovative technologies quickly.

The Adaptive Acquisition Framework offers various pathways for acquisition programs, such as the major capability acquisition pathway, which covers major defense acquisition programs, and the middle tier acquisition pathway, which is for rapid prototyping and rapid fielding.

However, GAO found that some programs in the new pathways are not likely to deliver much faster than traditional programs.

GAO recommended that DOD address how MTA programs implement leading practices for product development, define goals for its software cadre and identify resources and strategies for achieving the set goals.

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Pentagon Offers Guidance on Contracting Officer Representative Policies Through New Memo
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Pentagon Offers Guidance on Contracting Officer Representative Policies Through New Memo

The Department of Defense has issued a memorandum providing guidance on contracting officer’s representative file review requirements and outlining best practices that contracting components should consider implementing.

According to the memo, when controlled unclassified information — a.k.a. CUI — is included in a requirement package, contracting officers, or COs, should assess the extent to which the requiring activity has met its responsibilities for submission of CUI contractor requirements.

DOD has called on COs to ensure that CUI-specific requirements are identified in the quality assurance surveillance plan and ensure that the training, handling and marking requirements on the contractor are tracked by the contracting officer’s representative, or COR, during contractor surveillance.

According to the document, COs should consider the department’s technical experience requirements for CORs who monitor a vendor’s cybersecurity services or accept cybersecurity deliverables. Within six months of contract award, COs should consider initial COR file reviews based on the contract’s value, risks and complexity.

“If any inadequacies are identified during the file review, communicating COR performance deficiencies must be within 30 days of each review to ensure timely corrective action,” the memo reads.

John Tenaglia, principal director of defense pricing and contracting at DOD, signed the memo on Monday.

Vibrint & QED Jointly Release New Quantum-Safe Products; Tom Lash Quoted
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Vibrint & QED Jointly Release New Quantum-Safe Products; Tom Lash Quoted

Vibrint has partnered with QED to develop services tailored to quantum safety in the federal government’s key infrastructures, defense and intelligence.

Through the collaboration, the team intends to aid federal customers as they prepare for “Q” day, or the expected moment when quantum physics breaks the barrier of current encryption protocols, Vibrint announced from Annapolis Junction, Maryland on Tuesday.

Tom Lash, CEO of Vibrint, said he is excited to work with QED due to their “creative and skilled technology people” having the potential to take both companies to the next level.

“Their incredible innovations in post-quantum cryptography and quantum random number generation align perfectly with our mission to deliver cutting-edge solutions to national security organizations,” Lash continued. “Together, we can provide unparalleled security for our clients’ most critical infrastructures.”

CEO of QED Jesse Van Grivensen is ready to battle the threat of quantum computing alongside Vibrint.

“These solutions are not only built to address today’s vulnerabilities but also designed to adapt and evolve with future advancements in quantum-resistant algorithms,” Grivensen said. “[Vibrint’s and QED’s] close relationships within the national security community, and their passion for driving rapid solutions for customers’ most critical mission challenges, open opportunities for providing valuable support at an important time. By teaming up, we are bringing advanced tech to secure systems from on-site to the cloud to the tip of the spear, helping safeguard forces, systems and America’s most vital assets.”

Vibrint and QED will showcase their quantum solutions at the HPE Conference this week in Las Vegas.

Energy Department to Offer $900M to Finance Next-Gen Small Modular Reactor Deployments in the US
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Energy Department to Offer $900M to Finance Next-Gen Small Modular Reactor Deployments in the US

The Department of Energy has released a notice of intent indicating its plan to provide up to $900 million in funding for initial deployments of Generation III+ small modular reactor technologies in the U.S.

SMRs are sufficiently versatile to be deployed in various settings not only to meet small, localized power demand but also larger energy requirements by being scaled up or paired with renewable sources, the DOE said Monday.

In relation to the funding effort, an informational webinar will be held on July 9, an industry day will take place in August and a funding solicitation will be released in late summer or in the fall.

Funding will be offered in two tiers. The first tier will provide up to $800 million to support two teams that will work to deploy a first plant and facilitate a multi-reactor Gen III+ SMR orderbook. The second tier will provide up to $100 million for additional Gen III+ SMR deployments.

Commenting on the notice of intent, Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm said, “Today’s announcement will support early movers in the nuclear sector as we seek to scale up nuclear power and reassert American leadership in this critical energy industry.”

Granholm also described nuclear energy as “the nation’s single largest source of carbon free electricity” and “a key pillar of our nation’s transition to a safe and secure clean energy future.”

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Air Force Reintroduces Warrant Officers Corps to Reoptimize for Great Power Competition
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Air Force Reintroduces Warrant Officers Corps to Reoptimize for Great Power Competition

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin said at an Air & Space Warfighters in Action session on June 13 that the military service is making progress in reinstituting warrant officers, with a solicitation for applicants having been issued for airmen interested in becoming part of the first warrant officer cohort in information technology and cyber careers.

According to Allvin, the reintroduction of warrant officers is an element of a broader effort, called Reoptimize for Great Power Competition, which seeks to ensure that the military service is able to meet the challenges posed by China and other competitors, according to a news article posted Monday on the USAF website.

Warrant officers will help with the challenge of filling positions requiring skills that are in-demand, like cybersecurity and information technology, Allvin noted. Warrant officers will also help with the issue of talent retention.

“We are finding that it is more difficult to retain the cyber talent that we spend a lot of time investing in, and that is going to be so critical to us going forward,” Allvin said, adding, “We believe this is going to be a good path to ensure that we have the talent for today and tomorrow in a very cyber-heavy force that we’re going to need.”

The Air Force Warrant Officers Corps was dissolved in 1958 and replaced by the senior master sergeant and chief master sergeant ranks.

Air Force Reintroduces Warrant Officers Corps to Reoptimize for Great Power Competition

The 2024 Air Force Summit will bring together top DAF leaders and decision-makers, alongside industry experts, to discuss the future of the service. Register now to attend this important event!

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CISA, JCDC Launch AI Security Incident Response Exercise for Government, Industry Partners
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CISA, JCDC Launch AI Security Incident Response Exercise for Government, Industry Partners

Artificial intelligence experts from government agencies and industry partners participated in an inaugural AI tabletop exercise meant to promote effective and coordinated responses to AI cybersecurity incidents.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative conducted the four-hour exercise at the Microsoft Corp. facility in Reston, Virginia, CISA said Friday.

The JCDC-led exercise saw participants working through operational collaboration and information-sharing protocols for incident response to address a simulated cybersecurity incident concerning an AI-enabled system.

“This exercise marks another step in our collective commitment to reducing the risks posed by AI,” said CISA Director Jen Easterly, a 2024 Wash100 Award recipient. “It also highlights the importance of developing and delivering AI products that are designed with security as the top priority.”

She added that CISA, as the national coordinator for critical infrastructure security and resilience, will collaborate with partners to scale this effort and help secure AI systems of organizations.

The exercise also supports JCDC.AI’s development of an AI Security Incident Collaboration Playbook, which is planned to enable incident response coordination efforts among government, industry and global partners.

NIST Releases Draft Report on Data Protection Strategies for Cloud Applications
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NIST Releases Draft Report on Data Protection Strategies for Cloud Applications

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has released the initial public draft of an internal report on creating comprehensive data protection strategies for cloud-native applications.

The NIST Internal Report 8505, titled “A Data Protection Approach for Cloud-Native Applications,” outlines a framework for creating effective data protection strategies to ensure the security of information stored in cloud-native applications by using WebAssembly’s capabilities, the agency said Friday.

WebAssembly is a platform-agnostic binary instruction format with compute and traffic processing capabilities that can execute codes at native speed in a fault-tolerant manner.

According to the IR, a cloud-native environment requires a comprehensive strategy to analyze and categorize data access and leakage as data moves across various network protocols.

NIST said it is essential to develop a data categorization strategy that performs real-time analysis of data in transit.

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Army Takes Over as Cybercom Combatant Command Support Agent
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Army Takes Over as Cybercom Combatant Command Support Agent

The U.S. Army has taken on the role of Combatant Command Support Agent for the U.S. Cyber Command, a function that was previously exercised by the U.S. Air Force.

The transfer of the role was accompanied by the transition of around 350 Air Force civilian employees to the Army under an effort led by the Army Cyber Command, the Army said Friday.

“Our top priority during this entire effort was to ensure we did everything we could to take care of the civilian workforce,” said ARCYBER Deputy to the Commanding General Jeffrey Jones, who described the transition as “a monumental effort” involving his organization, the Army and Cybercom.

The civilian Department of Defense employees under the CCSA will provide Cybercom with various administrative and logistical services, including human resources support to Army civilians, equal employment opportunity support and Government Purchase Card support.

The CCSA’s workforce is expected to eventually grow to 700 Army civilians.

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