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AI Easier to Exploit Than Expected, Defense Officials Say; Kathleen Hicks Quoted
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AI Easier to Exploit Than Expected, Defense Officials Say; Kathleen Hicks Quoted

Defense officials have warned that artificial intelligence models are easier to exploit than previously thought and are not yet qualified for full deployment in the military, the Washington Times reported on Friday.

At a National Defense Industrial Association symposium held last week, Alvaro Velasquez, a program manager at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, stated that large language models are “a lot easier to attack than they are to defend.”

“I’ve actually funded some work under one of my programs at DARPA where we could completely bypass the safety guardrails of these LLMs, and we actually got ChatGPT to tell us how to make a bomb, and we got it to tell us all kinds of unsavory things that it shouldn’t be telling us, and we did it in a mathematically principled way,” he explained.

Generative AI tools, which can create text that appears to be written by a human, have gained traction in the past year with the increasing popularity of tools like ChatGPT, a model that can solve problems and generate content when prompted.

The Department of Defense began experimenting with generative AI before ChatGPT was released, according to Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks, a three-time Wash100 Award winner.

On Thursday, Hicks told reporters that some DOD units have developed their own AI models that are being tested with human supervision.

“Most commercially available systems enabled by large language models aren’t yet technically mature enough to comply with our ethical AI principles, which is required for responsible operational use,” Hicks said.

She added that the department has identified more than 180 scenarios in which generative AI technologies could be valuable for oversight, citing debugging and developing software faster, speeding analysis of battle damage assessments and verifiably summarizing texts from both open source and classified data sets as some examples.

The DOD released a new AI strategy on Thursday, which said that U.S. competitors will keep pursuing advanced AI technologies as their range of military use cases grows.

The plan states that the DOD will develop new technologies in a way that protects U.S. advantages from foreign theft and exploitation while maintaining compliance with relevant laws.

Hicks assured that the department is not seeking a conflict with any nation over AI or technological superiority.

“With AI and all our capabilities, we seek only to deter aggression and defend our country, our allies and partners and our interests,” she said.

AI Easier to Exploit Than Expected, Defense Officials Say; Kathleen Hicks Quoted

Interested in learning more about how the Department of Defense is exploring AI? At the Potomac Officers Club’s 5th Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit, experts from both the public and private sectors will dive into numerous topics related to AI in the federal government. Click here to learn more, and click here to register for the event.

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Engineering Solutions-Meadowgate Technologies Merger Launches Vibrint; Tom Lash Quoted
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Engineering Solutions-Meadowgate Technologies Merger Launches Vibrint; Tom Lash Quoted

Vibrint has been established following an April merger between Engineering Solutions and Meadowgate Technologies.

The new brand aims to develop and deploy intelligent systems for government clients looking to gather and utilize data, Vibrint announced from its Hanover, Maryland headquarters on Monday.

“Our national security customers are constantly challenged to improve the speed and quality of mission-critical decisions. We’re excited to introduce Vibrint as a new partner in solving that problem,” said Tom Lash, the organization’s CEO.

Vibrint is focused on four areas: high-performance computing; software, systems and infrastructure; signals intelligence operations, research and analytics; and mission resilience. The company’s work will center emerging technologies influencing national security, such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing, and it will leverage its Collaboration Lab environment to build new partnerships between customers, manufacturers and data specialists to address mission challenges.

Lash said that despite being a new brand, Vibrint is “not a brand-new business” and clients can “depend on the continuing quality of service and the personal touch they have come to expect over the years from ESi and Meadowgate.”

Vibrint, he said, incorporates “two best-in-class, proven leaders in building, testing and sustaining the systems pivotal to effective and timely intelligence gathering and analysis.”

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Jane Rathbun Named Department of the Navy CIO; Carlos Del Toro Quoted
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Jane Rathbun Named Department of the Navy CIO; Carlos Del Toro Quoted

Jane Rathbun, formerly principal deputy chief information officer at the Department of the Navy, has been appointed DON’s special assistant for information management and CIO.

She officially assumed responsibilities as SAIM and DON CIO on Oct. 29, supporting the secretary of the Navy on matters related to digital modernization, information technology, data management and cybersecurity, the service branch said Friday.

“Jane’s leadership, technical acumen, and personal character stood out amongst a very competitive field of candidates and represent the best of our ongoing efforts to build a culture of warfighting among our one Navy-Marine Corps team,” said Carlos Del Toro, secretary of the Navy and a 2023 Wash100 awardee.

Rathbun assumed the role of acting DON CIO in March and previously served as deputy secretary of the Navy for information and chief technology officer.

She also served within the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment as deputy director for defense business systems.

“I take seriously our mission to build a modern, agile, and adaptive naval information environment that can be leveraged anytime and anywhere to meet the challenges during all phases of competition, crisis, and conflict. I look forward to working with the CNO and Commandant to achieving the operational and business outcomes articulated in the NAVPLAN and Force Design 2030,” Rathbun said.

The freshly appointed DON CIO delivered the keynote address at Potomac Officers Club’s 2023 Navy Summit in June. Register now for 2024’s Navy Summit to hear more illuminating insights.

Jane Rathbun Named Department of the Navy CIO; Carlos Del Toro Quoted
CBP Eyes Maritime Patrol Aircraft Maintenance & Logistical Services Recompete Contract
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CBP Eyes Maritime Patrol Aircraft Maintenance & Logistical Services Recompete Contract

The Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations has announced its intent to launch a full and open competition for a potential 10-year, recompete contract covering maritime patrol aircraft maintenance and logistical services.

AMO requires organizational and intermediate-level maintenance support services for CBP’s fleet of Lockheed Martin-built P-3 maritime surveillance aircraft and DHC-8 multi-role patrol aircraft, according to a notice posted Thursday on the Acquisition Planning Forecast System.

The selected contractor will support aircraft systems and subsystems, aircrew systems, support equipment and ground support equipment.

CBP anticipates releasing the solicitation for the contract on Feb. 20, 2024, with award expected in the first quarter of fiscal year 2025.

Northrop Grumman maintains CBP’s P-3 Orion maritime surveillance aircraft fleet under a potential $896.1 million contract awarded in June 2020.

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House Bill to Modernize Authorization Process for Commercial Space Activities
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House Bill to Modernize Authorization Process for Commercial Space Activities

Reps. Frank Lucas, R-Okla., and Brian Babin, R-Texas have introduced legislation to modernize government oversight of the commercial space sector to ensure U.S. leadership in space activities.

The Commercial Space Act of 2023 aims to streamline the authorization process for commercial space activities to reduce administrative burden while ensuring compliance with international regulations, Lucas’ office said Thursday.

Under the bill, the Office of Space Commerce will serve as the single authority responsible for the authorization and supervision certification process and work as its own entity within the Department of Commerce.

To encourage commercial space innovation, the bill will establish the Private Space Activity Advisory Committee to monitor the effectiveness of the new certification process and identify gaps in the sector.

“This bill crafts a favorable and competitive environment right here at home by streamlining our regulatory process and clarifying federal roles in licensing commercial space activities,” Lucas said.

DARPA Creates Program to Better Assess, Predict DOD Team Training Performance
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DARPA Creates Program to Better Assess, Predict DOD Team Training Performance

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency launched a new program to improve the performance assessment of Department of Defense teams after training.

The Objective Prediction of Team Effectiveness via Models of Performance Outcomes, or OP TEMPO, program will be conducted over a 30-month period and could serve as a foundation for future methods to measure training effectiveness, DARPA said Thursday.

OP TEMPO will use bio-behavioral signatures and unobtrusive sensor suites to diagnose performance and calibrate training efficiency. The project will observe heart rate variability, communication dynamics and other biological signatures.

“DOD teams are not simply the sum of their collective parts, but have highly specialized and dynamic roles, and performance relies on collaboration, communication, and coordination,” OP TEMPO Program Manager Dr. Joeanna Arthur commented. “With OP TEMPO, we aim to solve the problem of ‘how do we turn a team of experts into an expert team?'”

DARPA has launched a presolicitation for OP TEMPO, with deadline for responses set on Jan. 31, 2024.

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NASA Project Concludes 1st Step in Aviation Safety Tech Development Effort
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NASA Project Concludes 1st Step in Aviation Safety Tech Development Effort

A NASA project has completed a key step in developing a new technology designed to improve aviation safety by predicting and detecting hazards long before they emerge.

The team working on NASA’s System-Wide Safety project concluded Technical Challenge 1, Terminal Area Risk Management, which could help inform the development of an In-Time Aviation Safety Management System, the space agency said Thursday.

The system is designed to prevent aviation-related accidents by quickly identifying risks and delivering actionable safety procedures to address such hazards.

Work on the technology comes as the National Airspace System prepares to see an influx of drones, air taxis and other new types of aircraft in the future.

Through TC-1, researchers were able to use machine learning algorithms to analyze data from airlines, study human performance and fatigue and gather data on how pilots, air traffic managers and other stakeholders interact with safety procedures, among others.

“What we’ve accomplished with TC-1 is really just beginning to scratch the surface of what’s possible,” said Kyle Ellis, System-Wide Safety project manager at NASA. “Developing these systems enables a new economy for aviation uses that will benefit us all in the future.”

Coast Guard DOL Renamed to Operational Logistics Command
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Coast Guard DOL Renamed to Operational Logistics Command

The U.S. Coast Guard Director of Operational Logistics has been renamed the Operational Logistics Command, or LOGCOM, as part of efforts to streamline the military service’s logistics operations.

LOGCOM has command authority of all Coast Guard bases to provide mission support during contingency response and expeditionary operations, the Coast Guard said Thursday.

The command will provide administrative support to the fleet; oversee active duty, reserve and civilian personnel; manage base operational support and interface with technical authorities; coordinate with logistics and service centers; supervise financial support; and offer contracting services.

In August, LOGCOM reached full operating capability for its mission set capability for expeditionary logistics, or LOG-X, which has supported the deployment of national security cutters throughout the Pacific and fast response cutters throughout the Western Pacific and Oceania and in the Western Hemisphere.

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Army Seeks Sources of Long Range Missiles to be Equipped on IBCT Vehicles
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Army Seeks Sources of Long Range Missiles to be Equipped on IBCT Vehicles

The Tactical Aviation and Ground Munitions Project Office within the U.S. Army’s Program Executive Office – Missiles and Space is soliciting capability statements regarding solutions that companies can offer to address the Mobile-Long Range Precision Strike Missile, or M-LRPSM, requirement.

The M-LRPSM project seeks to acquire a “readily available” missile with a range of 25 kilometers or greater that can be equipped via an interface kit onto Infantry Brigade Combat Team platforms — either the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle or the Infantry Squad Vehicle, according to a request for information posted Thursday on SAM.gov.

The weapon’s other requirements include effectiveness against a variety of targets — like armored vehicles and fortifications — and the ability to retarget, adjust flight or abort.

Interested parties have until Nov. 22 to respond.

AFRL Opens In-House Facility for Semiconductor Laser Propagation Studies
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AFRL Opens In-House Facility for Semiconductor Laser Propagation Studies

The Air Force Research Laboratory has opened a new Semiconductor Laser Indoor Propagation Range, known as SLIPR, at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico to support research and development of future laser system propagation studies.

SLIPR has 100-meter-long broadcast ranges in an indoor facility to test semiconductor laser technology concepts and includes photoluminescence and X-ray laboratories to characterize molecular beam epitaxy products, AFRL said Thursday.

Imelda Atencio, chief of AFRL’s directed energy laser division, said expertise and equipment in laser design, processing, fabrication and characterization will enable AFRL’s laser illuminator group to develop illuminator laser technologies designed specifically for the warfighter.

“The mission of the laser division is to discover, develop and deliver advanced laser technology capability to the Department of the Air Force, components across the Department of Defense and most importantly, the warfighter,” said Shery Welsh, director of AFRL’s Directed Energy Directorate.

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