Inside the Space Data Race; Pentagon Awards $86M in OTAs for Laser Weapons

INNOVATION

Why Does The F-47's Design Look So Different Than What Many Expected?

Most sixth-gen fighter concepts have been tailless deltas, and China is pursuing that planform, but Boeing's F-47 went a very different direction.

Navy teases next step in key drone boat program

The Navy plans to launch the next phase of its marketplace for high-capacity, medium-sized drone boats on August 1, according to a contract notice.

Pentagon Awards $86M in OTAs for Laser Weapons

Yesterday, the Pentagon announced that it’s awarded two OTAs to nLIGHT Defense and Lockheed Martin Aculight to develop laser weapons systems to “advance the United States’ next-generation cruise missile and unmanned aerial system (UAS) defense architecture.”

Air Force to Train Weapon System Officers to Fly B-21s

The Air Force has officially decided the B-21 Raider will fly with a two-pilot air crew—and some of those pilots will be former weapon system and combat systems officers.

The Air Force is establishing a transition program for WSOs and CSOs to become pilots and take follow-on assignments flying the new bomber.

INVESTMENT

Deploying capital into the surge in investment from the defense tech sector

Andrew King, general partner at Bastille Capital and president of Future Union, discusses investment opportunities in privately-held western defense companies.

Anduril CEO says it's bad to IPO in ‘middle of a hype cycle’

Anduril CEO Brian Schimpf said the defense tech company is in no hurry to go public given the current market conditions.

“We define a successful IPO as our investors got a good return three years from actually going out,” Schimpf told CNBC’s Julia Boorstin at the Allen & Co. Sun Valley Conference on Thursday. “A bad time to do that is in the middle of a hype cycle. So we’re not in a rush to go out.”

AI

Inside the space data race

SpaceX and others have proposed launching tens of thousands of massive satellites for AI processing and other functions in a bid to alleviate some of the woes of terrestrial data centers. But can the technical challenges be overcome? Jonathan O’Callaghan takes a look.

NestAI, Nokia debut AI defense tech for denied zones

Nokia Defense and Finnish AI lab NestAI have announced a set of new integrated operational capabilities, aimed at one of the hardest problems in modern military — keeping forces connected, informed, and coordinated when the enemy is actively trying to prevent exactly that. The capabilities fuse AI, deployable 5G, and advanced sensing to support defense operations in so-called denied environments.

TECHNOLOGY

NATO snubs Boeing, picks Saab to build alliance’s next radar plane

The alliance would replace its Boeing E-3 Airborne Warning and Control aircraft with the Swedish company’s offering, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said during the alliance’s Defence Industry Forum in Ankara, Turkey.

The Pentagon's Sprint to Get Tech Out of the Lab and to the Warfighter

Joe Jewell left academia and his role directing hypersonic wind tunnels to oversee the Pentagon’s science and technology enterprise. He wants more researchers to make the same move. He joins Jonathan to discuss the Pentagon’s science enterprise, why he thinks academia is the envy of America’s closest allies, and how his office gets technology from the lab into the hands of the warfighter.

POLICY

Pentagon seeks to shift $4.3B to pay for increasing operation and personnel costs

In a 47-page omnibus reprogramming notification, the Pentagon outlines an array of weapon and tech programs it wants to strip dollars from to pay for “unforeseen military requirements" which are "determined to be necessary in the national interests."

EUROPE

Germany To Buy Ground-Launched Tomahawk Missiles

The planned purchase marks a major shift in NATO‘s conventional strike posture as allies respond to the threat from Russia.

Raid on leading drone company fuels fears of crackdown on Ukraine's defense tech sector

The CEO of top Ukrainian drone firm Vyriy Industries denied allegations of price gouging after law enforcement carried out large scale searches of his home, offices, and family members on July 7.

Royal Navy tests drone boat airdrops in North Sea trial

A drone boat was parachuted four times from an A400M at 1,300ft over the North Sea in a first trial by Kraken, Capewell and the Royal Navy.

Dispatches from Estonia: Quantum Systems moves in

“Estonia has built an exceptional reputation for engineering excellence, software innovation, and defence technology,” said Martin Karkour, chief revenue officer at Quantum Systems, in a statement “With our Tallinn office and our acquisitions, we are strengthening the software and sensor capabilities behind our portfolio.”

SECURITY

Taiwan takes aim at IP theft as it sharpens its defence stance

But the biggest cases right now are not against Chinese companies; they're going after individuals working in the US and Japan