Elevate your local knowledge

Sign up for the iNFOnews newsletter today!

Select Region

Selecting your primary region ensures you get the stories that matter to you first.

The Latest: Trump backs Obama-era defence technology unit

The Latest: Trump backs Obama-era defence technology unit | iNFOnews.ca
In this Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2017 photo, Col. Michael McGinley, left, gives a tour of the U.S. Defense Department's Defense Innovation Unit Experimental office in Cambridge, Mass., which he oversees. Visiting the office are Maj. Gen. James Young Jr., second from left, of the Army Reserve's 75th Training Command in Houston, and Army Reserve Chief Warrant Officer Pat Nelligan, second from right, who hails from Bristol, Conn. Col. Joseph D'costa, far right, also works at the DIUx office. DIUx works with contractors to fund and develop solutions for the military's toughest technology challenges. (AP Photo/Philip Marcelo)

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Latest on a Department of Defence effort enlisting startup companies to develop solutions for the military’s toughest technology challenges (all times local):

9:45 p.m.

President Donald Trump’s administration is endorsing a Barack Obama-era effort enlisting startup companies to develop solutions for the military’s toughest technology challenges.

Secretary of Defence James Mattis said Thursday he expects the Defence Innovation Unit Experimental will not only survive but “grow in its influence and its impact” under the Republican administration.

Mattis made the comments while visiting the program’s outpost in Mountain View, California, the hometown of Google.

The visit was Mattis’ first to the initiative known as DIUx, which also has offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts; Austin, Texas, and the Pentagon.

The two-year old program continues to face questions from skeptical lawmakers.

House Armed Services Committee Chairman and Texas Republican Mac Thornberry says the jury is still out on whether it’s the best way to address the military’s technology needs.

___

2 p.m.

An Obama-era effort enlisting startup companies to develop solutions for the military’s toughest technology challenges is bankrolling experimental drones, new cybersecurity technology and advanced communications systems.

But two years on, the Department of Defence’s “Defence Innovation Unit Experimental” continues to face questions from skeptical lawmakers.

House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry, a Texas Republican, says the jury is still out on whether the office known by the acronym DIUx is the best way to address the military’s technology needs.

Col. Michael McGinley heads DIUx’s Cambridge, Massachusetts, office. He says the $100 million in government contracts it has awarded to 45 pilot projects is proof DIUx is working.

Defence Secretary James Mattis makes his first official visit to DIUx Thursday. He is stopping by its outpost in Mountain View, California.

News from © iNFOnews.ca, . All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Join the Conversation!

Want to share your thoughts, add context, or connect with others in your community?

Create a free account

Abbey Westbury

Related Articles