From Amazon warehouses to military conflict in Ukraine we have become increasingly dependent on automated and autonomous platforms. This OODAcon 2023 session explored the current state of the field with a specific focus on the impact to national and economic security.  

Following is a summary of the insights and takeaways from the session, which inclided panelists Matthew Steckman, CRO, Anduril Industries, and  Duyane Norman, Defense Innovation Unit (DIU). 

Summary of the Panel Discussion

What is driving innovation at Anduril?:  Anduril’s innovation is driven by a focus on robotics, automation, and autonomy, particularly in the military and defense sectors. Palantir is  made up of alums from various high tech comapnies, includig Oculus, and is always trying to recruit and retain a different type of talent.  They also aim to disrupt the industry by innovating before customers even articulate their requirements.  Anduril’s goal is to become a new Defense Prime for autonomous systems, challenging existing primes and forcing them to think differently.  Palintir looks for urgent problem sets which are solvable in a five year timeframe on which software gives a head start.  The company is finding that their total addressable market (TAM) continues to grow.  They prioritize technical innovation, acquisition innovation, and advancements in underwater tech, communications, acoustics, optics, and AI/ML. Anduril’s drive for innovation is reshaping the defense industry and pushing the boundaries of technology.

Where is the Defense Innovation Unit (IUI) looking to drive innovation?:  DIU’s drive for innovation is fueled by the need for advanced defense capabilities and the pursuit of cutting-edge technologies.These include a focus on robots, automation, and autonomy, as well as the need to address cybersecurity concerns.  DIU acknowledges the importance of rethinking traditional approaches and adopting new constructs to keep up with the rapidly changing technology landscape.

One theme has become clear to DIU leadership:   Most innovation is coming out of private sector with companies like Google outspending the government by a factor of 10 on AI/ML alone.  As a result, public private partnership are way more important than ever.  DIU leadership is constantly asking the questions:  How do you build bridges? How do we “marry it all up” with private sector technology?

AI/ML and building trust into systems requires the focus of systems engineers:  The panelists pointed out that there is not much difference from legacy systems in terms of the issues and regulations that need to be addressed for AI and ML-based systems – and that the same umbrella should be extended over these new systems.  Their emphasis was more on the crucial role of systems engineers – and the unsexy aspects of algorithms:  “Systems engineering is the really hard part, which is 90% is the unsexy stuff around the algorithms. These organizations creating these systems should have a systems engineer heavy org chart.”Doctrine and the legal challenges figure less prominently in this approach.  

How is the intelligence community reacting to the future of deployment in the field?:  The intelligence community (IC) is adapting to the future of deployment in the field by embracing fundamental changes in collecting and interpreting intelligence (i.e. web scraping, ubiquitous data sensing) – with a focus on adapting quickly “on the fly.”  The IC also recognizes the need to adapt quickly and build resilience in manufacturing and supply chains. Qhile the IC may not be adapting at the pace of the private sector, they are managing to stay ahead of adversaries. 

Fostering national security investment, American competitiveness, and building the startup ecosystem:  The power law in venture capital still plays a role, while how to achieve business development  “traction” within the Department of Defense (DoD) is oftentimes misunderstood by startup companies.   The good news is that that “even when we lose to traditional players, the existing Primes are still forced to behave and to think differently.  There is a flywheel effect and a lot of merger and acquisition activity.” 

The only way to survive as a contractor is to “prime on a key capability”:  Otherwise you will get squeezed out.

Norman’s Work on the Intelligence “Station of the Future”:  Even in an attempt to innovate, cover and tradecraft have remained foundational  “Digital Dust” – ubiquitous surveillance, etc – force into question if these foundational elements of intelligence collection are still sustainable.  The Station of the Future project was all at once a wild success and an abject failure operating as a startup within the CIA operational structure.  The conclusion is “The Station” as an operational  foundation for the CIA was and is flawed:  a new construct is needed:  “No “station signature” is needed at all.  Covers may not be needed at all.”  The concept of “digital dust” and data points left on individuals was discussed. The absence of a digital signature can also be noteworthy:  “Avoiding a digital signature completely might arouse suspicion.” 

What adversary innovation most caught you by surprise?:  The biggest surprise is that the counterpunches are real and lethal and is the dependent on the velocity of your ability to change the technology under attack, the changing pace of software development in response to adversaries, and the need for flexibility and adaptability in the face of potential threats.  As a result, the global way of tracking software releases had to be rethought. The DIU, for example, now takes a systems integration partner approach:  “Yes, this involves technical innovation, but acquisition innovation as well.”

What innovations are most promising?:  The most exciting innovations mentioned in this session included underwater technology, communications, acoustics, optics, and AI/ML (even with its clear challenges).  Business model and value proposition were also mentioned,  with the importance of public-private partnerships and the need to drive innovation from the private sector as highlights of the discussion.  For example,  while Anduril started off as an “all software/platform agnostic” company, they recently expanded to harware platforms by buying small businesses with vehicles – “especially in the undersea area, where they see great potential.”

For the program notes for this session, see Robots, Automation, and Autonomy

The full agenda for OODacon 2023 can be found here – Welcome to OODAcon 2023: Final Agenda and Event Details – including a a full description of each session, expanded speakers bios (with links to current projects and articles about the speakers) and additional OODA Loop resources on the theme of each panel.

OODAcon 2023: Event Summary and Imperatives For Action

Download a summary of OODAcon including useful observations to inform your strategic planning, product roadmap and drive informed customer conversations.
This summary, based on the dialog during and after the event, also invites your continued input on these many dynamic trends.  See:  OODAcon 2023: Event Summary and Imperatives For Action.