U.S. Military Cooperates With Start-Up Companies

U.S. Military Cooperates With Start-Up Companies

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It seems as though the U.S. Department of Defense feels that brains employed in the army, Pentagon and research institutes are unable to keep the U.S. military’s technological edge compared to other armies in other countries. This had secretary of defense, Ash Carter, approaching several companies in Silicon Valley, California, to join him in establishing the  Defense Innovation Unit which will operate with the department of defense and bring to it innovation and ideas that can’t be thought of in the conventional institutions. Heading this unit is George Duchak, a former director at the Air Force Research Laboratory, and Rear Adm. Daniel “Brian” Hendrickson, a former Navy SEAL and Reserve officer, will serve as the unit’s military deputy.

Forming this new unit and cooperating with the Silicon Valley Start-Up companies will allow the American defense system to be exposed to new and original ideas it wouldn’t have thought of otherwise. Technology and developments aren’t limited to one field or another, but can include solutions for various kinds of problems, from cyber technology to robotics to Big Data. Furthermore, Deputy Secretary of Defense, Robert Work, said that “There are more dual-use technologies that are being driven by the commercial sector that we want to tap into”. He Believed that the Defense Innovation Unit could bridge inherent gaps between military and civilian institutions.

The cooperation between the military sector and the civilian one could enhance the military’s power by a great deal. As the U.S. army is busy for several years now fighting almost constantly in different areas around the world, leaving very little time to work on theoretical research, most of the resources were understandably invested in fighting overseas. Here lies the obvious advantage of civilian minds: as they have no wars to fight, they can put their efforts into coming up with innovations.

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