Startups Need Free Data To Work With Army: Venture Capitalists

Because open-source software lacks the same kind of cyber certification that comes with more sensitive information, it is fertile ground for start-ups looking to work on military data, provided each service makes an open-source library available.

By KELSEY ATHERTONon July 20, 2020 at 7:01 AM

ALBUQUERQUE: Venture capitalists want the Pentagon to be a good market. But for an industry that makes many unsuccessful bets in the promise that just a few pan out spectacularly, marketing software exclusively to the Pentagon poses an almost unacceptable risk. To ease startups into contracting, investors suggest the Army should provide unclassified, open-source data as the Air Force already does.

Near the top of his investors' wishlist, says Stu Solomon, CTO of intelligence provider Recorded Future, is removing “a lot of the friction necessary to get innovation into the government without having to be directly aligned or affiliated with the big solution integrators.”

Hitching new technology to a company already firmly ingrained in the Pentagon's ecosystem is a popular way to shepherd new software through the acquisitions process. It is also partly explains how, despite hundreds of millions of dollars in military contracts going to Silicon Valley companies, tech adoption seems as slow from the Valley as elsewhere.

Solomon's remarks came during a panel at AFCEA's 2020 AFCEA Army Signal conference. Recorded Future was founded in 2008, received early funding from IN-Q-TEL, received a contract from DIU in 2017, and a contract from Cyber Command in 2020. Much of Recorded Future's product is built on ingesting open-source information and offering analysis. As a feature, that meant the company could sustain itself in the commercial market, selling enterprise software, while still planning long-term to contract with the military, DHS, and intelligence services.

“If you think this is eventually going to be a market that matters to you, you're not going to be able to wait four years for the procurement process to mature as your product matures,” said Elizabeth Lawler, founder of Founder of AppLand.

If a startup's focus is solely on processing classified data, the capital investors need to be aligned directly with that goal to fund it since getting certified to handle classified material is one of the major sources of cost and friction.

“My current startup, focused on providing real-time up-to-date software images, works on things that are less sensitive as a starting point,” said Lawler, “for example, some of the code bases in the Air Force's open source code repository.”

Because open-source software lacks the same kind of cyber certification that comes with more sensitive information, it is fertile ground for start-ups looking to work on military data, provided the service makes an open-source library available.

“When it comes to this Valley of Death, I really view what we do when we start companies as an awful lot like a really difficult special forces mission,” said Andy Palmer, co-founder and CEO of data management company Tamr. “When you go in, you drop onto the ground to start a company, with a small team of people, and limited resources, and what oftentimes feels like an unreasonable objective. It's hand to hand combat for much of it, it's not pretty. The goal is survival.”

So, if the Army wants to bring new data tools to the battlefields of the future, it could start by creating open-source environments that allow companies to solve problems, at a smaller scale and without the hurdles of classification, suggested several panelists.

https://breakingdefense.com/2020/07/startups-need-free-data-to-work-with-army-venture-capitalists/

On the same subject

July 20, 2022

BIND 4.0 | Call for proposal
The BIND 4.0 International Open Call for Startups to apply for the chance to put innovation into action with paid contracts with industry leaders, is now active and accepting applications! Who do we Work With? Young companies worldwide developing solutions that can be applied to the Intelligent Industry, Clean Energy & Sustainability, Health Tech and/or Food Tech sectors for our 65+ Corporate Partners based in the Basque Country, Spain. The technologies of interest are wide ranging and not limited to: AI, Cybersecurity, Big Data Analytics, IOT/IIOT, Smart Energy, AR/VR, Machine or Artificial Vision, Collaborative Robotics, Additive Manufacturing, Biobased Solutions, Clean Tech, New Materials, NanoTech, Medical Devices, Smart Sensors, etc. Why BIND 4.0 Open Innovation & Acceleration Program? It is a government sponsored initiative with 6 years of proven track record accelerating over 160 International Startups and catalyzing countless business opportunities. 45K Average Contract Amount 65+ Big Name Reference Clients High Impact Acceleration, Mentoring & Support Zero Equity Taken & No Fee to Participate Please Share our International Startup Open Call. If you'd like us to prepare something targeted to your newsletter or startup portfolio please let us know. Easily share our latest social media posts and upcoming Webinar events via the links below. Key Details and links: Startup Open Call, Accepting Applications Deadline Sep 8, 2022 BIND 4.0 Webinar Presentation with Alumni July 28, 2022 BIND 4.0 Webinar Presentation with Alumni Aug 30, 2022 BIND 4.0 2022 Program Catalogue 2022 Catalogue BIND 4.0 Website For More Resources www.BIND40.com HTML Email Open Call Announcement Link to Email Message LinkedIn Open Call Post BIND 4.0 2022 Open Call Twitter Open Call Publication BIND 4.0 2022 Open Call We Value Collaborative Partnerships. Remember, for our Collaborative Partners with relevant topics and programs, we offer event promotion via our alumni newsletter or social media, targeted startup referrals, plus networking via invitations to innovation events. Have Any Startup Recommendations? Send us a quick email with any Startups that you think could be a good fit for our immersion, acceleration and open innovation program. Send their contact info so we can reach out to them directly and fast track their application based on your referral. Startups can set up a 1:1 Meeting with us, or if you'd rather send them this Link to Apply, the application deadline is September 8th.
July 31, 2020

Exciting Opportunity For Manufacturers And Research Institutions
AGILITY PRIME The Air Force recently launched Agility Prime, a non-traditional program seeking to accelerate the commercial market for advanced air mobility vehicles (i.e., "flying cars"). Leveraging unique testing resources and revenue generating government use cases for distributed logistics and disaster response, the government plans to mitigate current commercial market and regulatory risks. Agility Prime also aims to bring together industry, investor, and government communities to establish safety and security standards while accelerating commercialization of this revolutionary technology. This program will create a unique opportunity for manufacturers with various capabilities, to become part of the supply chain for the major primes for the air mobility vehicles. Innovative Capabilities Opening, below, establishes a rapid contracting mechanism beginning in 2020 with a “Race to Certification” series to drive government procurement of operational capability by 2023. If you are interested and believe your organization has the ability to participate in the air mobility market please click on the link: http://www.agilityprime.com/#/sttr Questions about this program contact: Dave.Nestic@wright.edu Questions about OAI programs contact: kimholizna@oai.org
October 22, 2020

New NATO Innovation Hub challenge: Trust in autonomous systems
Hello, Similar to IDEaS, the NATO Innovation Hub is a community where experts from around the world collaborate to tackle NATO challenges and design solutions. The Hub has recently launched a challenge seeking innovative solutions that address how trust in autonomous systems can be established and strengthened. Solutions can include any combination of methodologies, concepts, techniques and technologies. These challenges are open to all, including the Canadian innovation community. Submit your solutions by November 17, 2020: https://www.innovationhub-act.org/challenge-intro If you have questions, contact the NATO Innovation Hub by email: contact@InnovationHub-act.org Thank you, The IDEaS Team

All news