AUVSI today hosted Phase II of Unmanned Systems Defense, the association’s signature event connecting industry leaders with U.S. defense officials to advance the front line of innovation. Throughout the day’s maritime-focused programming, experts discussed the promise unmanned marine technologies hold for maintaining the U.S. military’s competitive advantage and the need to champion funding for these platforms in the FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
 

Congressional Support for Funding for Unmanned Systems Integration

Congressmen Joe Courtney and Jim Langevin, both members of the House Armed Services Committee, discussed the budget and funding authorization process. Rep. Courtney chairs the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee and Rep. Langevin chairs the Subcommittee on Intelligence and Emerging Threats and Capabilities.

Both championed the importance of funding to move advanced systems from development and into the battlefield to support warfighters, with Rep. Courtney calling such appropriations, “Simply a really smart investment.”

Rep. Langevin shared his support for a movement from a hardware-centric acquisition process to one that focuses on software and open architectures that can be updated as new capabilities are developed. A more flexible, faster-moving acquisition process would better support private sector technology advancements and enable the Navy to stay on the cutting-edge of adapting commercial products for defense uses.
 

The Navy’s Vision for Experimentation and Disruption

Expert and program managers from the U.S. Navy shared updates on the Department’s Unmanned Battle Problem (IBP) 21 and Ghost Fleet Overlord Unmanned Surface Vessel Program.

The integration of unmanned systems, autonomy, and AI into the fleet will be a cornerstone of the future of U.S. naval power. The Navy’s IAS (Intelligent Autonomous Systems) Strategy provides the vision, objectives, and framework for decision-making around these capabilities.

The leaders discussed the importance of appropriately balancing risk and speed to integration based on capabilities. Because a key feature of disruptive innovation is moving out and learning through the development process, the Navy will need to prioritize action, learning, and feedback beyond just mitigating for risk.
 

AUVSI’s Maritime Advocacy Committee Supports These Objectives

Through ongoing advocacy efforts, AUVSI fosters relationships with both appropriators on Capitol Hill and program managers and procurement officers at the Department of Defense to support unmanned systems programs, with the goal of getting these capabilities into the hands of end-users as quickly as possible.

AUVSI’s Maritime Advocacy Committee (MAC) has been working closely with the Department of Defense and Navy to ensure the unmanned maritime systems industry understands the pressures on the military and how the industry can best work with them, and with Congress, to keep advancing this technology and getting these tools out into the field for action. Contact Mike Smitsky at msmitsky@auvsi.org to learn more about getting involved with the MAC.