Pentagon Targets Emerging Smart Technologies to Pilot in 2021

Wearable sensors, neuromorphic computing capabilities inspired by the complex inner-workings of human brains, and holographic displays are among a diverse array of emerging and smart technologies Pentagon insiders are looking to pilot next year. 

A special notice published by the Defense Department’s Prototypes and Experiments Office Tuesday spells out potential areas of forthcoming exploration—and invites companies that could advance its priorities to apply to participate in a virtual solutions meeting set to be held in late spring 2021. 

“The meeting will provide selected innovative companies with an opportunity to make short technical presentations to government representatives about their technologies and products,” the publication notes, adding that there’s “a potential for companies to be selected for pilot projects or experimentation if their technology appears to match the needs” listed. 

The work will be conducted on behalf of the Air Force Warfighter Integration Center and its Disruptive Technologies Team, as well as the 711th Human Performance Wing of the Air Force Research Laboratory. Collectively, they intend to advance “agility operations through just-in-time training technologies that promote warfighter adaptability to support multi-mission operational requirements in austere environments.”

Solutions for potential prototypes are listed across five general focus areas: modeling and simulation; computing at the edge; health and human performance and remediation; telemaintenance applications; and psychometrics. 

Specifically, within those realms, the entities involved are looking to pilot and explore smart fabrics and sensors, predictive models for performance, brain machine interface technologies, analytic tools for low connectivity environments, electroceuticals or devices that provide treatment through electrical impulses—and much more. 

Applications will be accepted via email until 5 p.m. EST, Jan. 21.