Industry News

Tyvak Nanosatellite Systems has been awarded a contract to build a series of miniaturized satellites to support missions under NASA‘s Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator program. NASA said Wednesday its Small Spacecraft Technology Program will use CubeSats from the company with government-furnished technology payloads to conduct multiple flight demonstrations. Tyvak will develop a six-unit CubeSat equipped with solar arrays designed to supply at least […] More

A U.S. Navy official has said the service branch plans to issue this month a request for proposals for a program that seeks to develop a network of large underwater unmanned systems designed to function as communication tools, Defense News reported Tuesday. Valerie Insinna writes Capt. Jon Rucker said at a briefing at the Surface Navy […] More

The Defense Department has authorized the sale of Raytheon‘s Standard Missile-6  offering to international customers that seek to adopt the platform to support their shipbuilding programs. Raytheon said Tuesday SM-6 is designed to protect naval ships against ballistic and cruise missiles, fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles. Mike Campisi, SM-6 senior program director at Raytheon, said international navies seek […] More

SGT has been awarded a three-year, $45 million contract to supply meteorological observational data from non-federal observing networks to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA plans to use the observation data to support meteorological, hydrologic and related environmental observing systems that are designed to facilitate local-scale weather event prediction, SGT said Monday. SGT will collaborate with Earth […] More

LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Omidyar Network and other institutions have created a potential $27 million fund that seeks to consider ethical and accountability issues in research and development of artificial intelligence. The MIT Media Lab and Harvard University’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society will act as […] More

The U.S. Navy plans to award a contract modification to BAE Systems to continue development work on a pulsed power system for the service branch’s electromagnetic railgun, Military & Aerospace Electronics reported Monday. John Keller writes Naval Sea Systems Command officials said the sole-source contract to be awarded to BAE’s platforms and services business segment will also cover […] More

International technology conglomerate GMV has entered into an investment agreement with PLD Space to further develop the latter’s small launch vehicles. PLD Space said Monday it will collaborate with GMV to develop the flight software, guidance, navigation, telemetry and control systems of the ARION 1 and ARION 2 rockets. GMV’s endorsement helped PLD Space raise $7 million through two investment vehicles and funds […] More

Israel-based cybersecurity startup creator Team8 has secured investments from Microsoft‘s and Qualcomm‘s venture businesses, Reuters reported Monday. Tova Cohen writes that Team8 has raised more than $92 million so far and entered a strategic partnership with Citigroup to develop the former’s products. Team8 was founded by a group of military veterans who also seek to establish two new companies in 2017 in addition […] More

Airbus‘ defense and space business will produce a multi-mode radar platform for integration into the U.S. Coast Guard‘s ninth National Security Cutter as part of a contract awarded to Airbus DS Electronics and Border Security GmbH. The company said Monday its TRS-3D Baseline D MMR, also called AN/SPS-75, uses gallium nitride technology and offers traditional radar functions as well as other options for future […] More

The U.S. Navy has begun to consider whether to switch to Huntington Ingalls Industries to build the Flight III version of the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer due to a disagreement between the service branch and a General Dynamics subsidiary over a fixed-price contract, Defense News reported Sunday. Christopher P. Cavas writes General Dynamics’ Bath […] More