Emerging Tech

NASA Engineers Rapidly Create Ventilator Tailored to Treat COVID-19 Patients

The new device is under Food and Drug Administration review for emergency-use authorization.

Cybersecurity

CISA’s Coming Supply Chain Guidance to Align with Pentagon’s Vendor Certification Program 

Accreditation officials also pledged to address how the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program will treat FedRAMP and other certifications.

Artificial Intelligence

Defense is Embracing Robotic Process Automation But It’s Not Yet Scaling It

Bot security and varying cloud infrastructure could make it tough for the Pentagon to spread RPA tools. 

Artificial Intelligence

The Pentagon Will Use AI to Predict Panic Buying, COVID-19 Hotspots

The prototype can predict trends in supply and demand and infection down to the zip code.

Artificial Intelligence

Critical Update: How the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Plans to Run ‘Better, Cheaper, Faster’ Tech

Chief Information Officer Jamie Holcombe and his team are stabilizing and modernizing IT to help meet growing demands in a changing marketplace.

Policy

Bill Proposes $2 Billion to Help Students Get Online During the Pandemic

The legislation would mandate the Federal Communications Commission to distribute funds for Wi-Fi hotspots and other devices for internet connectivity.

Cybersecurity

The Pentagon’s Cybersecurity Certification Plan Includes Continuously Monitoring Contractors  

A request for proposals outlines a portal where auditors would get automatic notifications if a company’s security score dips below a specified threshold.

Emerging Tech

Navy Taps Undersea Consortium to Work on 15 Advanced Tech Problems

Members of the Undersea Technology Innovation Consortium will get a chance to work on prototypes for everything from underwater drones to advanced weapons systems.

Emerging Tech

COVID-19 Contact Tracing App Uses Bluetooth 'Garbage'

To work best, the app requires many people to use it, whether they have had COVID-19 or not.

Ideas

New Government Technology Could Herald Our New Normal

Perhaps we can get back to something akin to normal but in a safer way.

Artificial Intelligence

DARPA Wants Tech That Can Trick Computer Vision

Neural networks can adapt and learn to identify and classify objects but they can also be stumped by cleverly placed pixels. 

Emerging Tech

To Understand the Medical Supply Shortage, It Helps to Know How the U.S. Lost the Lithium Ion Battery to China

The failed U.S. effort to dominate global production of the lithium ion battery — which is key to energy independence, automobile innovation and more — holds lessons for leaders grappling with the U.S.’s reliance on China for emergency medical supplies.

Emerging Tech

Air Force Turns Focus to Flying Cars

A virtual conference will kick off the service’s Agility Prime initiative to operationalize flying cars.

Modernization

Survey: Most Federal Officials Expect Cloud Service Providers to Secure Their Data

Report validates federal officials’ concerns about inaccurate assumptions in the new environment of “shared responsibility.”

Digital Government

Self-Reported Symptoms Pave Way for COVID-19 Forecasting

Researchers are gathering self-reported descriptions of COVID-19-related symptoms nationwide with the help of Facebook and GoogleSelf.

Artificial Intelligence

Army Wants to Study How Humans Team With AI—And Vice Versa

A new contract will focus on the teaming aspect of artificial intelligence in warfare by analyzing how humans and machines think when working together.

Modernization

VA and DOD Now Default to Sharing Patient Data with Private-Sector Providers

The joint electronic health records management office launched an information exchange program to make it easier to share patient data with thousands of “community partners.”

Digital Government

States Start Hiring Battalions of Contact Tracers to Track Covid-19

As governors look to loosen coronavirus restrictions, a key benchmark will be improving the ability to track and isolate new cases. That will include more “contact tracers,” investigators who track down those who’ve come in contact with infected people.