20 November 2024

Pentagon's Software Approval Process Is Crushing Innovation

Aiden Buzzetti

Pentagon's Software Approval Process Is Crushing Innovation When We Need It Most

The Department of Defense is actively undermining our national security, and most Americans don't even know it's happening. It isn’t happening because of any nefarious plot or external threat, but through a bureaucratic approval process that's choking competition while holding technological innovation within our military.

The current Authority to Operate (ATO) process – the system for certifying new software for military use – is one of the most antiquated in government. It's too slow, too expensive, and ultimately serves to create a monopoly that benefits a handful of large defense contractors while shutting out new and innovative solutions from startups our warfighters desperately need.

Here's what this means in practical terms: Imagine you're a small tech company that has developed breakthrough artificial intelligence software that could save soldiers' lives by detecting threats before they become lethal. Under the current system, you would need to spend millions of dollars and wait years just to get your software approved for military use. Most small companies simply can't afford this waiting game, and it’s possible that the barriers push our best innovators away from defense work entirely.

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