Shaun Waterman
Recent stories by Shaun Waterman
Air Force Officials Say They’re Poised to Solve the Longstanding ‘Valley of Death’
The Air Force is finally poised to deal with the “Valley of Death” problem—the gulf between the invention of an innovative new technology and its deployment at scale to warfighters— leaders of the department’s science and technology enterprise told defense industry executives Aug 27.
Pentagon Contest Develops AI Tools to Find and Patch Dangerous IT Flaws
The Pentagon’s cutting-edge technology research agency awarded cash prizes worth $8.5 million at hacker conference DEFCON last week as part of a contest to build open-source generative AI tools that can help find and patch software vulnerabilities.
Can AI Help Targeteers Curb Civilian Casualties?
Following the carnage of trench warfare in World War I, airpower enthusiasts imagined a new kind of combat that would reduce the human toll of war. Yet even with today’s precision weapons, civilian casualties remain a constant. Now some see artificial intelligence as a means ...
Air Force’s Big IT Programs Need ‘Course Correction,’ General Says
The Air Force is reorganizing the office that runs some of its most complex and expensive combat connectivity programs, hoping a fresh start can repair trust with troops after failing to deliver new capabilities to the front lines in a timely manner, the two-star general ...
Space Force Aims to Share Classified Threat Info with Industry
The Space Force's neighborhood watch-style initiative to share information with the private sector about threats to space assets will eventually grow to include classified intelligence, the general in charge said last week.
Multi-Orbit SATCOM Is More Resilient—But Not Without Challenges, Officials Say
While the U.S. and its allies up their efforts to build out multi-orbit, multi-constellation satellite communications that are harder for an enemy to disrupt, officials noted technical and cost challenges, particularly for the user in the field.
NATO Will Follow Space Force Lead with a Single Front Door for Industry
Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.orgLAS VEGAS—NATO is following the Space Force’s lead in setting up a...
GPS Jamming Extends to Low-Earth Orbit as Pentagon Races to Bolster Constellation
The jamming of GPS signals around Ukraine has become so severe it is even affecting satellites up to 1,200 miles above the Earth’s surface—a striking example of why the Space Force and the Pentagon are moving to bolster the ubiquitous service, experts say.
Space Force Acquisition, Ops Units Team Up for More Capable Satellites
The Space Force stood up two new acquisition deltas focused on missile warning and space sensing this month, marking the next step in the service's push to link the teams that buy satellites with the ones that operate them, the head of Space Systems Command ...
Space Traffic Management’s Tricky Future: Smaller Satellites, More Threats
The traditional space traffic monitoring system for tracking satellites and debris circling the Earth, currently run by the Space Force, is under increasing strain because of the growing numbers of smaller satellites in orbit and growing threats.
How ’26 Defense Policy Bill Takes Aim at Speed, Ease of Technological Innovation
The competing House and Senate versions of the 2026 defense policy bill advancing through each chamber both contains provisions aimed at expanding or speeding up efforts to get new software and technology into the hands of warfighters.
Defense Policy Nominee Has Advocated Merging NRO and Space System Command
Combining the National Reconnaissance Office with the Space Force's Space Systems Command could help turbocharge national security space acquisition, argues Mark Berkowitz, the Trump administration's nominee to be assistant secretary of defense for space policy, in a newly published essay he coauthored.
Space Force Adjusts as Commerce Cuts Space Traffic Management Program
The first Trump administration moved to relieve the Space Force of its burden to monitor and warn civilian space operators about potential space traffic hazards. But now, just as the Commerce Department’s new Traffic Coordination System for Space (TraCSS) program is nearly ready, the second ...
Space Force Boosting an Ecosystem of GPS Alternatives in Low-Earth Orbit
The Space Force is playing midwife to a new ecosystem of commercial satellite constellations providing alternatives to the service’s own Global Positioning Service from much closer to the Earth, making their signals more accurate and harder to jam.
Army Blocks Air Force’s AI Program Over Data Security Concerns
The Army has blocked the Air Force generative AI chatbot, NIPRGPT, from its networks, citing cybersecurity and data governance and highlighting the challenges the U.S. military faces in assessing risk when adopting cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence.
