The Air Force expects its artificial intelligence acquisition helper, developed with the goal of getting more small businesses involved in military acquisition, to go beta by the end of the year and begin to broaden the number of companies participating in the contracting process. AQ Prime, a website that uses cognitive computing to respond to questions from prospective contractors, is currently in the prototype phase, said Camron Gorguinpour, the director of transformational innovation in the Air Force, said during the Defense One Tech Summit on Friday in Washington, D.C. The goal is to let companies “navigate the complex bureaucracy” by asking questions on how to get involved in Air Force acquisition and receive answers in a conversational type, with the AI using previous questions to improve how it provides answers. The site is a product of Gorguinpour’s transformational innovation office, which was developed two years ago to “go out and find innovative ideas” to improve Air Force acquisition, he said.
Navy Adm. Samuel J. Paparo Jr. assumed leadership of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, succeeding Navy Adm. John Aquilino at a change of command ceremony, urging action amid China's “increasing intrusive and expansionist claims,” on May 3