NASA revives plans to build huge solar power plants in space
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Alot of the Sun’s energy is lost as the sun’s rays travel through the Earth’s atmosphere, so countries are now advancing plans to build solar power plants in orbit. Interested in the Exponential Future? Connect, download a free E-Book, watch a keynote, or browse my blog. Fifty years ago...
US military genetics program to turn marine life into giant living sensor networks
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As we learn more about the genetic code and how to modify it organisations around the world are starting to look into new ways of turning nature to their advantage. A few months ago I wrote about how DARPA, the bleeding edge research arm...
US Navy puts AI brains into its 3D printers to make them “creative and intelligent”
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF By combining the power of AI with 3D printing the US military hopes to revolutionise how products are designed and made everywhere. One thing about aircraft, especially ones that fly from aircraft carriers, that are increasingly being turned into floating factories and flying fortresses,...
New omniphobic material reduces maritime fuel consumption by upto 80 percent
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Today’s ships use huge amounts of energy and fuel to move through the water because of the amount of drag on their hulls, this new coating could reduce fuel use by between 40 and 80 percent. Shipping is one of the most polluting industries...
DARPA hands the world’s first fully autonomous drone warship to the US Navy
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The Sea Hunter is the world’s first fully autonomous warship, and it’s just passed trials – next stop official duty. After just under a year at sea DARPA has finally completed the sea trials of the world’s first fully autonomous warship, Sea Hunter, a...
DARPA’s TERN drone gives US Marines a new wingman
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Most of today’s drones are limited by the distances they can fly and the payloads they can carry, now the US wants an eye in the sky that can help protect, and resupply troops wherever they are Terns are a family of shorebirds that...
US Navy protects Chesapeake Bay with swarms of its latest robotic boats
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Military leaders are increasingly using autonomous drones, robots and platforms to assess, defend and engage targets around the world. The US Navy’s Office of Naval Research (ONR) recently showed off the progress it’s making in the area of robotic warfare with a demonstration of...
US Navy’s autonomous submarine hunter begins operational trials
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Many navies around the world are going all in on autonomous boats, ships and platforms, the Sea Hunter will be the first of many such systems that enter service after 2017. Main contractor Leidos has announced that it is starting operational trials of the...
Drones are fighting back against laser attacks
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Drones are seen by many military and terrorist organisations around the world as the new weapons platform of choice and working out new ways to destroy and disable them is a top priority but it’s a game of cat and mouse. Back in 2014,...
The US Navy announced it will build a global network of undersea drone highways
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF New technologies, combined with a renewed global focus on defence and security, have kicked off a new arms race and every corner, every theatre and every environment on Earth, and in space, seems to be fair game. As unmanned aerial drones have become a...
The US Marines want to build a fully autonomous F-35
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As weapons systems, and war, become more autonomous it is inevitable that the US, Chinese, Indian and Russian military will continue to push the boundaries of unmanned combat. The US Marine Corps is in the looking to obtaining what it calls a “mega-drone” that...
New US Navy launcher fires swarms of autonomous drones into the sky
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The US Navy launches drone swarms to give its adversaries a new headache to deal with. Following on from a DARPA’s announcement earlier this year about creating a new “Drone Swarm” program with Lockheed, the US Navy’s Office of Naval Research (ONR) have announced that they...
US defense contractors announce directed energy weapons are ready for prime time
Directed energy weapons are coming of age For years, the Pentagon has pursued the dream of directed energy weapons, laser weapons, that could defeat a foes arsenal of weapons – from small inflatable ribs and tanks to ICBM’s and hypersonic drones – for pennies when compared with the expensive multi...
The world’s first fully autonomous warship aces sea trials
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The US Navy’s trials of their first autonomous warship platform have been wildly successful. The US Navy’s new unarmed Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV) Sea Hunter has completed its first round of sea trials and it aced all of its tests for speed, manoeuvrability,...
America launches the worlds first fully autonomous submarine hunter
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF We are entering the age of fully autonomous warfare and inevitably, one day, humans will not be in the loop The US military have launched their first experimental, fully autonomous self-driving warship, dubbed Sea Hunter, and representing a major advance in robotic warfare, which...
