Sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR), this technology competition encouraged creative “hackers” to help meet the needs of the Fleet by developing and integrating unmanned and autonomous systems at scale.
Chief of Naval Research, Rear Adm. Lorin Selby, helped kick off the event, speaking about innovating in the Navy, including the notion of “the small, the agile, the many.” The idea behind that is they look at small, attritable autonomous platforms and build them quickly and at scale, to complement the larger, expensive platforms that form the bulk of the Fleet and Force. For more information about their new vision, read their press release: ONR Chief Unveils New Vision to Reimagine Naval Power.
“The centerpiece of my strategy to reimagine naval power as Chief of Naval Research is built on a few key themes. First, we are living in a time of incredible technological change, and we must meet the moment with bold action. Second, we will introduce the idea of Strategic Hedge against an alternative future. Third, we have a plan to synthesize the most creative and potentially game changing ideas of the last three decades into a plan of action,” said Selby. “Finally, we conclude with a call to action, which all begins with exploring digital challenges at HACKtheMACHINE.”