Breaking Defense

Commercial firms with expertise in data analytics, machine learning and AI are the highest priority targets for new contract awards under the Air Force’s high-priority Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS), says service acquisition czar Will Roper.

And he wants them on board fast, he told reporters today, hoping awards can be made within a month to six weeks. Roper did not, however, provide an estimated value.

Roper said some 300 companies are participating in the ABMS Virtual Industry Days that started yesterday and run through tomorrow — including many outside the traditional DoD industrial base. Up to now, only about a dozen companies have been granted actual contracts under ABMS, a number of them major DoD contractors such as Northrop Grumman, he said.

Speaking in front of a virtual backdrop of the “Star Wars” Millennium Falcon, Roper said that desire is the key reason behind ABMS issuing not one, but three, Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs) to solicit industry input.

“We want a wide variety of companies, and we definitely want fresh blood in the ABMS competition pool,” Roper said. “There is a lot that can be contributed from companies that are commercially focused that know a lot about data, that know a lot about machine learning and AI, and that know a lot about analytics. Those are going to be the most important parts of the Advanced Battle Management System.”

Click here to read the rest of the article.