Steve Wallace, the agency’s chief technology officer, said at the 2024 TechNet Cyber conference presented by the Armed Forces Communications & Electronics Association International that this is a way of getting at a common problem in the Defense Department: a focus on emerging technology without a clear understanding of the problem its intended to solve.

“How does the department understand what you all can bring forward?” he said to a crowd of industry leaders and other cyber professionals in Baltimore June 26. “And then at the same time, how do you understand what the heck we actually need? There’s always that friction there.”

It’s not just an attempt to speed up the acquisitions process as the Pentagon is in a race for digital dominance against China and other nation-state hackers. So much of the conversation around cybersecurity in national defense is around pacing, but with industry constantly coming to market with new tools, there’s a need by government to be a wary purchaser.

These problem statements are a potential way for the Defense Department buy the tools, not just the shiniest ones.

“I think there is that risk that we get excited by new things — which are exciting — and we want to play with them and explore and see what’s possible,” said Scarlett Swerdlow, a senior technical strategist in the DISA’s Emerging Technology Directorate. “But at the end of the day, we have to make sure we’re solving a real problem that a real person has.”

The government often tries to emulate industry. But startups in Silicon Valley aren’t tied to a congressional budget cycle. And they have the room, and often the in-house expertise, to fail fast and pivot often. And though the Defense Department is at the mercy of a constantly changing threat landscape, DISA officials said at the conference that it can be enough for DoD to allow industry to do what it does best and be an evaluator when it comes time to settle on a solution.

“It is our ability to interface with industry, but knowing that the dollars that mature the technology are industry dollars, and not tax dollars, and then understanding where to apply some tactical patience as industry develops tech and [then we] insert ourselves,” said Army Maj. David Courter, chief of combatant command plan integration with the J-5. “I think that’s much different than us writing an initial capabilities document and saying, ‘I need you to build this cool tool.’”

Cautionary tale

One cautionary tale came to mind: the Joint Regional Security Stacks, an ambitious plan to massively consolidate the DoD’s sprawling IT infrastructure that set to be wound down in 2021 following reports of cost overruns and unresolved complexities.

At inception, it was supposed to be a gamechanger for the department, but a 2019 inspector general audit revealed it ultimately wasn’t meeting end users’ needs.

“The whole notion behind JRSS was best of breed for every component in the doggone stack,” Wallace said. “We are going to have the very best of everything. And then we are going to attempt to integrate or interoperate between all these components. Didn’t go well.”

The other issue is ensuring that DoD can verify for itself whether a tool actually does what it claims to do when its adapted for military or defense purposes. That comes into play when the department thinks about how buying one system must be able to operate with existing ones and those to come.

“[That’s] another reason to add that in-house talent that can … test some of those claims that products make,” said Swerdlow.

The command did not identify the ship involved, and multiple Navy destroyers have spent recent months there intercepting drones and missiles on a near-daily basis that were fired by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Wednesday’s incident took place over 20 minutes starting at 2 a.m. local time, according to CENTCOM.

The warship took the drones out in self-defense, and no injuries or damage were reported to U.S. and coalition ships there.

“It was determined these weapons presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region,” CENTCOM said in a statement. “These actions are taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for U.S. Navy and merchant vessels.”

The attack came after a three-day lull in Houthi attacks reported by CENTCOM, a respite from the near-daily firing of weapons by Houthis, and Navy strikes against Houthis weapons on the ground in Yemen.

“No U.S. boots will be on the ground,” Biden said. “A temporary pier will enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Gaza every day. And Israel must also do its part. Israel must allow more aid into Gaza and ensure that humanitarian workers aren’t caught in the cross fire.

“To the leadership of Israel I say this: Humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip.”

Senior administration officials told reporters earlier Thursday the mission would route humanitarian aid through Cyprus to the temporary port in Gaza. The White House is also pushing Israel and Egypt to allow more aid through the land crossings at Rafah and Kerem Shalom.

The announcement, which drew bipartisan applause from lawmakers gathered, came amid calls from Biden for Congress to pass his long-stalled foreign aid bill to arm Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan.

The Senate passed the $95 billion foreign aid plan by a 70-29 vote in February. It includes $14 billion in Israel military aid, $48 billion in security assistance for Ukraine and $4 billion to arm Taiwan.

Israel receives an annual $3.8 billion in U.S. military aid, but the White House has said the Defense Department lacks the replenishment funds needed to continue arming Ukraine from U.S. stockpiles.

There’s also $2.4 billion in the bill for U.S. Central Command to respond to the uptick in attacks on American forces since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023; as well as $542 million for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in response to its fiscal 2024 unfunded priorities list.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has so far refused to put the bill on the floor amid growing resistance to additional Ukraine aid from Republican lawmakers as well as opposition from former President Donald Trump, the frontrunner in the GOP presidential primary race.

“Now assistance to Ukraine is being blocked by those who want to walk away from our world leadership,” said Biden, invoking former Republican President Ronald Reagan. “Now my predecessor tells Putin ‘do whatever the hell you want.”

The reference to Trump’s remarks at a campaign rally last month in which the former president voiced frustration with some NATO allies underspending on defense drew “boos” from Republicans in the crowd.

“Send me the bipartisan National Security Bill. History is watching,” Biden said, staring down Republican members of Congress who have opposed the measure. “If the United States walks away now, it will put Ukraine at risk, Europe at risk, the free world at risk, emboldening others who wish to do us harm.”

Biden also promised a strong response to other national security threats, including strikes to degrade Houthi capabilities in the Red Sea. “As commander in chief, I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and military personnel.”

Despite limited details about the plan for a humanitarian port, the idea drew immediate praise from Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed, D-R.I., and fellow panel member Angus King, I-Maine, who last week urged the administration to deploy a Navy hospital ship to the region.

“The civilian suffering in Gaza must be alleviated, and a maritime aid route will enable large quantities of food, shelter, and medical supplies to be delivered to those who need it most,” the pair said in a statement. “This temporary port, along with the ongoing airdrop campaign, will help ease the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.”

NORAD fighter pilots sent in the morning to investigate the balloon determined it was “not maneuverable” and did not present a threat to national security, spokesperson John Cornelio said. The balloon was still in the air, under close observation.

NORAD, a joint military command tasked with defending the airspace over the U.S. and Canada, has not said where the balloon came from or why it was flying over Utah and Colorado.

There has been heightened interest in reports of balloon overflights after the military identified — and eventually shot down — a large, white Chinese spy balloon that crossed much of the country last year. But officials said the balloon intercepted Friday was not sent by a foreign adversary and posed no threat to aviation or U.S. security.

NORAD said it was continuing to coordinate with the Federal Aviation Administration to track and monitor the balloon, which was detected at an altitude varying between 43,000 feet (13,100 meters) and 45,000 feet (13,700 meters), Cornelio said. NORAD declined to specify where in Utah pilots encountered it.

Early reports of the balloon sighting had raised concern among lawmakers including U.S. Sen. Jon Tester and U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale of Montana, who said their offices were monitoring the situation. The office of Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said it had been in touch with local military officials.

The Chinese balloon that was downed last year off the coast of South Carolina after a weeklong path over multiple military sites was part of a global surveillance program that Beijing has been conducting for “several years,” according to the Pentagon. It was outfitted with advanced technology designed to collect intelligence signals, the Biden administration said.

China denied that it was conducting military surveillance and said it was a civilian balloon that accidentally veered off course while collecting weather data. After it was shot down, Chinese officials said they reserved the right to “take further actions” and criticized the U.S. for “an obvious overreaction and a serious violation of international practice.”

Similar spy balloons linked to the People’s Liberation Army — the military wing of China’s ruling Communist Party — have been detected floating over five continents. Just last month, Taiwan’s Defense Ministry detected four Chinese balloons, including three reportedly flying by a key air force base.

League, FBI and Secret Service officials and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said there have not been any “specific or credible” threats to Sunday’s championship game at Allegiant Stadium. But they said they were looking for them.

Mayorkas, in his first public appearance since the U.S. House of Representatives failed in a vote on Tuesday to impeach him, cut short a question about that and dismissed as “baseless” the allegations that led Republicans in Congress to try to force him from the Biden Administration cabinet. They include claims that Mayorkas hasn’t properly enforced immigration laws to secure the U.S. border with Mexico and accusations that he lied in telling Congress that the border is secure.

“I’m focused on the work,” Mayorkas said, “that’s what brings me to Las Vegas today.”

The Homeland secretary shared the reason for a seven-minute timeout that paused the AFC championship game between the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs on Jan 28. He said an unmanned drone aircraft had been detected over Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium. Authorities later reported they followed the aircraft and arrested a Pennsylvania man on felony charges.

“Please leave your drones, umbrellas, selfie sticks and weapons of any kind at home,” NFL Chief Security Officer Cathy Lanier told the media on Wednesday. “Super Bowl is a no-drone zone.”

Karon Ransom, U.S. Secret Service agent in charge in Las Vegas, put the number of federal law enforcement agents in Las Vegas for the Super Bowl and related events at 750. She termed the effort a “whole of government approach.”

Spencer Evans, special agent in charge of the FBI Las Vegas office, said his agency was “monitoring and sharing” with other agencies “and appropriate private-sector partners” what he called “every scrap of information that indicates a potential threat” from “criminal actors or a hostile nation-state.”

“This includes threat intelligence gleaned from social media or open source materials, our own databases and our U.S. intelligence community,” Evans said.

Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill issued a familiar call for people who see something to say something and noted that Las Vegas has hosted a series of recent headline-grabbing events: the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix in November; a University of Nevada, Las Vegas shooting in December; New Year’s Eve fireworks that drew hundreds of thousands of revelers to the Las Vegas Strip.

McMahill, head of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, also somberly referred to lessons learned from the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, when a gunman opened fire in October 2017 from windows of a high-rise casino hotel and killed 58 people at an outdoor concert crowd of 20,000 on the Strip. Several other deaths have since been attributed to wounds received that night.

At least 65,000 people are expected at Allegiant Stadium for the Super Bowl, and Las Vegas tourism officials estimate the number of hotel guests and visitors in the area will top 330,000.

“Anything suspicious, report it,” McMahill said. “Let us do the leg work to determine if the threat is real.”

The sheriff added that while he was at Wednesday’s media event, he was notified that officers were pursuing a man who had climbed to the top of the Las Vegas Sphere.

“We know that people are going to test us,” McMahill said from the podium. “We know people are going to try things. We know these things are going to happen. We’re going to deal with them as they come up and make sure we have the safest Super Bowl we’ve ever had.”

The media briefing followed another security-themed event Monday when federal, state and local officials at Harry Reid International Airport said they were taking steps to crimp counterfeiting, ground drones and curb human trafficking during Super Bowl week.

Displaying a table piled high with fake sports memorabilia including jerseys, T-shirts, caps and a silver replica of the Vince Lombardi Super Bowl trophy, officials said investigators seized nearly $1 million worth of counterfeit merchandise over the weekend.

They said Customs and Border Enforcement helicopters would enforce air space restrictions, using drone takeover signals and jammers if necessary, and Transportation Security Administration agents had been trained to spot human trafficking.

Representatives from agencies including Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and the Transportation Security Administration — accompanied by a bomb-sniffing beagle named Ozzie — briefed the media at Harry Reid International Airport about their plans to counter such illegal activity.

The officials displayed a table piled high with knockoff sports memorabilia including jerseys, T-shirts, caps, beanies and a sparkling silver replica of the Vince Lombardi Super Bowl trophy.

“The merchandise you see on display today is nothing compared to the millions of fake goods that criminals will try to sell online, on the street and through other unauthorized sources,” said Cheryl Davies, lead Super Bowl field coordinator for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “Our message is clear: Don’t buy this stuff.”

“We have collectively surged resources in the months leading up to the Super Bowl to identify and target individuals illegally importing counterfeit goods into the United States,” said Christopher Miller, Homeland Security Investigations agent in charge in Las Vegas.

Investigators seized nearly $1 million worth of counterfeit merchandise from four locations just during the last weekend, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford said after the briefing. He declined to provide details, saying investigations were continuing.

The air around Allegiant Stadium next Sunday has been designated by the Federal Aviation Administration as a “no drone zone.” Takeover signals and jammers will be used if necessary, said Karen Burke, TSA Nevada security director.

Commercial air operations at nearby Harry Reid Airport are not expected to be affected. But Davies said customs agency Blackhawk and A-star helicopters will be aloft to protect airspace and enforce no-fly zones.

Ralph Lepore, an airport administrator with the Clark County Department of Aviation, focused on efforts to stem human trafficking, which he said was neither new nor exclusive to big events.

“We’re reminding all our employees, partners and guests to be alert and act if they see something suspicious,” he said. “It’s extremely important.”

Burke noted that TSA officers were trained to spot human trafficking and that extra agents will be added to handle record post-game crowds expected to top more than 100,000 passengers a day early next week at Harry Reid airport. She promised that every lane of every airport security checkpoint will be open nonstop for 48 hours after the Super Bowl ends.

Lt. Gen. Michael Schmidt, program executive officer for the F-35, declined to identify to reporters the capabilities sent to Israel in the two-plus months following the attack, noting the program strives to keep all nations flying the jet supplied with spare parts and capabilities.

But speaking with reporters after a hearing before the House Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces, Schmidt confirmed the improvements rushed to Israel occurred after Hamas’ deadly attack that killed at least 1,200 people. The Palestinian Health Ministry said more than 18,000 people have died as a result of subsequent Israeli air and ground attacks in the Gaza Strip.

Bill LaPlante, the U.S. undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said at the hearing the F-35 program was recently able to hurry updated mission data files to a nation in a week or week and a half. Schmidt confirmed after the hearing that LaPlante was referring to Israel.

Mission data files are a “brick,” as LaPlante described them, containing the jet’s memory of threats it might encounter on an operation and other information needed for combat.

The F-35 program “is still not where it needs to be on these mission data files,” LaPlante said. But the recent rapid updating of these files is a good sign, he added, and the lessons learned from doing so will be used across the program.

LaPlante said in written remarks that Israel has 35 of its 39 F-35s operating and carrying out missions, with the help of a surge in sustainment support to maximize the nation’s aircraft readiness.

The subcommittee’s chairman, Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va., said at Tuesday’s hearing the F-35 Joint Program Office “moved at a breakneck speed” to support Israel by accelerating its jets’ weapons capabilities and increasing the flow of spare parts.

Schmidt told lawmakers Israel’s F-35s have performed “absolutely outstanding” in its war to eliminate Hamas, with high rates of aircraft able to carry out their missions.

“We have added some capabilities to that airplane in a very short period of time,” he said. “Our team is doing everything we can to continue to move the ball forward there.”

She’s scheduled to leave on Tuesday and return on Nov. 2, and will be accompanied by her husband, Douglas Emhoff, according to her office.

Harris will deliver a speech outlining the Democratic administration’s approach to AI on Nov. 1 before attending a summit on the topic the next day. Emhoff is expected to participate in events with civil society groups and young leaders focused on science learning, gender equity and countering hate.

Kirsten Allen, a spokeswoman for Harris, said the goal is a future “where every person is safe from the harms of AI and where every person can share equally in its benefits.”

Governments around the globe are racing to set guidelines for artificial intelligence. Besides Biden’s executive order, the European Union is putting the final touches on a comprehensive set of regulations that targets the riskiest applications for the technology.

U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hopes to carve out a prominent role for Britain on the issue, and next week’s summit will be held at Bletchley Park, a historic estate north of London that once served as a base for World War II codebreakers. Teams at what’s dubbed the spiritual home of modern computing were able to crack the Nazis’ Enigma cipher, helping to end the war.

The summit will focus on the risks from what’s known as frontier AI, which is cutting edge systems that can carry out a wide range of tasks and pose unknown risks to public safety. These systems are underpinned by large language models, which are trained on vast pools of text and data.