Air Force lab awards $15 million for autonomous battle management network
The Air Force Research Laboratory has given Assured Information Security $14.9 million to develop the intelligence engine for the Agile, Assured and Autonomous Battle Management Network. The company will design, integrate, and validate the system's automated reasoning and decision support capabilities. The contract was issued under the Small Business Innovation Research Strategic Breakthrough authority, bypassing competitive bidding.
The Air Force Research Laboratory's September award directs the New York-based firm to construct the core cognitive systems for the Agile, Assured and Autonomous Battle Management Network. The company will handle design, integration, and validation of the platform's automated reasoning and decision-support capabilities, according to the contract notice.
The agreement was executed under the Small Business Innovation Research Strategic Breakthrough authority, a mechanism that permits the Defense Department to bypass competitive bidding. This approach is intended to accelerate promising small-business technologies into operational military use.
This program could reshape how military commanders process battlefield information, potentially reducing human workload in time-sensitive operations. If successful, autonomous decision support may influence how the Air Force approaches future command-and-control systems, though questions about human oversight and reliability will likely accompany deployment. Defense contractors and small technology firms could see new opportunities, while broader adoption may raise concerns about automation in combat decision-making.