Weekly News Update: Aug 18, 2023
12 - 18 Aug 2023
Good morning!
This week has been a pretty standard one for 2023. Nobody knows if the Musk-Zuckerberg cage fight is going to happen, but it’s looking less and less likely. Equity markets are all down this week, as signals from the Fed suggest that there will be more interest rate hikes, in a bid to stave off a recession. But we’re not alone; China’s economy continues to look bleaker. China and North Korea continue cozying up to Russia—even as the U.S. has asked Iran to stop providing Russia with drones that Russia has been using to attack Ukraine. Russia, India, China, the U.S. all race towards the ice-rich Lunar south pole.
Read more about the issues surrounding aerospace and defense technology below.
Weekly News Round Up
Military
U.S. Defense modernization and innovation
Congress begins mulling continuing resolutions to avoid gov’t shutdown (AP)
Pentagon releases first ever biodefense posture review (WP)
Missile Defense Agency: laser weapons finally seeing ‘real progress’ (BD)
Air Force gets a new CIO, Venice Goodwine (ASF)
Former Air Force Asst. Secretary Will Roper wants the Pentagon to be more like Formula One, still (BD)
Air Force considers training changes across all special ops jobs (AFT)
Air Force adopts mission command, pushes for greater trust and autonomy (AFT)
Army, Clemson Univ team up on Deep Orange 14 unmanned ground vehicle (BD)
Army expands production of 3d-printed parts for vehicles (BD)
Army set to test combined cyber, jamming, signal intelligence tool (C4)
Space Force gets its first “targeting squadron” (ASF)
Europe, Russia, the Arctic, NATO, and the war in Ukraine
U.S. clears delivery of F-16s from Denmark, Netherlands to Ukraine (AP)
Suspected spies for Russia arrested in UK; Russia’s central bank hikes rates to 12% (CNBC)
U.S. ambassador to Russia meets with detained WSJ reporter (WSJ)
U.S. Secretary of State speaks with detained American accused of spying (CNN)
Russian military planes ‘detected and tracked’ in Alaska air defense zone (TH)
The U.S. asks Iran to stop selling drones to Russia (RT)
Danish air force intercepts Russian bombers headed to Dutch NATO airspace (RT)
Latvia joins Poland in deployments to Belarus border (AlJ)
Czechs ratify U.S. treaty making it easier to deploy U.S. troops there (MT)
Qatari seaport operator QTerminals will acquire Kramer Group's majority stake in the Netherlands' port of Rotterdam (RT)
China, Korea, and Asia
China appears to be building an airstrip on disputed island in Paracels (MT)
China cuts key rates as weak batch of July data darkens economic outlook (RT)
Chinese defense minister to visit Russia, Belarus in show of support (MT)
66% of Americans: we need to do more to prepare for China military threats (TH)
N. Korea vows solidarity with Russia in letter to Putin (WP)
N. Korea prepares military actions to protest U.S.-Japan-S. Korea summit (RT)
U.S. Marines, Navy deliver aid to Papua New Guinea after volcanic eruptions (S&S)
Middle East and Africa
BRICS nations to meet in South Africa seeking to blunt Western dominance (RT)
More than a dozen Niger soldiers killed in attack near Mali border (AlJ)
Sudan’s military leader accuses rival of war crimes (AlJ)
An ISIS affiliate expands in central Africa (WP)
U.S. Defense Industry News
US SBA expands $5B program to attract more VC funds (AX)
HII launches new destroyer, USS Ted Stevens (S&S)
Electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft developer Horizon Aircraft is merging with Pono Capital III in a $216M deal (GNW)
JetZero wins award to prototype energy-saving blended wing body aircraft for Air Force (AFT)
Lockheed awarded $622M Navy FMS contract for German F-35 program management support (GC)
Satellite startup True Anomaly opens Colorado factory (C4)
Foreign Defense Industry News
Germany, Norway send new reconnaissance drone, counter-drone systems to Ukraine (DN)
Israel says Arrow-3 missile-killer sale to Germany approved by U.S. (RT)
Israeli firm, UVision, looks to expand Arctic footprint of loitering munitions (DN)
Poland buys 400+ light recon, heavy infantry, and armored personnel vehicles (BD)
In a first, Saudi drone to be produced in Turkey (BD)
Turkey to arm 11 naval platforms with Atmaca missiles (DN)
UK multinational defense contractor BAE Systems is in talks to buy beer can supplier Ball Corp’s aerospace division for as much as $5B, which will allow the firm to focus on packaging operations (BBG)
Space
DARPA kicks-off LunA-10 program exploring tech needed for lunar economy (C4)
Italian team wins Space Force’s first on-orbit Hack-A-Sat contest (BD)
India’s Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander separates from propulsion module as it prepares for landing (IE)
Russia’s Luna-25 moon lander reaches lunar orbit (Sp)
Next big space business could be satellites taking pictures of other satellites (DO)
NASA affirms commitment to support an operational private space stations before ISS retirement in 2030 (Sp)
Rare look into the finances of Elon Musk’s secretive SpaceX (WSJ)
SpaceX wrote down $373M of Bitcoin and may have sold all of its holdings (CT)
NASA opens up CubeSat launch initiative (SAM)
Space Force releases forecast of Satellite Communications solicitations (SAM)
Defense Intel Agency released forecast of FY24 space-related solicitations (SAM)
Nuclear Power & Weapons
Russia deploying hypersonic missiles on new nuclear submarines (TH)
NATO Secretary General: ‘No change in Russian nuclear posture’ (RT)
U.S. nuclear boss says China’s arms program not slowing down (NA)
SHINE claims Cherenkov light for first time in fusion setup (WNN)
General Fusion, a nuclear fusion startup, raised a $25M Series F led by BDC Capital and GIC (FN)
Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Energy, and other cool tech
ChatGPT maker OpenAI acquired Global Illumination so that the digital products startup’s team can work on OpenAI’s core products (RT)
How Amazon is racing to catch Microsoft and Google in generative AI with custom AWS chips (CNBC)
Microsoft is planning an AI service with Databricks that could hurt OpenAI (TI)
Meta Platforms is preparing to launch software to help developers automatically generate programming code (TI)
Battery materials producer Mitra Chem raised a $60M Series B led by General Motors (FN)
Sapphire Technologies, a developer and manufacturer of energy recovery systems for hydrogen and natural gas applications, raised a $10M Series B led by Energy Capital Ventures (FN)
Important Reads
Stephen Biddle offers his thoughts on why all the tech in Ukraine hasn’t revolutionized warfare there.
Lots claim “China is winning the tech race;” Jon Biddle says, “not so fast…” in this rethink of tech competition.
Jeffrey Parker, CEO of Defense Business Strategies, outlines how the Pentagon can demand, and contractors can provide greater value during defense acquisitions.
Lighter Side
A Triply Glowing Night Sky over Iceland
Credit & Copyright: Wioleta Gorecka; Text: Natalia Lewandowska (SUNY Oswego)
Keep building!
Andrew