Weekly Update
22 - 28 April 2023
Continued fallout from the large intel leak. Ukraine is running low on air defense missiles. Iran seizes an oil tanker bound for Texas. The first attempted private lunar landing crashed into the moon. Turkey turns on its Russian-Turkish joint nuclear plant. Defense prime earnings calls went well.
Weekly News Round Up
Military
Europe, Russia, the Arctic, NATO, and the war in Ukraine
One Way Aerospace to demo Ukraine-made kamikaze drones for NATO (C4ISR)
Drones attack Sevastopol; crashed drone found near Moscow (AP)
Ukraine is running low on air defense missiles (BD)
U.S. Air National Guardsman leaked classified info for over a year (T&P)
U.S. Air Force shifts refueling mission from Germany to Poland (S&S)
FBI works with private industry to collect evidence of Russian war crime (RT)
German Air Force intercept Russian jets over Baltic Sea (DW)
Despite sanctions, Russian oligarchs add $152 billion into wealth (RT)
China, Korea, and Asia
Bi-partisan U.S. congressional bill seeks to arm Taiwan with cyber tech (C4ISR)
N. Korea rattles sabers, criticizes G-7, and calls nukes ‘stark reality’ (MT)
Australia overhauls defense strategy: less armor, more power projection (AP)
U.S. Air Force gets new leader in the Pacific (ASF)
Russia conducts anti-submarine drills in Sea of Japan (RT)
U.S. to dock nuclear sub in S. Korea for first time in 40 years (MT)
U.S. demonstrates HIMARS for Philippines six times, misses target (S&S)
China guided banks to cut deposit rates further to boost spending (RT)
Yuan overtook USD as most-used currency in China cross-border transactions (RT)
China ratchets up pressure on foreign firms (WSJ)
US believes Chinese cloud companies could pose security threat (RT)
Middle East and Africa
U.S. forces evacuated diplomatic staff from Sudan (MT)
China resumes buildup at suspected military site in UAE (WP)
Iran seized U.S.-bound oil tanker (NBC)
Russia trying to provoke U.S. in Syria (DO)
U.S. Defense modernization and innovation
Ransomware attack hits U.S. Navy shipyard, delays ship building (USNI)
Biden’s pick for new U.S. Army Chief announced (DN)
U.S. Army preps mission tech for future helicopter despite engine delay (DN)
U.S Army gets new head of program office for electronic warfare (C4ISR)
U.S. Army’s 101st Division uses EagleWerx program to spur innovation (C4ISR)
Pentagon stresses data-centric military (C4ISR)
Some officials think that zero-trust architecture could have limited intel leak (C4ISR)
Air Force to have air taxis at California base by next year (S&S)
Test of electronic warfare packages for U.S. Army’s AMPV to begin 2024 (C4ISR)
U.S. Defense Industry News
BlueHalo to provide U.S. Space Force with first mobile ground station (SN)
Light Steering Technologies win $1.25 million award from U.S. Air Force (SN)
Boeing pressure Congress to buy chinook helicopters, despite Army’s objections (DN)
Lockheed wins $4.8 billion contract for guided missiles (DN)
Raytheon beat on Q1 top and bottom lines on explosive Chinese demand for commercial aircraft spare parts amid on on-going global travel recovery (RT)
Boeing beat Q1 revenue estimates but posted a wider-than-expected loss due to abnormal costs and R&D expenses; the firm reaffirmed its FY FCF forecast (CNBC)
Foreign Defense Industry News
Global military spending hits all-time high at $2.24 trillion (AlJ)
Germany drops $400 million on additional all-terrain vehicles from BAE (DN)
Czech defense firm Omnipol in intensive talks with Vietnam over supplies (RT)
Romania awards $321 million for Bayraktar TB-2 drones (DN)
Thailand receives Chinese-made amphibious ships (DN)
Ukraine launches new tech initiative BRAVE1 (C4ISR)
German aerospace firm Hensoldt is considering an acquisition of the defense electronics segment of Italian aerospace firm Leonardo (RT)
Space
NASA extends Voyager-2 mission by 3 years (Space)
ispace lunar lander lost, assumed to have crashed into moon (SN)
U.S. concerned about rivals’ space capabilities (WP)
Victus Nox mission to push Space Force closer to on-demand launch capability (C4ISR)
Secretive SILENTBARKER satellites to launch this summer for space domain awareness (BD)
U.S. Space Force wants an ‘outernet’ in space (C4ISR)
Rocket engine startup Ursa Major raised a $100M Series D from BlackRockand Space Capital (TC)
Nuclear Power & Weapons
Fuel loaded into Russian-Turkish joint nuclear plant (RT)
Russian forces fortify defenses around Ukrainian nuclear plants (Fox)
Dutch government budgets $352 million for nuclear advancements (WNN)
Avalanche Energy, a fusion energy startup, raised a $40M Series A led by Lowercarbon Capital (PRN)
Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Energy, and other cool tech
AI found to improve worker productivity (FRT)
46% of US voters support a TikTok ban (WSJ)
US is policing firms' AI usage to prevent civil rights violations (RT)
Major VCs link arms in new climate push (AX)
Biden said US chip subsidies not ‘designed to hurt China’ (BBG)
Semiconductor Manufacturing Electronics Shaoxing Corp., a chip foundry backed by China’s top semiconductor firm SMIC, is set to raise $1.4B in Asia’s biggest IPO YTD (BBG)
German engineering giant Bosch will acquire US chipmaker TSI Semiconductors (BBG)
Green hydrogen company Ohmium raised a $250M Series C led by TPG Rise Climate (BW)
e2ip technologies, a startup developing tech for the printed electronics and embedded system industries, raised a $120M growth round co-led by Export Development Canada and McRock Capital (FN)
DQuanscient, a Finnish startup building cloud and quantum computing-powered multiphysics simulation technology, raised a $4.3M seed round led by Maki.vc (FN)
Reverion, a biogas power plant startup, raised a $9.4M seed round led by UVC Partners, Green Generation Fund, Extantia Capital, and others (FN)
Drugs, Drug War, Cartels
California mobilizes national guard to fight fentanyl (TH)
U.S. Navy seizes $42 million in drugs in Gulf of Oman (T&P)
U.S. Coast Guard seizes $61 million of cocaine in Caribbean (Fox)
Lighter Side
A Wide View of Orion
Tucker Carlson is out… Ron Burgundy is in.
Keep building!
Andrew