From Tanks to Teleportation

Acquisition reform was put in motion to meet the pace of technological change and the pace in which threats to the nation have been evolving. Doing business at commercial speeds makes the Department of Defense more friendly for non-traditional and commercial companies and this streamlining has received bipartisan support. Former Congressman Mac Thornberry of Texas’ 13th congressional district was the chair of the House Armed Services Committee from 2015-2019 and spearheaded much of the defense reform that enables DIU to accelerate commercial technology and methodologies into the DoD today. Former Congressman Thornberry joins hosts Dan Dillard and Zach Walker to discuss policies that help attract businesses from the commercial world to work with the DoD to meet the changing threats to the nation's security.Guest: Former Rep. William "Mac" ThornberryHosts: Dan Dillard and Zach WalkerProducer: Kathryn HudackAudio Engineer: Jake WallaceLearn more about the Defense Innovation Unit: https://www.diu.mil/aboutfounding_media YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlc0lfwr6IBWgGl0hm8HGXOAu8jwy_vy_Defense Innovation Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/defense-innovation-from-tanks-to-teleportation/A founding_media Podcast

How does being a survival expert, a previous pet store owner, a special effects artist, and a famous television show host all lead to working with DIU on technologies for our Nation’s defense? Just ask Jamie Hyneman. In this episode, the expert craftsman and previous host of the well-known TV show “Mythbusters” join hosts Dan Dillard and Zach Walker to discuss his history and how it ended up allowing him to blow things up in the name of defense.Guest: Jamie Hyneman Hosts: Dan Dillard and Zach WalkerProducer: Kathryn HudackAudio Engineer: Jake WallaceLearn more about the Defense Innovation Unit: https://www.diu.mil/aboutfounding_media YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlc0lfwr6IBWgGl0hm8HGXOAu8jwy_vy_Defense Innovation Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/defense-innovation-from-tanks-to-teleportation/A founding_media Podcast

The private and public sectors are two completely different worlds that often speak different languages. That’s why people such as Erringer Helbling and Doug Beck, who have worked in both, are vital in building bridges between the sectors allowing the best innovation possible for our nation’s security. Helbling is the Director of Operations for HawkEye 360 and a Captain in the U.S. Army Reserve for DIU, and Beck is the Vice President of the Americas and Northeast Asia at Apple and a Captain in the U.S. Navy, who helped start DIU. The two embody the sentiment “executive by day and superhero by night” perfectly. In this episode, they join hosts Dan Dillard and Zach Walker to discuss how they ended up with a foot in both public and private sectors, and why this interaction is so critical.Guests: Erringer Helbling and Doug BeckHosts: Dan Dillard and Zach WalkerProducer: Kathryn HudackAudio Engineer: Jake WallaceLearn more about the Defense Innovation Unit: https://www.diu.mil/aboutfounding_media YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlc0lfwr6IBWgGl0hm8HGXOAu8jwy_vy_Defense Innovation Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/defense-innovation-from-tanks-to-teleportation/A founding_media Podcast

In order to get the newest and best technology to America’s servicemen and women, there needs to be a connective tissue between startups and the Department of Defense. This, of course, is where the Defense Innovation Unit comes in to connect the private, commercial world to large, public entities like the DoD. It’s also where firms like Lux Capital come in to invest in the creation of new defense technologies. Bilal Zuberi is a partner at Lux and has been investing in companies that directly sell to or want to sell to the DOD for over a decade. In this episode, he joins hosts Dan Dillard and Zach Walker to discuss that connective tissue that makes defense innovation possible.Guest: Bilal ZuberiHosts: Dan Dillard and Zach WalkerProducer: Morgan KuehlerAudio Engineer: Jake WallaceLearn more about the Defense Innovation Unit: https://www.diu.mil/aboutfounding_media YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlc0lfwr6IBWgGl0hm8HGXOAu8jwy_vy_Defense Innovation Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/defense-innovation-from-tanks-to-teleportation/A founding_media Podcast

In the Department of Defense, the consensus is clear that American servicemen and women deserve access to the best technology, tools and devices the world has to offer. But, acquiring those new technologies and replacing old ones is much easier said than done. The whole reason the Defense Innovation Unit was created was to accelerate public/ private partnerships and acquisition, but that takes cooperation on the DoD’s side as well. Steve Wert is a Program Executive Officer for the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center and is a proponent of the DIU’s work. He joins hosts Dan Dillard and Zach Walker to discuss the tangible solutions DIU offers to DoD issues.Guest: Steve WertHosts: Dan Dillard and Zach WalkerProducer: Morgan KuehlerAudio Engineer: Jake WallaceLearn more about the Defense Innovation Unit: https://www.diu.mil/aboutfounding_media YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlc0lfwr6IBWgGl0hm8HGXOAu8jwy_vy_Defense Innovation Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/defense-innovation-from-tanks-to-teleportation/A founding_media Podcast

In the age of information, there’s only one thing that can be certain: everything will eventually end up on the internet. There will always be bad guys trying to compromise U.S. national security. That’s where Dr. Christopher Ahlberg and his company Recorded Future come in. Recorded Future works with clients like the DIU and Department of Defense collecting cyber threat intelligence, organizing and analyzing threat data in an entirely new and different way for better, faster security. In today’s episode, Dr. Ahlberg joins hosts Dan Dillard and Zach Walker to discuss what it’s like for a small startup company to partner with organizations as big as the DoD and DIU and how Recorded Future is helping the U.S. manage cyber threat intelligence.Guest: Dr. Christopher AhlbergHosts: Dan Dillard and Zach WalkerProducer: Morgan KuehlerAudio Engineer: Jake WallaceLearn more about the Defense Innovation Unit: https://www.diu.mil/aboutFounding Media YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLyxQReKL3jHiwd0BXsTcGQDefense Innovation Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/defense-innovation-from-tanks-to-teleportation/A founding_media Podcast

There are newer computer parts in museums than in some of the Department of Defense's most important systems. Rachel Kolesnikov-Lindsey, an active-duty U.S. Air Force Major working for the Defense Innovation Unit, was able to get some 1970s radar tech upgraded in about 3 months. The Defense Innovation Unit is a fast-moving Department of Defense organization that solves national security problems using commercial technology. Join Rachel, along with hosts Dan Dillard and Zach Walker, to learn more about why it's so important that the military is using technology from this decade and why there are so many roadblocks in the way.Guest: Rachel Kolesnikov-LindseyHosts: Dan Dillard and Zach WalkerProducer: Morgan KuehlerAudio Engineer: Jake WallaceLearn more about the Defense Innovation Unit: https://www.diu.mil/aboutFounding Media YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLyxQReKL3jHiwd0BXsTcGQDefense Innovation Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/defense-innovation-from-tanks-to-teleportation/A founding_media Podcast

Commercial technology is advancing so rapidly that “the future” we see in science fiction is, for the most part, already here. Hosts Dan Dillard and Zach Walker sit down with August Cole, author of the best-selling futuristic warfare novels Ghost Fleet and Burn-In. What’s most impressive about his books is that all the technology he features either already exists or is in development. Through the lens of his latest book, Burn-In, Cole shows how the robotic revolution is happening as we speak and fundamentally changing the future of warfare. Guest: August ColeHosts: Dan Dillard and Zach WalkerProducer: Morgan KuehlerAudio Engineer: Jake WallaceLearn more about the Defense Innovation Unit: https://www.diu.mil/aboutfounding_media YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ixwBVLE-s8&feature=youtu.beDefense Innovation Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/defense-innovation-from-tanks-to-teleportation/A founding_media Podcast