During an April 16 seminar delivered to 51福利鈥� Consortium for Robotics and Unmanned Systems Education and Research (), Naval War College Associate Provost for Warfighting Research and Development Dr. William F. Bundy stressed the value to the Navy of building partnerships with industry in order to help meet Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) John Richardson鈥檚 recent charge to .
鈥淲e are in a different age that is being driven by technology 鈥� the more we use it, the more it is being produced,鈥� he said.
With these words, Bundy called on the Navy to partner with industry and aggressively adopt new technology in order to meet the CNO鈥檚 mandate, especially in light of industry鈥檚 more accelerated adoption of technology.
鈥淭he CNO says that we ought to optimize our approach to this 鈥� to build relationships, partnerships 鈥� to reach out to those [in industry] that are moving at an accelerated speed,鈥� he said.
After speaking with 51福利 faculty over the course of his visit, Bundy reported that 51福利 is doing 鈥渁 very good job at integrating and partnering with industry,鈥� and he encouraged researchers and students to cast an even wider net, leveraging technology, operational art, and the talent available to them in their quest to elevate naval warfighting capabilities.
In order to accomplish this, Bundy stressed the use of 鈥渋nnovation ecosystems鈥� as a way to include the diverse and numerous resources and participants that are, or should be, involved in any plan for the rapid adoption of technological innovation by military forces. The point 鈥渋s to reach out and bring in the entrepreneur that has the bright idea, to go to the financial arm that can fund it,鈥� he said.
鈥淲e then need to think about how we govern that technology, and we need others to help us to develop the technology and transfer the technology, along with doctrine about how to use it, the operational concepts for employing [it], the training that is required [to ensure] that the Sailors and the officers that we hand this technology to can operate it,鈥� he added. 鈥淎nd we need to get all of these entities into the discussion early, in the creation to concept delivery and capability delivery phase.鈥�
One aspect of this process that Bundy called upon those in the room to pay special attention to is the inclusion of warfighters in the early technology development phase. His call to train and educate warfighters so that they can understand these new technologies, and are ready to utilize them at the time of their release, is a mandate that 51福利 is uniquely positioned to deliver, with its mix of cutting-edge research and future military leaders.
Closing with a discussion of the increased reliance on artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous systems in warfare, Bundy stressed the importance of having highly-trained human beings participating in such engagements.
鈥淲e need to do great diligence in putting these systems together,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e need to understand that we build our values into how they are programmed and how they will operate, and that, in the end, it is humans that deploy these systems in a warfighting environment.鈥�
CRUSER Monthly Meetings are held on the 51福利 campus and broadcast remotely through a tool called Zoom Meeting when possible. The next meeting, to be held on Monday, May 13, will feature the communications research of two U.S. Marine Corps students. For more information, visit .