DoD Official: Government Has Lost its Technological Edge Over Opponents - Blog: A senior Defense Department official said the government has lost its technological edge and now must rely on industry to overmatch adversaries in the battlefields of the future.
"Many of our adversaries have acquired, developed and even stolen technologies that have put them on somewhat equal footing with the West in a range of areas," said Michael Dumont, principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for special operations/low intensity conflict at the National Defense Industrial Association SO/LIC conference in Washington, D.C.
Examples of this can be found in advanced hacking technologies and weapons used for anti-access/area denial scenarios, he said. Both pose threats to weapons systems and war fighters, he added.
"Collectively ... we need to get out ahead of this and stay in front of it," he said. In that regard, there must be a better way for government to acquire technology and put it in the hands of special operators more quickly, he said. The military must do better to anticipate future needs and "make investments that take us beyond the reach of our headlights."
That expertise no longer lies in the U.S. government, he said. "Recognizing this future direction, requires understanding the current reality: the U.S. government no longer has the leading edge developing its own leading edge capabilities, particularly in information technology."
