Hanscom Officials Venture Out

Electronic Systems Center officials at Hanscom AFB, Mass., plan to demonstrate seven promising new technologies over the next year that might meet specific wartime needs. These technologies range from a system to help airmen quickly pull the most relevant information from large volumes of full-motion video to one that accelerates the performance of various applications over Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellite communications networks. ESC officials worked with a special unit within the office of the Pentagon’s top scientist to identify these technologies. The unit, known as the Defense Venture Catalyst Initiative, or DeVenCI, features outside venture capitalists as consultants. They helped to identify companies that the ESC officials otherwise might not have considered. The seven demos will be funded through a $1 million pot provided by DeVenCI. (Hanscom report by Chuck Paone)