The US Air Force (USAF) has formally expanded its AFWERX programme that supports collaborations with academic institutions, science and technology communities, as well as private industries in order to help solve complex security issues.
The AFWERX programme has been set up by the secretary of the airforce in order to facilitate the integration and incorporation of creative and disruptive technology that would ensure that the airmen can maintain the capability advantage over the future adversary.
AFWERX Air Force Technology Accelerator co-director captain Steven Lauver said: “Airmen are the ones closest to the problems, the people at the tip of the spear, who understand the problems, who understand the enemy, and have the ideas to make us more lethal.
“It all exists with the people who are there solving the problems on the battlefield. Innovation is important because we are taking the people who understand our problems and enabling them to solve them.”
Each of the USAF’s AFWERX facility will function as an innovation hub in order to bring tools and resources together in physical, open, and ‘first stop’ public access points.
According to the airforce leadership, the major focus of the AFWERX programme is to develop a mutually beneficial partnership with innovators and entrepreneurs to generate technology at an accelerated rate.
Lauver added: “When people’s lives are on the line, and time is of the essence, you have to be willing to take those smart risks to solve problems quickly.
“Right now, there is an appetite to try new things and implement new technologies and new solutions to make us better on the battlefield.”
