U.S. Navy opens Tech Bridge innovation network in London
NewsOctober 21, 2020
ALEXANDRIA, Va. The U.S. Navy’s chief of acquisition James Geurts -- assistant secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and Acquisition -- announced during Britain’s Atlantic Future Forum that the U.S. and the U.K. have established what they call the "London Tech Bridge," the first such innovation center located outside the U.S.
“London Tech Bridge makes 13 overall and our first overseas location,” Geurts said. “This location emphasizes and builds on our unique partnership with the U.K. and Royal Navy and will better enable us to accelerate solutions to support our defense strategies.”
The London Tech Bridge aims to connect U.K. technology solutions to the Department of the Navy (DON) and will also partner U.S. companies with U.K. industry. Initial focus areas of the London Tech Bridge will be artificial intelligence, unmanned and autonomous vehicles, biotechnology, space, and lasers/directed energy.
London Tech Bridge’s foundational partners include ONR Global, Imperial College London’s Institute for Security Science and Technology, the U.S. Embassy London’s Office of Defense Cooperation and Department of Commerce section, and NATO’s Maritime Unmanned Systems Innovation and Collaboration Cell (MUSIC^2) and Innovation Advisory Board. The group, according to Navy documents, will work with partners from the U.K. Department of International Trade, the U.K. Ministry of Defense's Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA), Royal Navy’s Office of the Chief Technology Officer, Maritime Capabilities (MARCAP), NEMESIS Program, NavyX, and many more.
According to information from the Navy, the Tech Bridge hubs -- 12 in the U.S. and now the new hub in London -- connect and sustain "acceleration ecosystems" in off-base locations, fostering greater collaboration, by partnering with colleges and universities, research institutions, start-ups, corporations, small businesses and nonprofits, among others.
