Ideas
Beware of Pentagon techno-enthusiasm
A massive new drone effort, while laudable in its quest for simpler weapons, does not come without strings attached.
Science & Tech
‘Hellscape’: DOD launches massive drone swarm program to counter China
INDOPACOM wants to be able to find and hit 1,000 targets in 24 hours. Cheap drones are the answer—if DOD can make them quickly enough.
Science & Tech
As DOD steps up response to bioweapon threat, China plays complicated role in biosecurity
A new biodefense council looks to get ahead of the next pandemic.
Science & Tech
New Chinese research examines how to get drones to target without GPS
But camera data can’t tell a drone whether hitting a target is a bad idea.
Science & Tech
Army looks to de-tangle its networks to combat China’s ‘digitally native’ military
By year’s end, troops should be able to jump on a network from just about any location, an Army cyber leader said.
Ideas
Extend the Pentagon’s ban on China’s consumer drones
The rest of the federal government—and state and local agencies and even private-sector infrastructure companies—should quit using this Chinese technology.
Ideas
China’s war planners are leaning harder on its militia
The PLA’s reserve auxiliary force dwarfs the regular military, but is understudied and too often overlooked.
Science & Tech
Long-overdue GPS ground stations delayed by pandemic, Chinese hardware
The Space Force now says OCX will start operating in 2024.
Ideas
Defense One Radio, Ep. 130: A brief history of China’s nuclear forces
From Cold War-era distrust of the Soviets to Beijing's recent silo buildup, we review some of the ideas and methods that have helped China become the nuclear power it is today.
Policy