US Central Command Seeks Innovative Technology Ideas From Service Members

The U.S. Central Command is inviting active service members, reservists, National Guard members and Department of Defense civilians to participate in a competition that aims to develop new solutions that will address military problems. Interested individuals may submit their ideas to the Innovation Oasis program by Sept. 16. 

Senior military leaders and executives from Google, SpaceX and NASA will select promising proposals for potential development and implementation across CENTCOM. Innovation Oasis is set to conclude in October, Defense One reported.

The competition was created following the Dragon’s Lair event at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, where service members proposed new technologies to solve operational problems. The solutions included a formula that could visualize the interior layout of infrastructure using satellite images and an artificial intelligence-enabled helicopter pilot program.

Winning Innovation Oasis does not mean a solution will be created and used across military units, but Joe Buccino, a CENTCOM spokesperson and executive producer of the competition, said the command has a way to help the Pentagon adopt the technologies. According to the official, CENTCOM will first determine a solution’s benefits, then it will collaborate with the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center and the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to promote adoption across the broader U.S. military.