The INSIDER daily digest -- Oct. 31, 2019

By John Liang / October 31, 2019 at 1:47 PM

This Thursday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on missile defense, artificial intelligence, Air Force space command and control, the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent program and more.

A plan for a technologically ambitious Next Generation Interceptor appears to not yet have necessary support in the Pentagon:

GMD modernization fuels FY-21 budget deliberations over new interceptor design

The plan for a technologically ambitious Next Generation Interceptor -- a potential decade-long project to develop a new long-range, guided missile to protect the nation against anticipated North Korean and Iranian ballistic missile threats beginning in 2030 -- is fueling a debate about the shape of the program late in the fiscal year 2021 budget endgame.

The Defense Innovation Board met this week:

Defense Innovation Board recommends five 'principles' for Pentagon's use of AI

The Defense Innovation Board is recommending the Pentagon commit to developing and using artificial intelligence systems in a responsible, equitable, traceable, reliable and governable manner.

Document: Defense Innovation Board's 'AI principles'

Related from earlier in the week:

Pentagon to grapple with tough questions about using artificial intelligence for warfare

The Pentagon is set to this week receive recommendations for principles guiding the U.S. military's development and use of artificial intelligence, the latest step in DOD's effort to both take advantage of the rapidly advancing technology and keep it within ethical boundaries.

A Government Accountability Office report on the Air Force's space command-and-control architecture is out:

Air Force to submit Space C2 acquisition strategy in November

The Air Force plans to submit a formal acquisition strategy for its latest effort to modernize space command-and-control architecture and is working to mitigate early technical and program management concerns, according to a new Government Accountability Office report.

Document: GAO report on DOD's space C2 program

The Mk21A reentry vehicle program is moving toward a system requirements review during the second quarter of fiscal year 2020:

Mk21A reentry vehicle program moving toward system requirements review

The program to develop a reentry vehicle that can deliver the future W87-1 warhead from the Ground Based Strategic Deterrent -- the Air Force's next intercontinental ballistic missile system -- is expected to reach a key early milestone in the beginning of the next calendar year.

Inside Defense this week chatted with Raytheon's Jim Long, senior business development manager for the AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-To-Air Missile program:

Raytheon confident about AMRAAM production despite Air Force's JATM plans

The supplier of one of the world's most frequently bought air-to-air missiles is not altering its production strategy in response to the Air Force's stated plan to cut procurement in favor of a longer-range weapon that's under development with another company.

The chief executive of L3Harris spoke to Wall Street analysts this week on his company's quarterly earnings:

L3Harris CEO says company has submitted 14 combined proposals since merger

Since merging four months ago, L3Harris Technologies has submitted more than a dozen proposals, mostly in electronic warfare and space sensing domains, that bring together Harris and L3 Technologies capabilities, according to its chief executive.

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