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U.S. Defense Innovation Unit

US
gov defenseFounded 2015
United States
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All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.

The Defense Innovation Unit is seeking proposals for commercial services to deploy and operate payloads in cislunar space beyond Earth geosynchronous orbit.

Mentioned as: Defense Innovation UnitTechnical ProductDec 7, 2022Defense Innovation Unit seeks commercial options to deploy satellites in deep space

Calvelli encouraged space startups to innovate and utilize DoD seed-funding programs like those from SpaceWERX and the Defense Innovation Unit.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitNarrative GeneralDec 6, 2022Space Force procurement chief emphatic about the ‘need for speed’

SpiderOak was awarded a contract by the U.S. Defense Innovation Unit to deliver the company’s OrbitSecure zero-trust protocol on-orbit.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitNarrative GeneralNov 4, 2022SpiderOak Awarded a Contract by U.S. Defense Innovation Unit to Deliver OrbitSecure Zero-Trust Protocol On-orbit

Sierra Space and NanoRacks also received Defense Innovation Unit awards in 2020 to study small, uncrewed space stations in low Earth orbit.

Mentioned as: Defense Innovation UnitTechnical ProductNov 3, 2022Arkisys offers to send U.S. hosted payloads to on-orbit Port

DIU’s prototyping work and demonstrations will support Space Force plans to design and deploy a hybrid communications architecture with additional layers of satellites to increase network resilience.

Mentioned as: DIUOrg RelationshipNov 2, 2022Amazon, Microsoft, SpiderOak join Defense Innovation Unit’s hybrid space network project

The Defense Innovation Unit signed agreements on 2022-11-02 with Amazon Web Services, Kuiper Government Solutions, Microsoft Azure Space, and SpiderOak Mission Systems for a project to demonstrate space-based communications using interconnected commercial and government networks.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitOrg RelationshipNov 2, 2022Amazon, Microsoft, SpiderOak join Defense Innovation Unit’s hybrid space network project

The Defense Innovation Unit and the U.S. Air Force selected five companies on 2022-10-26 to help build weather models using data from satellites, aerial sensors, and terrestrial sensors.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitOrg RelationshipOct 26, 2022DIU selects startups for U.S. military weather modeling project

The Defense Innovation Unit awarded Orbit Fab a $13,300,000 contract to supply hydrazine to a Defense Department spacecraft in geostationary orbit in 2025.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitOrg RelationshipOct 25, 2022Orbit Fab secures new investor to support satellite refueling efforts

The Defense Innovation Unit is leading a project to develop a hybrid space architecture that integrates satellite communications systems across low, medium, and geostationary orbits.

Mentioned as: Defense Innovation UnitTechnical ProductOct 13, 2022Starlink’s market dominance affecting DoD’s hybrid network plans

The Defense Innovation Unit awarded Arkisys $17,500,000 in other transaction authority in 2020 to fund a series of projects that include the Applique mission.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitOrg RelationshipSep 21, 2022Arkisys’ first flight to demonstrate universal interface adapter

Aalyria won an $8,000,000 contract from the Defense Innovation Unit to prototype a network for DIU’s hybrid space architecture program.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitNarrative FinancialSep 13, 2022Wireless communications startup repurposes technology from Google’s balloon internet project

Michael Brown is the director of the Defense Innovation Unit and spoke at an Atlantic Council event on 2022-08-24 to discuss the 2022 report.

Mentioned as: Defense Innovation UnitOrg RelationshipAug 24, 2022‘State of the space industrial base’ report calls for national plan to compete with China

The Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) launched the Harmonious Rook prototype project in Fall 2021 to provide scalable, persistent awareness of PNT disruptions globally.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitOrg RelationshipAug 23, 2022Upcoming military exercises will highlight commercial tech for GNSS disruption detection

X-Bow Systems will test its additively manufactured solid propellant technology on a second mission sponsored by U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command and the Department of Defense Innovation Unit.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitNarrative PlanJul 31, 2022X-Bow’s Bolt modular boost rocket launches successfully from White Sands Missile Range

The Defense Innovation Unit’s space portfolio previously focused on low Earth orbit capabilities and is now turning more attention toward the geostationary orbit belt approximately 22,0 m above the Equator.

Mentioned as: Defense Innovation UnitTechnical ProductJul 25, 2022DoD signaling demand for satellite support services in geostationary orbit

The Defense Innovation Unit instructed M4SS participants to design systems that could be commercialized rather than built to military specifications.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitNarrative GeneralJul 25, 2022DoD signaling demand for satellite support services in geostationary orbit

The Defense Innovation Unit is funding space projects intended to spur commercial investments in satellite refueling technologies and support services for geostationary satellites.

Mentioned as: Defense Innovation UnitTechnical ProductJul 25, 2022DoD signaling demand for satellite support services in geostationary orbit

The Defense Innovation Unit was established in 2015 to help bring privately funded innovation into military programs.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitTechnical ProductJul 25, 2022DoD signaling demand for satellite support services in geostationary orbit

Private companies that work with the Defense Innovation Unit are required to partially fund projects themselves.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitNarrative GeneralJul 25, 2022DoD signaling demand for satellite support services in geostationary orbit

The Defense Innovation Unit aims to ensure the hybrid architecture does not introduce vulnerabilities through increased access points.

Mentioned as: U.S. Defense Innovation UnitNarrative GeneralJul 7, 2022Defense Innovation Unit selects contractors to build hybrid space network
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