Threats

China's Copycat Jet Raises Questions About F-35

Did the Chinese theft of data on the US fighter jet and other weapons shrink the Pentagon's technical superiority?

Science & Tech

Dutch Air Force Chief Slams US Army Helicopter Plan

Lt. Gen. Alexander Schnitger said the two designs being evaluated by the US Army could fall far short of actual wartime needs.

Science & Tech

Here Are A Few Things the New Air Force Bomber Will Do Besides Drop Bombs

Embedded antennas, targeting cameras, and a leap in processing power will turn the Long Range Strike Bomber into a versatile spy plane and airborne command center.

Science & Tech

Contactless Fingerprinting Promises 'Wave Your Hand, Unlock A Door'

But the ability to collect biometric data without physical contact has sparked concerns about surveillance and data theft.

Threats

TSA's ‘Airport of the Future’ Will Use Biometrics, Risk-Based Screening

The airport security agency releases its ambitious strategy to upgrade its technology, connect more dots, and search fewer people.

Science & Tech

The Subatomic Race to Harness Quantum Science

US, China are betting millions on the promise of this newish field, but the real-world potential remains a mystery.

Science & Tech

US Revives New-Look 'Virtual Fence' Along Its Southern Border

The Department of Homeland Security is installing sensor-studded turrets in pockets of Arizona to curb human trafficking and drug smuggling.

Science & Tech

Is This the Warship of the Future?

Laser-armed battleships that print their own drones will have to survive anti-ship missiles plummeting from space.

Science & Tech

The Air Force Will Test the F-35 Against the A-10—But Not Until 2018

Is the Warthog better at defending ground troops? The brass wants to know, not that they're in any rush.

Science & Tech

Here’s What The Military’s Top Roboticist Is Afraid Of (It’s Not Killer Robots)

We’re on the verge of an explosion in robotic capability and diversity, and it would be folly to stop exploring now, says the man who ran DARPA’s Grand Robotics Challenge.

Science & Tech

The Military Wants Swarm Bots It Can Retrieve in Midair

They'll bite through your aileron wires. They'll insert toasting forks in your tyres. That is the tale of the Gremlins.

Science & Tech

Flexible Electronics Are the Goal of Pentagon's First Silicon Valley Partnership

Defense Secretary Ash Carter announces a five-year, $171 million effort to make and improve bendable circuitry.

Science & Tech

The US Military Gets A Guidebook to the Cloud

DISA rolls out a collection of best practices for a Pentagon herding its myriad information services toward their cloud-based future.

Science & Tech

Chuck Schumer’s No-Fly-Zone Rule for Drones Won’t Work

U.S. lawmakers and the military worry about small consumer drones running afoul of planes and emergency crews. But there may be no simple fix.

Science & Tech

Why Humans Need To Ban Artificially Intelligent Weapons

Unlike self-aware computer networks, self-driving cars tricked out with machine guns are possible right now — as are any number of AI-augmented weapons far deadlier than their human-aimed counterparts.

Science & Tech

Google Earth Is Helping Syrians Call In US Air Strikes

Kurdish militia fighters are using Android tablets and free Google mapping tools to track battle lines and coordinate close air support with the US military.

Science & Tech

The Robots Taking Your Job Could Get You Killed

Automating processes at chemical and pharmaceutical plants could save money, but at what cost to safety?

Science & Tech

Hacker Cracks Satellite Communications Network

Satellite tracking of people and objects was supposed to make the world safer. If only it was secure.

Business

Pentagon Sends an Engineer and a Navy SEAL to Woo Silicon Valley

Not five months after its announcement, the military’s California technology-hunting office is up and running.