Thursday, October 6, 2016

Defense Innovation Board Lays Out First Concepts

Defense Innovation Board Lays Out First Concepts: The Pentagon’s new Defense Innovation Board had its first meeting Thursday, but it was clear the 15-member panel had been busy over the previous months.

The board came out with a series of rough recommendations for Secretary of Defense Ash Carter — or his successor — that they believe will lead to injecting a culture of innovation into the Pentagon.

Headed by Alphabet Chairman Eric Schmidt, the board is the brainchild of Carter, who has made innovation a key part of his last two years at the DoD. Announced in March, the board is made up of thinkers and business leaders from the tech world outside of the traditional defense sector.

Schmidt opened the meeting by acknowledging the importance of the Pentagon’s mission: “We all believe an outside perspective would be beneficial and we’ve set out to try and make some recommendations.”