Vanguard Magazine

five emeRging Technologies Emerging Ttechnologies TeChnology waTCh 38 OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2018 www.vanguardcanada.com the future of defence innovation: To keeP an eye on by Jon elkin D efence and innovation have always gone hand-in-hand. Whether the innovation originated in defence or was simply perfected by it, the examples are countless: from the Internet, to radar, to good ol' duct tape. Working for OMX, a collaborative plat- form for accessing procurement opportu- nities and analyzing the socio-economic impacts of organizations, I know how crucial government support and invest- ment can be for building the necessary infrastructure to develop next-generation technologies. But predicting the next breakthrough isn't so easy. That's why earlier this year, the Canadian Government unveiled five emerging technologies as areas to focus on for defence investment and spending. These five emerging technologies will be grouped under Canada's Key Indus- trial Capabilities (KICs), giving it greater emphasis in defence procurements under the Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITB) policy. (There are also an additional 11 estab- lished technologies that will fall under the KICs.) The KICs are defined as "the skills, tech- nologies, and supply chains" required to support the growth of these technologies. They are not limited to just the organiza- tions associated with the end solution but include the academic organizations that support skills and research, the small- and 1 AdvAnced mATeRiAls New materials such as composite structures, aerostructures, and advanced feedstocks combined with new production processes like ad- ditive manufacturing, 3-D printing, and advanced machining means greater op- erational capability and cost-efficiency of defence equipment with broader applica- tions in military, aerospace, land, marine, and space domains, along with private sectors. WATch ouT foR: One of five superclu- sters announced under the $950 million Innovation Superclusters Initiative (ISI), the Advanced Manufacturing Superclu- ster led by Next Generation Manufactur- ing Canada will focus on the application of advanced technologies in the digital age of manufacturing. The expected econom- ic impact of the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster is more than $13.5 billion and 13,500 jobs over 10 years. 2 ARTificiAl inTelligence (Ai) AI involves a wide range of tech- nologies that look to imitate hu- man intelligence and execute complex tasks such as pattern recognition and de- cision-making. By leveraging fields such as machine learning, deep learning, and self-learning, an AI can reduce or even replace human workloads. AI is expected to touch upon every public and private field – PWC estimated that AI will add al- most $20 trillion to the global economy by 2030. WATch ouT foR: Menya Solutions has been developing AI solutions for the Canadian Navy for the past decade. But it's their newest endeavour, HybridLogic, that's making waves. HybridLogic is a suite of AI and intent, capability, and op- portunity analysis algorithms designed to help humans, robots, and drones analyze a tactical situation and make timely deci- sions during defence operations. 5

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