{"id":49841,"date":"2025-01-16T00:25:34","date_gmt":"2025-01-15T16:25:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/space-startups-need-bridges-not-barriers-to-work-with-the-dod\/"},"modified":"2025-01-16T00:25:34","modified_gmt":"2025-01-15T16:25:34","slug":"space-startups-need-bridges-not-barriers-to-work-with-the-dod","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/space-startups-need-bridges-not-barriers-to-work-with-the-dod\/","title":{"rendered":"Space Startups Need Bridges, Not Barriers, to Work With the DoD"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to believe it\u2019s been over three years since I retired from active duty after 34 years in the U.S. Air Force. In that time, I had the privilege of working with the best talent our nation, our allies, and our partners had to offer. I flew airplanes, commanded at multiple levels, worked in the White House, solved wicked hard problems, and helped turn the warfighter\u2019s needs into capabilities \u2014 often before they knew they needed them.<\/p>\n

Since retiring, I\u2019ve supported various organizations \u2014 from large defense contractors to startups. I\u2019ve learned what motivates me to get out of bed or stay off the golf course isn\u2019t making money; it\u2019s the mission. Specifically, it\u2019s about navigating the corporate world to turn warfighter capability gaps into strategic advantages \u2014 advantages that deter potential adversaries from doing something stupid, and when deterrence fails, use these capabilities to win at any cost.<\/p>\n

Our adversaries are outpacing us in space \u2014 the very domain that underpins every military campaign we conduct today. Some may ask, \u201cWhat does a mobility guy who flew airplanes know about space?\u201d The answer is simple: Without space, forget about executing any operation in any domain. We can\u2019t afford just to admire the capability gaps any longer. If we do, we\u2019ll lose the ability to deter \u2014 and eventually, lose the fight. This isn\u2019t just about technology; this is about American leadership in space. Our adversaries are moving fast, and we need to act, not wait.<\/p>\n

The Valley of Death is a term we\u2019ve all heard, but in the context of space, it\u2019s the cavernous gap between the minimum viable product (MVP) development and full-scale capability delivery. We see many great funding initiatives \u2014 like Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR), and Strategic Funding Increase (STRATFI) \u2014 but how many are truly bridging that valley? How many of these efforts have actually led to battlefield superiority? Not enough. Our adversaries aren\u2019t losing sleep at night. Startups struggle to get their products to full-scale production because they are stuck between an MVP and something that can be deployed quickly to meet the warfighter\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n

To bridge this gap and maintain our technological edge, we need to:<\/p>\n

Accelerate product development:<\/strong> Moving from idea to MVP to full-scale production and into the hands of the warfighter before it\u2019s needed.<\/p>\n

Revamp the clearance and certification process:<\/strong> Removing the roadblocks preventing startups from competing for critical, classified capabilities.<\/p>\n

Overhaul the budgeting process:<\/strong> We need speed and flexibility, not a slow, bureaucratic five-year plan. The warfighter can\u2019t afford to wait.<\/p>\n

Obviously, these are not new issues, and \u2014 credit where credit\u2019s due \u2014 some progress has been made. But while initiatives like DIU, SBIR, and STRATFI look good on paper and many dollars have been spent, how many have truly kept adversaries awake at night? Not nearly enough.<\/p>\n

Space warfighting capabilities cannot be developed by the commercial sector alone. Dual-use technologies are critical and often serve commercial markets, but commercial companies \u2014 while nimble and innovative \u2014 are looking for Department of Defense (DoD) to invest the dollars to develop and deliver military-first capabilities at the speed the warfighter needs. The commercial sector doesn\u2019t have the funds to rapidly develop these technologies for military use before their own use. This is where the DoD must step in and lead the charge. For the first time in a long time, the DoD must take the lead in funding military-grade capabilities and support the commercial sector to ensure that technologies align for military use, scalability and evolve for commercial use.<\/p>\n

This requires more than just funding technology development; it requires funding full-scale production to get these capabilities into the hands of the warfighter faster.<\/p>\n

Another barrier I\u2019ve learned since joining the space sector is the 254-clearance process. Much of the warfighting capability in space is classified beyond the \u201csecret\u201d level, which means startups aren\u2019t even allowed to know what the warfighter needs \u2014 let alone develop technology to meet it. The clearance process can take two to three years, and it\u2019s an incredibly difficult hurdle for startups, who often drive the most innovative solutions. Without this critical context, these companies cannot innovate to meet military requirements and outpace our adversaries.<\/p>\n

The simple fix is to allow startups to access the necessary clearances when funding is awarded. When the DoD supports innovative technologies through funding programs, it should also provide the clearances needed to ensure that these technologies can be hyper-focused on warfighter requirements from the beginning. This would dramatically shorten the time to develop tailored solutions and ensure these innovations are ready for deployment without clearance delays.<\/p>\n

Finally, the DoD\u2019s budgeting process presents another major hurdle for startups developing warfighting capabilities. While changing the entire governmental budgeting system is a monumental task, there are actions we can take quickly to make an impact.<\/p>\n

The gold standard for any capability is to become a Program of Record (POR). But here\u2019s the problem: the five-year defense plan (FYDP) isn\u2019t startup-friendly. Transitioning from an idea to a POR can take three to five years. That\u2019s a lifetime for most startups, who typically have 12 to 18 months of runway before they run out of time or money. These timelines don\u2019t just stretch out the process \u2014 they widen the Valley of Death between MVP and full-scale production.<\/p>\n

DoD needs to think bigger and bolder when it comes to funding initiatives. The current milestone-based system works for some projects but not for technologies that take years to develop. We need a funding model that reflects the speed and innovation of today\u2019s world, not one that relies on outdated timelines. Startups need flexibility and agility to deliver quickly \u2014 and the DoD must make that possible.<\/p>\n

In conclusion, to stay ahead of our adversaries and keep the U.S. in the driver\u2019s seat of space superiority, we must accelerate product development, streamline clearances, and revamp the budgeting process. This isn\u2019t just about solving problems \u2014 it\u2019s about winning and doing so decisively. Our warfighters need these capabilities today, not years from now. The time for action is now. If we don\u2019t act or step up together, we risk losing our edge. I\u2019m not willing to let that happen.<\/p>\n

\n

\"\"Thomas J. Sharpy Lt Gen, USAF (Ret). is the Vice President of Customer Development at Portal Space Systems<\/strong> and founder of Sharpy Group LLC<\/strong>. With over 39 years of service in the U.S. Air Force, he led thousands in both peacetime and crisis operations. As the lead executive for Allied Command Transformation, he developed strategic capabilities for NATO\u2019s 30 member nations and championed initiatives in Command and Control and Cyber Security. A Command Pilot with over 4,000 flying hours, Tom has managed budgets of over $15 billion and played key roles in operations during 9\/11.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s hard to believe it\u2019s been over three years since I retired from active duty after 34 years in the U.S. Air Force. In that time, I had the privilege of working with the best talent our nation, our allies, and our partners had to offer. I flew airplanes, commanded at multiple levels, worked in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":47383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49841","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49841"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49841"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49841\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49841"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49841"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49841"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}