Good morning, everybody. It’s nice to be right here with all of you in Houston within the nice state of Texas, a state main the best way within the deployment of uncrewed and autonomous autos. Thanks for becoming a member of us as XPONENTIAL, the world’s main occasion for the autonomy business that AUVSI is thrilled to ship to you with our companions at Messe Düsseldorf North America.
Throughout this room and the XPO corridor are 7,000 alternatives to attach with business friends.
We’re thrilled to have you ever with us and know it is going to be an awesome week for you, your groups, and your clients
As I start my second yr main AUVSI, I’m excited to share what’s forward.
However first, I need to acknowledge the unbelievable AUVSI staff – devoted, mission-driven professionals on employees, together with our large Board of Administrators, chapter leaders, Advocacy committee leaders, XPO programming committee and different volunteers.
Thanks all for the work you do each day to advance this business. It’s an honor to be a part of this staff.
Final yr, in San Diego, I talked about how my cost to the AUVSI staff is to search out factors of friction and transfer to them to resolve issues for our members and the business.
And for those who’ve interacted with the AUVSI staff over the previous yr, you’ve in all probability heard that phrase – shifting to factors of friction – greater than as soon as. It’s as a result of it drives every thing we do.
Each development on this business has required laborious conversations, grit, and a dedication to collaboration. Brick by brick, collectively, we’re constructing this business.
We don’t retreat when challenges come up; we face them head-on.
Immediately, I need to speak about among the challenges our business faces, and the alternatives that come together with these challenges – and extra importantly, how AUVSI is main the best way to form the long run.
As all of you realize, we’re working in an setting of uncertainty and instability. Navigating shifting tariffs, bureaucratic regulatory delays, DOGE, and constrained capital markets – it’s requiring lots from all of us.
In response, AUVSI has been sharing extra actual time and actionable intelligence with our members than at any time in our 53-year historical past – this distinctive second has required extra of us, the place the energy of our staff and transparency in our communication have been important.
Understanding the capital constraints a lot of you face, we’re additionally dedicated to higher join our members with the funding neighborhood and educate traders neighborhood concerning the alternatives that exist inside this business.
AUVSI is launching a brand new business intelligence effort to assist bridge the hole between our business and the capital neighborhood. We have now additionally invited the funding neighborhood into XPO, and there are a variety of VCs right here this week, collaborating in panels and strolling the present flooring to see your expertise on show.
That very same dedication to our members is entrance and heart as we have interaction with the brand new Congress and the Trump Administration, making certain your priorities are mirrored in current Government Orders and laws. Speedy-fire govt orders, a really energetic Congress, and a busy spring session on the state stage the place we’ve been placing numbers on the boards with our Drone and AAM Ready mannequin legislations. We’re additionally working intently with the White Home, DOT, and the FAA on enabling laws.
AUVSI wrote the roadmap to autonomy, and now we’re laborious at work executing to carry the plan to actuality.
To completely unlock the advantages of autonomy, coverage momentum have to be matched by technical progress and regulatory modernization. Plane certification processes have to be streamlined and business experience leveraged, and air visitors management applied sciences have to be modernized to make the most of new software-defined instruments to complement and increase the FAA workforce and make radar knowledge obtainable to extra customers. Common digital conspicuity for legacy plane have to be a nationwide precedence to enhance airspace security and assist allow extra autonomous operations.
BVLOS is important to unlocking the total potential of the drone business, and whereas waivers and exemptions are being issued, attending to an operational BVLOS rule has felt a bit like Sisyphus eternally pushing the rock up the hill.
We’re going get there, however it will require extra laborious work. Extra grit.
It was nice to see the FAA and DOT transfer the draft rule to the White Home Workplace of Administration and Funds final week, the place it’ll bear evaluation. Once more. The lengthy awaited 2209 rule – properly, it seems we’re ready a bit of longer, however once more, good to see the draft rule transfer ahead with BVLOS final week to OMB.
Like with the 2 draft guidelines shifting to the OMB collectively, more and more, drone safety and enabling laws are being intently tied collectively. Accordingly, UAS Detection and Mitigation authorities have to be up to date and expanded. The final replace was in 2018 – an unacceptable timeframe for a quickly reworking panorama.
Distant ID compliance is under 50%. Houston, now we have an issue. Clearly, some issues want to vary.
AUVSI is engaged on every of those key points shaping outcomes that can strengthen our business. However once more, there’s a number of work forward. The setting is difficult. And we’d like you with us.
You’ll hear extra about these key challenges and alternatives proper right here tomorrow morning from FAA performing Administrator Chris Rocheleau. And we’ll proceed this dialog straight with policymakers and regulators on the Drone & AAM Coverage Symposium in July in Washington, DC at Nationals Park. It’ll be nice enjoyable.
AUVSI continues to push the DOT & FAA, DHS, Congress, and the broader Administration to ship the insurance policies and frameworks that can permit secure, scalable operations to take root in all domains – air, floor, and maritime. And we’re laborious at work working with the White Home on extra govt actions associated to enabling laws for drone operations, increasing counter UAS authorities, and reindustrializing the provision chain.
With out regulatory progress, innovation is being unnecessarily slowed down as different nations race forward. With regulatory progress, we’ll unlock huge financial, societal, and public security advantages.
As you realize, uncrewed methods are saving lives at this time. I used to be honored to inform that story to Congress final yr earlier than two totally different Congressional committees, constructing belief in our business. And shout out to our good friend Sgt. Dooley with Florida Freeway Patrol who’s testifying earlier than the U.S. Senate proper now to assist construct belief. He’s flying right here tonight to be at XPO tomorrow, so you’ll want to give him some love once you see him.
These alternatives are so essential as a result of with out clear communication and constant efficiency, belief might be fragile. Final December, the media and social media setting helpfully reminded us of that when “drones” over New Jersey turned a prime trending story. The frenzy not solely uncovered the gaps in our nation’s low altitude airspace consciousness but additionally showcased that public belief can evaporate rapidly within the face of a disaster – actual, imagined, misidentified, or contrived.
That’s why AUVSI, and our companions like Dr. Will Austin at Warren County Neighborhood School in New Jersey, are laborious at work elevating the tales of accountable, secure, forward-leaning operators. We’re main conversations with communities, policymakers, and the general public to point out how this expertise enhances, reasonably than threatens, their day by day lives.
We’re additionally telling the story of job alternative and rising the long run workforce. That is additionally important for public belief, as some folks mistakenly assume extra autonomy equals much less jobs. Not true. Actually, autonomous methods increase productiveness, open new industries, and permit staff to concentrate on higher-value, extra rewarding duties as a substitute of repetitive or harmful ones.
AUVSI can be a agency believer {that a} well-trained workforce is required to construct and keep the general public’s belief. That’s the reason now we have lengthy overseen the drone pilot coaching program, Trusted Operator, and this yr launched our coaching effort with maritime operators.
To remain forward, we should pair public belief with readiness – making certain the workforce just isn’t solely knowledgeable however outfitted to guide on this new period of autonomy. Let there be little question, we’re in a brand new period.
The robotics race is underway, and America can not afford to fall behind. The USA stands at a pivotal second the place management in superior robotics, autonomy, and embodied AI will outline our financial energy, nationwide safety, and world competitiveness. That’s the reason AUVSI will lead the hassle to forge a daring nationwide robotics technique – uniting authorities, business, academia, traders, and innovators to make sure the US wins the struggle for financial management, technological dominance, and nationwide safety.
We shall be launching our marketing campaign on this entrance quickly, and we’re excited to have a lot of you on the desk with us already, forging this plan for motion.
One other main challenge dealing with our business at this time: provide chain resiliency. The Individuals’s Republic of China’s restrictions on uncommon earth components are impacting each phase of the U.S. expertise business, and focused sanctions on U.S. drone and autonomy corporations needs to be a wake-up name for everybody on this room. These aren’t simply geopolitical headlines – they’ve direct penalties on our capability to construct and scale the uncrewed methods our financial system and nationwide safety rely upon.
A few of chances are you’ll select to not hear this. However it must be stated. Too many on this business are staying silent, turning a blind eye, or – extra troubling – aligning with applied sciences developed by our adversaries reasonably than supporting innovation inside democratic nations.
To these making that alternative, perceive that the business is shifting on. The longer term belongs to those that stand for accountable innovation, strategic alignment, and nationwide safety. Those that don’t will discover themselves more and more irrelevant. There isn’t any ambiguity right here. Counting on adversarial nations for important sources and applied sciences is not only short-sighted, it’s harmful. Harmful each to nationwide safety and to your organizations.
The PRC routinely makes use of financial ways to undermine U.S. business and that of our allies, from flooding markets with sponsored merchandise to sanctioning U.S. corporations and stealing mental property. Halting uncommon earth exports is the most recent transfer, threatening U.S. financial stability, protection readiness, and significant sectors like aerospace and autonomy.
At AUVSI, we’re not simply elevating alarms. We’re providing options. We’ve launched working teams targeted on battery standardization and different key elements – together with one right here at XPO. We’re internet hosting business roundtables with the DoD on industrial base capability targeted on motors, batteries, and provide chain resiliency. We’re constructing out important sources like our Uncrewed Techniques & Robotics Database to trace elements and assist determine vulnerabilities earlier than they develop into crises.
We’re working each day to make sure that American producers, and people of our allies, can entry the supplies and elements they want with out counting on adversarial sources. The problem isn’t nearly elements – it’s about manufacturing. We should make intentional investments and execute upon a broader industrial coverage agenda to make sure that we will construct, and construct at scale.
America must reindustrialize and increase its industrial base. We have to increase manufacturing, however in new ways in which play to our strengths, as a substitute of merely making an attempt to carry again previous methods, or replicating what different nations are doing.
And business wants manufacturing incentives to spur that reindustrialization and provide constraints for these dishonest the principles. We should finish bureaucratic gridlocks to enabling laws to permit the business to develop and scale. We have to make investments sooner or later workforce. We should improve partnerships with allied nations that may supply extra resilient and safe provide chains and assist us collectively scale manufacturing.
AUVSI and our members are working with the White Home and Congress to leverage industrial coverage instruments just like the Protection Manufacturing Act, superior market commitments, manufacturing tax incentives, allowing reform, and enhancing world partnerships. This can be a significant industrial coverage agenda. All of that is potential and inside attain.
Whereas strengthening home and allied manufacturing capabilities is important to countering the financial aggression being exerted by our adversaries and successful the long run, it’s just one battlefield.
As now we have repeatedly emphasised, we’re seeing better persistence and complex cyber threats to our important infrastructure, telecommunications and our transportation methods. Photo voltaic Winds. Volt Hurricane. Salt Hurricane. Backdoors deliberately programmed into software program and rogue communication units in {hardware}. That menace has not gone away. Actually, it has grown. Subsequently, cybersecurity stays a key focus of our work.
That’s why AUVSI continues to drive Inexperienced UAS and work with DIU on reforms to Blue UAS to make sure trusted, safe expertise is on the heart of each our protection and industrial ecosystems. That’s the reason we’re launching our Trusted UGV program for cybersecurity and provide chain transparency right here at XPONENTIAL.
At XPO ‘24 final yr, we introduced a partnership with DIU to share info between Blue and Inexperienced UAS frameworks. I’m proud to report that this collaboration has already led to 2 drones transitioning from Inexperienced to Blue and 6 from Blue to Inexperienced. We’ve added dozens of elements to the accepted frameworks, giving each business and authorities extra trusted choices.
Have there been challenges? Completely. We have now listened to business issues, and we’re working with DIU and our members to create a system that’s extra agile, extra clear, and extra user-friendly.
DIU introduced final Friday that Inexperienced UAS shall be used for compliance for Blue UAS Cleared. This step is a significant validation of our shared work to speed up entry to safe, compliant uncrewed methods and remedy issues for our business and the warfighters we serve. DIU will discuss extra about these coming reforms tomorrow proper right here on this stage and in a follow-on session on Thursday.
And let’s not lose sight of the larger problem: final yr, DoD purchased lower than 4,000 drones throughout the complete division. That isn’t a Blue UAS drawback. That may be a finances drawback. And it’s one AUVSI is working to repair by pushing for stronger finances commitments, extra agile acquisition, and a better emphasis on uncrewed methods and robotics throughout protection planning.
That is private for all of us at AUVSI. Robots don’t bleed. Each safe autonomous system we put into the sector reduces threat to human life and extends our operational attain. And we all know the warfighter needs extra of what you’re producing throughout the air, floor, and maritime domains. Tomorrow you’ll hear from MG Hyperlink from Military Future’s Command, and on Thursday, you’ll hear from LTG Donovan, the Vice Commander of U.S. Particular Operations Command.
I don’t know particularly what he’ll say, however I’ve heard GEN Fenton, the Commander of SOCOM, speak about what he needs – the 4 A’s: Autonomous, Attritable, Reasonably priced, A-Lots. I really like that. To fulfill this demand from the warfighter, we have to be quicker and smarter about how we transfer ahead.
The fact is: Acquisition reform stays elusive with no clear correction in sight. Accordingly, AUVSI is advocating for efforts to prioritize different pathways to acquisition that may function a workaround, reasonably than making an attempt to repair a system that’s past restore. This isn’t our concept, or perhaps a new concept, however it’s gaining new momentum – together with from a White Home govt order – after some very tangible successes using Business Options Choices, Different Transaction Authorities, and different non-traditional acquisition pathways.
AUVSI can be main efforts to reform the International Army Gross sales course of, serving to safe language in a brand new Government Order that revisits outdated guidelines treating drones as missiles—guidelines which have lengthy hindered exports.
We’re serving to form the way forward for U.S. maritime energy by ensuring autonomous vessels are a part of the dialog—each by way of the Trump Maritime Dominance EO and in shaping the SHIPS for America Act now shifting on Capitol Hill.
Moreover, it additionally comes all the way down to {dollars}. As I stated, the DoD just isn’t shopping for almost sufficient autonomous methods. 4,000 drones final yr. 300 autonomous small boats this yr. Virtually nothing within the floor area but. These usually are not spectacular numbers.
Because of this, warfighters have solely restricted entry to the instruments, which leads to a dearth of coaching and familiarity, which suggests if the ballon goes up tonight, we aren’t as prepared as we needs to be. That is extraordinarily difficult and fairly dire.
Congress isn’t serving to – they didn’t cross any appropriations payments for FY25, which suggests the DoD and the broader USG is working by Persevering with Decision. This isn’t good authorities, however we try to make the most effective of a foul state of affairs by working with Congressional committees to redirect funds in direction of autonomous methods within the finances reconciliation invoice.
AUVSI has efficiently advocated for billions within the reconciliation bundle to construct the uncrewed industrial base, with sport altering investments in autonomous air, counter UAS, and maritime methods. We have now additionally set the inspiration for vital will increase in autonomous system spending in FY26 protection finances. Additional, the Marine Corp’s Assault Drone staff, the Navy’s addition of a brand new robotic ship squadron, the Air Pressure’s Fight Airpower for All Airmen program, and the $36 billion Military Transformation Initiative are all direct recognitions of the necessity to disrupt the established order and take classes from the battlefield in Ukraine and apply them to the way forward for U.S. warfighting.
We can not permit adversaries to outpace us just because we failed to purchase, plan, prepare, and execute. In just some minutes, you’ll hear from Dr. Rush Doshi and Sue Gordon, two of the foremost minds on the nationwide safety panorama. They’ll dig deeper into the threats we face and the methods we have to counter them. There are clear alternatives for these of you sensible sufficient to heed their recommendation.
As my good friend Rush has outlined, authoritarian rivals like China & Russia are executing coordinated plans to construct “Arsenals of Autocracy.”
They’re utilizing expertise, provide chains, and cyber operations to increase their affect and undermine free societies. We should reply with equal willpower. We should align with companions and democratic allies.
AUVSI has been main the best way, advocating for our business’s priorities in AUKUS and dealing to construct upon that mannequin with different nations. Moreover, we’re delighted to have prolonged the XPONENTIAL model to Europe – launching XPO EU this previous February in Germany with our companions at Messe Dusseldorf.
We’re honored to be internet hosting the U.S. Taiwan Autonomous Techniques Cooperation Discussion board, which takes place right here at this time on the AUVSI Protection stage. We’re proud to have worldwide pavilions on the present flooring from Germany, Korea, Spain, and Taiwan and to have our mates from the Africa Drone Discussion board and the Armed Forces of Ukraine right here with us. Our democratic allies and companions are important to constructing scale, resilience, and a shared technological benefit.
If our rivals can coordinate to undermine democracy, we should coordinate to defend it. Collectively, we should construct an industrial and operational base that spans the American system and of our trusted allies – an Uncrewed Arsenal for Democracies.
At AUVSI, we aren’t ready for others to outline the long run. We’re serving to to construct it. Transferring to factors of friction to resolve issues. And progress is simply potential due to the leaders who dedicate their time, power, and experience, stepping ahead to hold the mission even additional.
Immediately, marks an essential transition, one which honors the service of our outgoing Chair of our Board of Administrators and welcomes the imaginative and prescient of our new Chair. Please be part of me in welcoming each Invoice Irby and JC Coffey to the stage.
Invoice – thanks in your tireless management and deep dedication to this neighborhood. You’ve helped AUVSI develop stronger, extra resilient, and extra future-focused. We’re grateful. JC – your ardour and perspective shall be important as we tackle what’s subsequent. We’re excited to have your management and the regular power you carry to each dialog, each problem, and each alternative.
Immediately it’s my pleasure to introduce Nationwide Safety Chief and the Former Principal Deputy Director of Nationwide Intelligence, Sue Gordon. Gordon was the nation’s quantity two rating intelligence official who oversaw the innovation and transformation of the complete intelligence neighborhood. Having led at each stage of the intelligence neighborhood and throughout varied organizations and disciplines, she has realized to “see the world as it’s, not as she prefers it to be.”
Becoming a member of Sue onstage is Dr. Rush Doshi, the C.V. Starr Senior Fellow for Asia Research and Director of the China Technique Initiative, Council on International Relations and a professor at Georgetown College. Rush is the writer of The Lengthy Sport, China’s Grand Technique to Displace the US. He’s additionally a good friend.
I urge you to hear intently to the dialog – as their purpose is to spotlight threats but additionally uncover alternatives for this neighborhood.
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