Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter officially opened the Defense Innovation Unit-Experimental in Boston July 26, and unveiled a slew of new efforts to enhance the Pentagon’s outreach to the commercial technology sector.
DIUx Boston is the second such office in the country. The first was opened last year in Silicon Valley to help the Defense Department better tap into the knowledge and talent resident in cutting-edge companies there. But Carter said opening additional offices in other tech hubs is critical.
“DIUx has to be engaged nationwide, because no two innovation ecosystems are alike,” Carter said at the Boston office. “Each has its own unique value and expertise. And wherever innovation is happening, we need to be able to tap into it.”
A key focus of the Boston office will be partnering with companies, academic researchers and entrepreneurs in biotechnology and biosiences, he said.
“Boston is a beehive of activity” in this area, he said, and he anticipated “a revolution” in the biosciences field in the coming decades.