New strategy to quicken tech development amid digital transformation

The U.S Army is rolling out a strategy focused on software, data and artificial intelligence practices, a move officials believe will clarify for industry what the service needs to transform into a high-tech, digital-forward force and how, exactly, it plans to get there. The strategy, which will be unveiled during the Association of the U.S. Army's annual conference, is meant to help "pivot our programs to adopt modern software practices, adopt data-centricity, and get us to artificial intelligence, machine learning and [figuring] out where the right applications of that are so that we can really enable commanders in the field to make data-driven, fast decisions," Jennifer Swanson, the deputy assistant secretary of the Army for data engineering and software, told Defense News in an interview ahead of the event. Swanson's title alone hints at the transformation underway for the Army's acquisition branch. When she was hired earlier this year, she was chief systems engineer. The strategy arrives as the Army conducts a massive overhaul of its virtual footprint and computer infrastructure in order to better prepare for potential conflicts with China and Russia.