To be held Sept. 27-29, 2022, the Defense TechConnect 2022 Innovation Summit & Expo’s six Innovation Challenges will feature “Shark Tank”-style pitches by startups, universities and national labs competing for more than $500,000 in total prizes.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8, 2022   /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — 

 The Defense TechConnect (DTC) 2022 Innovation Summit & Expo, the nation’s largest annual gathering of non-traditional, dual-use emerging technologies aligned with government priority requirements, will convene on Sept. 27-29, 2022, at Gaylord National Hotel & Convention Center, 201 Waterfront St., National Harbor, MD. The centerpiece of this year’s DTC is six Innovation Challenges in energy and infrastructure, medical and biodefense, autonomy and air mobility, data and digital transformation, security and intelligence, and training and readiness that will award a total $500,000 in cash prizes and access to more than $50 billion in prototype-level contracting authority for government customers.

“Defense TechConnect is in its 10th year serving as a unique bridge between private sector innovation, commercialization and government acquisition,” said Matthew Laudon, vice president of the TechConnect division of Advanced Technology International (ATI), the organizer of DTC with 25+ years of experience connecting emerging technologies with unique funding and partnership opportunities. “Our six Innovation Challenges this year will showcase an amazing diversity of early-stage and emerging technological innovations. From nearly 800 submissions to the six challenges, we’ve selected the best of the best for presenting to government, industry and military leadership. Just as exciting is the event will showcase over $4 billion in federal seed-funding through participating SBIR/STTR offices, and over $50 billion in prototype-level funding authority through ATI-managed contracting vehicles. DTC also will feature its own innovation spotlights program featuring universities and startups presenting over the three-day program.”

Each Innovation Challenge features “Shark Tank”-style sessions of 20-25 innovation pitches by startups, universities and national labs to industry and government leadership aligned with participating contracting vehicles. In addition to a cash prize, each winner is invited to join a consortium led by DTC’s parent company, Advanced Technology International (ATI), the country’s leading technology consortium management firm and one of the single largest funders of prototype-level innovations for its government customers and the nation.

The six DTC Innovation Challenges are:

Tues., Sept. 27, 2022

• National Infrastructure Innovation Challenge: This challenge offers a $25,000 prize for innovations in energy security, advanced networks, rare earth applications, resilient infrastructure, smart mobility and climate resilience; it directly aligns with the nation’s investments through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and offers a $50,000 prize sponsored by three consortia: Resilient Infrastructure & Secure Energy Consortium (RISE), National Spectrum Consortium (NSC) and Consortium for Rare Earth Technologies (CREaTe).
• America’s DataHub Innovation Challenge: This challenge offers a $25,000 prize for innovative tools of new data integration and distribution solutions, data linking and data security, and privacy; it is the first-ever innovation acceleration challenge for America’s DataHub Consortium (ADC), which represents the National Science Foundation’s National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES).

Wed., Sept. 28, 2022

• Medical Innovation Challenge: The world’s largest medical innovation acceleration and awards program, this challenge features a $200,000 prize for innovations in devices and sensors, digital and hardware, therapeutics and treatments, materials and manufacturing, and readiness and response; it is aligned with four leading medtech consortia representing more than $20 billion in health technology contracting authority: Medical CBRN Defense Consortium (MCDC), Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Consortium (CWMD), Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium (MTEC), Senior Healthcare Innovation Consortium (SHIC).
• Urban Air Mobility Challenge: This challenge offers a $50,000 prize for innovations in electric vertical take-off and landing, power generation and storage, data and systems situational management, autonomous and collaborative technologies and air mobility capabilities and applications; it is sponsored by the Vertical Lift Consortium (VLC), the nation’s leading organization rapidly transitioning innovative aviation technologies for the U.S. government.

Thurs., Sept. 29, 2022

• Readiness Innovation Challenge: This challenge offers a $50,000 prize for innovations in modeling, simulation and training for both civilian and national security applications, including gaming technologies, synthetic environments, human immersion, AR/VR, medical MS&T, data analytics, Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning, complex-domain systems, and experimentation and validation.
• Security Innovation Challenge: This challenge offers a $25,000 prize for innovations in identity management, including pattern recognition software, real-time analytics platforms, sensors, scanners, imaging, cybersecurity, data harmonization and Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning; it is sponsored by the Homeland Security Technology Consortium (HSTC).

DTC is one of the most well-attended defense innovation conferences of the year. Attendees include hundreds of key science and technology military leaders, more than 250 DoD/SES/PEO scouts, representatives from over 50 contracting offices and hundreds of active-duty service members. DTC is one of the original innovation hubs to support the Department of Defense and its missions.

To register to attend, please visit the DTC attendee registration page.

To attend as a member of the news media, please apply for a press pass by submitting credentials to press@techconnect.org.

About Defense TechConnect
The Defense TechConnect (DTC) Innovation Summit & Expo is the nation’s largest annual gathering of non-traditional, dual-use emerging technologies aligned with government priority requirements. A unique bridge between private sector innovation, commercialization and government acquisition, DTC accelerates the identification and deployment of novel technologies through rapid access of vetted startups and emerging academic and federal lab innovations. To be held Sept. 27-29, 2022, DTC’s centerpiece is six Innovation Challenges in digital and AI transformation, energy and infrastructure, autonomous systems, smart operations, and healthcare and medical devices that offer $500,000 total in cash prizes. Each challenge features 20-25 innovations that are pitched to industry and government leadership aligned with participating contracting vehicles. Each winner is also invited to join a consortium led by DTC’s parent company, Advanced Technology International (ATI), the nation’s leading technology consortium management firm supporting over $50 billion in prototype level contracting authority for government customers. In its 10th year accelerating innovation for the nation and America’s Warfighter, DTC features 500 innovations and exhibitors. One of the most well-attended defense innovation conferences of the year, DTC’s attendees include military leadership, more than 250 DoD/SES/PEO scouts, representatives from over 50 contracting offices and hundreds of active duty service members. DTC is proud to be one of the original innovation hubs to support the Department of Defense and its missions. For more information, visit https://events.techconnect.org/DTCFall.

About TechConnect
With 25+ years of experience connecting emerging technologies with unique funding and partnership opportunities, TechConnect boasts the most robust research and innovation network in the world. It employs a broad scope of tools to deliver top technologies, including open innovation programs, conferences, and open-access publications. Each year, TechConnect prospects, vets, and connects thousands of emerging technologies with corporate, investment, municipal, and national defense clients. TechConnect is a division of Advanced Technology International. https://techconnect.org/

About Advanced Technology International
ATI, a public-service nonprofit based in Summerville, S.C., builds and manages collaborations that conduct research and development of new technologies to solve our nation’s most pressing challenges. Fueled by a community of experts from industry, academia, and government, ATI accelerates impact by using the power of collaboration to help the federal government quickly acquire novel technologies. ATI is a subsidiary of Analytic Services, Inc. (ANSER), a public-service research institute organized as a nonprofit corporation, which is dedicated to informing decisions that shape the nation’s future. ATI.org

Media Contact

Michael Tebo, Gabriel Marketing Group (for TechConnect), 571-835-8775, michaelt@gabrielmarketing.com

SOURCE Defense TechConnect 2022 Innovation Summit & Expo