The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency awarded contracts to Leidos and Raytheon BBN, an RTX company, for services related to the Quantum Augmented Network program. The cost-plus-fixed-fee contracts, valued at $8.5 million for Leidos and $7.5 million for BBN, is for the development of a hybrid quantum-based communication network specifically for critical infrastructure security, the Department of Defense said Friday.

Amazon Web Services has secured High authorization under the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program for its end-to-end encrypted service available for AWS GovCloud customers in the U.S. West region. AWS Wickr is an encrypted communications service that uses a 256-bit encryption technique to enable government and commercial customers to secure group messaging, voice and video calling, screen sharing and file sharing, AWS said Thursday.

Defense Unicorns, a provider of artificial intelligence capabilities and open source software for national security, raised $35 million in its Series A funding round from investors led by Sapphire Ventures and Ansa Capital. Defense Unicorns said Thursday it will use the funds to advance its mission-focused capabilities.

Dataminr Government President Dana Barnes was named among Executive Mosaic’s esteemed roster of 2024 Wash100 Award winners for championing artificial intelligence-focused efforts to deliver optimized customer value and ensure responsible use of AI. This is the third time that Barnes was included in the annual list of 100 elite leaders in the government and government contracting space.

Vote for Barnes as one of your favorite awardees at Wash100.com. This year’s popular vote competition runs through April 30, so cast your 10 votes now!

Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Army demonstrated the extended-range variant of the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System during an operational test at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, paving the way for the rocket to move to the fielding and production phase. Two ER GMLRS rockets were fired from the Army's High Mobility Artillery Rocket System launcher against a target and met missile performance criteria in terms of flight trajectory, range and accuracy from launch to impact, Lockheed said Thursday.

Maxar Technologies‘ space systems business will continue supporting L3Harris Technologies in the development of missile warning and tracking satellites for the Space Development Agency. For SDA’s Tranche 2 Tracking Layer constellation of low-Earth satellites program, Maxar said Thursday it will design and produce 18 Maxar 300 spacecraft platforms and provide associated support.

Viasat has selected Rocket Lab to build and deliver a satellite bus for a flight communications demonstration mission that would showcase the ability of the former's multi-band space-relay capabilities to support low Earth orbit missions. Rocket Lab's spacecraft bus will provide communications, propulsion and attitude control for the flight demonstration scheduled for launch in 2026 as part of Viasat's two contracts under NASA's Communications Services Project worth $80 million in total, Viasat said Thursday.

Science Applications International Corp. has booked a $96 million contract from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering to help modernize critical business operations, including policies and procedures. Under the contract, the company said Thursday it will increase data reuse and reduce internal organizational operational delivery times.

The State Department has approved Canada’s request to gain access to the Mobile User Objective System service and procure associated logistics and program support services from the U.S. government under a potential $138 million foreign military sales agreement. General Dynamics will serve as the principal contractor in the proposed FMS deal, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Thursday.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has added NetImpact Strategies’ suite of DX360 software-as-a-service offerings to its Approved Products List as part of the Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation program. NetImpact said Thursday its DX360 SaaS tools are categorized into three product lines: Cybersecurity and Enterprise Risk Management, Digital Dexterity and Case Manager.

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Cyber Summit on June 6 and hear cyber experts, government and industry leaders discuss the latest trends and the dynamic role of cyber in the public sector. Register here.

Arcfield subsidiary Orion Space Solutions on Monday launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base the Rapid Revisit Optical Cloud Imager satellite, which it had developed in support of the U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command's electro-optical/infrared weather systems program. The launch marks the beginning of a year-long on-orbit technical demonstration of the 8-channel 12U CubeSat's ability to provide the SSC with infrared data and high-resolution Earth observations using an onboard sensor that is powered by commercial-off-the-shelf technology, Orion said Thursday.

In a recent Executive Spotlight interview with ExecutiveBiz, Kirk Macchiavello, vice president and general manager of national security at Zolon Tech, reflected on the company's expansion journey, highlighted its core values and assessed the impact of technology innovation on the federal government.