U.S. Air Force funds digital engineering initiative
The Department of the Air Force has awarded an $8.6 million contract to Istari Digital. The funding will establish Industry Øne, an initiative designed to accelerate digital transformation across the defense industrial base. The project aims to break down existing digital engineering barriers between different organizations.
The Industry Øne initiative is built upon the foundational work of two preceding Air Force programs with Istari Digital: Flyer Øne and Model Øne. Flyer Øne is focused on creating the world's first digitally-certified aircraft, while Model Øne aims to connect various models and simulations across the Air Force to address the complexities of modern warfare. At the core of this digital transformation is the concept of the "digital thread," which creates a single, authoritative source of data throughout a weapon system's lifecycle. This integrated data flow, from initial design to in-field maintenance, aims to eliminate the inefficiencies and errors that arise from disconnected, siloed systems. The current defense industrial base struggles with significant digital barriers. Thousands of suppliers often use incompatible software tools and operate behind separate, secure firewalls. This forces engineers to manually copy and share sensitive data, which is slow, risks introducing errors, and requires organizations to surrender control of their intellectual property. Industry Øne directly tackles this by enabling what Istari CEO Will Roper calls a system where data remains "locally controlled, yet globally connectable." This approach allows different organizations to connect their digital models for collaboration and testing without ever moving the data from their own secure servers, thus maintaining data sovereignty. This model is inspired by the rapid, iterative design processes seen in Formula 1 racing, an industry Roper frequently cites as a benchmark for digital engineering prowess. The goal is to create an "internet of models" that can be continuously updated and tested, drastically reducing the time and cost associated with physical prototypes and lengthy development cycles. The long-term vision is to fundamentally change how the U.S. acquires and sustains military hardware. By creating a more agile and collaborative digital ecosystem, the Air Force aims to move from decades-long development timelines to a model of continuous innovation, allowing for faster upgrades and the integration of new technologies to stay ahead of adversaries.
