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Opinion: After a week of high-level meetings in Washington DC, while the US is rapidly cutting red tape, embracing risk and pouring billions into defence innovation, Australia risks being left behind unless it backs local innovators like DroneShield and builds a culture that gets new technology into the field faster, explains Lincoln Parker.
After a long series of flights with no sleep, I stepped off the plane in Washington DC this August with the humid air a reminder of the geopolitical heat we’re all feeling – especially in a revamped DC.
Representing the Defence Innovation Network (DIN), I was there for high-level meetings with US government agencies, industry, academic institutions and the Australian embassy.
The highlights? Meetings at the Pentagon and presenting at the National Defense Industrial Association’s (NDIA) Emerging Technologies for Defense Conference. My goal was simple: strengthen DIN’s partnerships, scout collaborative opportunities and showcase Australia’s world-class innovations to position us as a vital player in the Indo-Pacific.
What I came away with was a stark wake-up call. The US is leading the charge in defence innovation, slashing through bureaucracy and red tape that’s long been the silent killer of breakthroughs.
If Australia is serious about competing with China’s relentless military modernisation, we need to ditch our “she’ll be right, mate” complacency. The Americans have done it – and they’re reaping the rewards.
I had the privilege of sitting down with Michael Holthe, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Science and Technology – a three-star equivalent role. We discussed DIN’s programs, highlighting our collaborations with the US Army and Air Force, and exploring ties with the Navy in quantum sensing and autonomous systems.
The DOD’s enthusiasm was palpable – they see real value in deepening partnerships with us, especially in countering Chinese influence in the Pacific Islands and funding innovations that can get into the hands of warfighters quickly.
These discussions weren’t just polite meet-and-greet. They revealed US priorities that align perfectly with DIN’s expertise: AI at the edge for real-time decision making in forward operations, advanced manufacturing on-site to keep troops supplied, and positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) in GPS-denied environments – think quantum magnetometers like DIN’s quantum sensor project that produced a spinout known as DeteQt, which is revolutionising navigation in contested zones.
At the NDIA conference, I showcased these innovations, from neuromorphic sensors operating on the International Space Station to cutting-edge influence operations systems, and tech from Aussie stars like DroneShield, DeteQt and Optera.
The response? Genuine interest from US industry and academia, leading to potential partnering and project opportunities for our universities, start-ups and industry.
But here’s where the contrast should wake us up. At the conference, Admiral Chris Grady, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, laid out the US DOD’s focus: modelling and simulation for smarter ops, corrosion control via robotic ship cleaners, and especially AI and manufacturing at the edge.
In a panel with Under Secretary Michael Duffey and service acquisition chiefs like Jesse Tolson (Army), Jason Potter (Navy), William Bailey (Air Force), and Major General Stephen Purdy (Space Force), the message was clear: the US is ramping up risk tolerance to field capabilities faster.
They’re ditching compliance obsession for outcomes, partnering with venture capital to turbocharge adoption. It’s a far cry from Australia’s risk-averse culture, where innovation gets bogged down in endless approvals and “what ifs”.
The US DOD’s fiscal year 2025 budget requests over US$147 billion (AU$224.5 billion) for research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E), with US$17.2 billion (AU26.3 billion) earmarked for science and technology alone, including US$1.8 billion (AU$2.7 billion) for AI.
That’s not counting the myriad innovation units sprinkled across services and commands: the Defense Innovation Unit with nearly US$1 billion (AU$1.5 billion) in FY2023–24 funding, the Rapid Innovation Fund, and initiatives like the Office of Strategic Capital. Every branch – Army, Navy, Air Force, Space Force – has dedicated innovation arms, plus combatant commands driving tech adoption. It’s a decentralised powerhouse funnelling billions into breakthroughs.
Yes, it risks some duplication, but it also drives competition and a get stuff done, get stuff fielded culture.
Nationally, we’ve got the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA) as our main vehicle, but it’s a drop in the ocean compared to the US ecosystem. Our national R&D spend as a percentage of gross domestic product hovers around 1.8 per cent, while the US pushes about 3.5 per cent and climbing. It’s not the numbers we need to focus on; we are small. It’s the culture.
We have great innovators, but without support and pathways for our companies, the tech dies as a prototype.
No example screams this louder than DroneShield, an ASX-listed Sydney company that’s a near-unicorn in counter-unmanned aircraft systems tech. In 10 years they’ve gone from zero to hero on the world stage. DIN was an early supporter, backing them with grants back in 2019. Today, they’re world leaders: two US DOD programs of record, exports to over 100 countries, and AI-powered solutions that jam, detect, and neutralise drone threats seamlessly.
Yet, they just lost Defence’s LAND 156 project to a US-led team who’ll build their system from scratch. Are you kidding me? DroneShield’s tech is battle-proven, homegrown and ready to deploy, but red tape and procurement preferences handed it to foreigners. Unfortunately, talk to any small business here and they’ve heard all this before.
The key learning from my trip? To compete with China, we must emulate the US: cut the bureaucracy, embrace risk and back our innovators. We’ve secured US interest in Pacific collaborations and partnerships for DIN members, but that’s just the start. Australia has the talent – from quantum PNT to advanced sensors – but we need policy shifts.
Boost ASCA’s funding, create service-specific innovation units, and prioritise homegrown firms like DroneShield. Ditch the “she’ll be right” attitude, or we’ll be left behind, further behind than we already are.
As I flew home, reflecting on those DC meetings, one thing was crystal: the US isn’t waiting. Neither should we. Let’s innovate like our security depends on it – because it does.
Lincoln Parker works for the Defence Innovation Network in NSW. The views expressed in this article are his own and do not necessarily represent those of the Defence Innovation Network. He is a national security expert with extensive experience spanning over two decades, having worked in New York, San Francisco, Washington DC, and Sydney.
