Axios

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Deeper collaboration between defense companies and amongst allied countries is critical to accelerating defense innovation and production, industry insiders said at Axios' Future of Defense roundtable.

Why it matters: The defense sector is flush with emerging tech, but turning those ideas into tangible tools ready for deployment is a complex mission.

Axios' Colin Demarest and Ashley Gold moderated the roundtable discussion on Oct. 22. The event was sponsored by Booz Allen.

4 big takeaways from the conversation:

1. Shifting the focus from competition to collaboration within the private sector is key to creating solutions, said Susanne Hake, general manager of U.S. Government at Vantor. "Historically, a lot of companies have come up with problems wanting to win the entire mission space, and now it's really about interoperability," she said. "It's about working together to kind of bring those solutions to the government."

2. The relationships between Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea appear to be growing closer and the U.S. should look to strengthen partnerships with more allies as well, said Clarion Strategies president Julianne Smith, who is also a former NATO ambassador.

• "They're thinking about it in terms of defense production, about innovation, about AI, you name it. And so we've got to also put our team on the field. We've got to assemble a better network of countries."

3. Global engagement can give the U.S. a strategic edge in both military and economic defense readiness, said Cynthia Kaiser, Halcyon SVP of the Ransomware Research Center.

4. Modular open system architecture "can change the world in which we live in," said Greg Bowman, Siemens Government Technologies chief corporate strategy officer and SVP of the national security division.

• "You have to have a contractor and the government engineers in the same digital ecosystem so they can get those synergies so you don't have to worry about requirements shifting," he said.

Content from the sponsor's opening remarks:

Cameron Mayer, Booz Allen EVP of their defense technology group, said the U.S. is facing some "of the biggest threats since World War II" and that there's "urgent pressure" to help advance AI, cyber and the economy.

• He added that defense leaders have a "desire to expand the defense industrial base and bring that all together for the fight" in order to deliver tech that is ready, tested and proven.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Defense and national security leaders voiced concerns about political dysfunction, foreign adversaries and the need for stronger military and cyber readiness, at Axios' second annual Future of Defense Summit.

Why it matters: With AI and new technologies constantly advancing new military weaponry, defense leaders said it's vital for the U.S. to take steps to invest in innovations to sustain America's strategic edge amid rising global competition.

The Oct. 22 summit was sponsored by Lockheed Martin, Shield AI and Booz Allen.

Here are some takeaways:

Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta called gathering top generals at Quantico for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's Sept. 30 speech a "waste of time."

• "These are busy guys, they're on the front lines, for God's sakes. You don't call them back here to give them a political speech."
• Panetta also said the government shutdown "sends a fundamental message of weakness to all of our adversaries that democracy is not working."

Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) warned that China's military arsenal has "advanced at a breathtaking speed" and the U.S. needs to meet that challenge.

ICE is expecting to deport more than 600,000 unauthorized immigrants by the end of the year, U.S. border czar Tom Homan said.

• When asked about ICE agents' aggressive tactics, Homan said ICE is "doing the same thing we've done for 40 years. The difference is right now ICE officers are under great threat, over 1,000% increase in the attacks. ... These men and women are putting themselves at great risk."

Congress should be briefed more on the U.S. military strikes off the Venezuelan coast, Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) said. "Congress isn't hearing enough — in any form, including a public forum."

• After President Trump canceled his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Young said Trump should send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine and "ratchet up the pressure" on Putin.

When it comes to the golden dome, Northrop Grumman chair, president and CEO Kathy Warden said the architecture for Golden Dome and its capabilities "are appropriately being protected by the U.S. government."

Taiwan's Representative to the United States, Alexander Tah-Ray Yui, said Trump's second term is "quite different" than previous administrations. "I would describe the beginning of his term as a 'Christmas period'... you have an advent calendar… and every day is still a surprise."

Content from the sponsored View From the Top conversations:

Frank St. John, Lockheed Martin chief operating officer, discussed the company's vision for the golden dome, saying it's all about "modern deterrence."

• "When we look at the threats that we're seeing in real world events from ballistic missiles, cruise missiles[and] armed drones, we understand that we need to develop a deterrence capability to prevent that from happening in our homeland." St. John added this will take an all-industry approach.

Ryan Tseng, Shield AI co-founder and chief strategy officer, highlighted their new autonomous aircraft X-BAT, which was unveiled at an Axios Live event the evening before the Future of Defense Summit.

• "X-BAT came from us taking a look at the problem in the Pacific and basically seeing a real challenge with runway protection and survivability," Tseng said. "And air power, [as] we can see in Ukraine, is so essential to establishing dominance on the battlefield and when you're unable to project it, it can turn into a really difficult conflict."
• The new aircraft has the capability to launch and land vertically, mitigating any runway vulnerability.

The White House on Thursday said the fastest way to lower consumer beef prices was through increased imports — despite the concerns of both the domestic industry and key members of Congress.

Why it matters: President Trump firmly insists there's no inflation at the grocery store, but even he concedes beef prices have gotten too high.

Electric vehicle maker Rivian is cutting about 4.5% of its workforce as the auto industry faces middling demand for EVs.

Why it matters: The expiration of the federal EV tax credit in September is widely expected to lead to a decline in EV sales across the industry.

There was a closed-door meeting Wednesday between the pro-crypto members of the Senate Democratic caucus and an array of leaders from the digital asset world, discussing legislation around how to structure law for the crypto market.

The big picture: Congress is making it difficult for President Trump to achieve the big legislative win he promised the crypto industry — but his administration could still deliver without passing laws.

President Trump has pardoned Changpeng Zhao, better known as CZ, the founder of crypto exchange Binance, according to a statement from the White House.

Why it matters: The pardon likely provides a path for Binance to operate in the U.S. after more than a year of lobbying Trump.

Alex Goodwin and Ayo Ekhator both know the messiness of private market data, having worked at top shops like Blackstone and Leonard Green before meeting up at Harvard Business School.

Why it matters: Now they're building something to clean it up; and maybe to clean out some of the younger staffers who enter and analyze such data, first on the LP side and eventually on the GP side.

The decision by payroll processor ADP to suspend the Federal Reserve's access to employment data is a minor story in the scheme of things. But it shows why government-produced economic data is so essential.

The big picture: There has been an explosion in recent years in private sector data that sheds light on how the economy is evolving, and much of it is terrific. But there's ultimately no replacement for the government's might in collecting data from all corners of a $30 trillion economy.

Air traffic controllers will miss their first paychecks next week due to the ongoing government shutdown, and that will likely have consequences for travelers, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Thursday.

Why it matters: Travelers have already seen disruptions at airports plagued by staffing shortages, and Duffy warned the situation could worsen. Air travel was paralyzed during the 2019 shutdown.

A pair of House Democratic committee leaders are launching an investigation into President Trump's demand that the Justice Department pay him $230 million in damages for its past probes into him.

Why it matters: Democrats lack the subpoena power to force Trump to answer their questions, but it signals a new area of inquiry their investigators will likely pursue if they take back the House in 2026.

Amazon's latest AI tool promises to make shopping decisions easier — by choosing the "best" product for you.

Why it matters: Amazon has been a major player in generative AI, largely through its cloud business, but the new Help Me Decide feature marks a bigger push to bring that technology directly to shoppers.

Here's what's new on HBO Max, Netflix, Paramount+, Hulu, Peacock, BET+, Prime Video, Tubi and PBS.

What we're watching: A new installment in the "It" franchise, a thriller from the director of "The Hurt Locker" and a new season of "Mayor of Kingstown."

While the Trump administration says it has more drug pricing deals lined up with pharmaceutical manufacturers, the emerging template is still a tough sell for many companies.

Why it matters: Pfizer was the first to commit to the Trump administration's plans for reshaping how medicines are sold, but other companies don't necessarily have the same incentives to opt in.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services plans to recall about 3,000 staff who were furloughed because of the shutdown starting on Monday, officials confirmed to Axios.

The big picture: CMS plans to tap fees it charges outside researchers to access its data to pay staff during the shutdown, a spokesperson said.