Air Force looks to refactor HR apps, avoid vendor lock-in
The service branch’s personnel office needs to move applications to a new Salesforce licensing model while keeping the current systems up and running. The Air Force is facing a challenge familiar across the government – how to update your software portfolio and avoid the risk of vendor lock-in along the way. In this case, the Air […]
IonQ invests in maker of hydrogen-powered drones
Heven AeroTech will ad quantum sensors and other related technologies into the vehicles. IonQ, the quantum computing company that unveiled its federal arm in September, has invested in a maker of unmanned aerial systems and related solutions as a means to further enhance how drones operate. Heven AeroTech opened for business in 2019 to incorporate hydrogen […]
WT 360: Known risks and potential rewards in the post-shutdown catchup
Christine Williamson, a partner in the GovCon industry practice at CohnReznick, lays out five lingering challenges contractors must take into consideration in the reopening and how to respond to them. The 2025 government shutdown is on-record as the longest ever at 43 days, which means the recovery period will last well into the spring and […]
SEC to drop high-profile SolarWinds hack lawsuit
The landmark lawsuit garnered pushback from dozens of cybersecurity leaders last year. The Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday said it will dismiss a lawsuit against SolarWinds that had accused the company of making fraudulent statements that misled investors about its cybersecurity posture. The suit, initially filed in 2023, alleged that SolarWinds and its chief information security […]
NASA agrees to take a second look at its $1.8B COSMOS contract following protest
Incumbent KBR successfully challenged the award to Ascend Aerospace & Technology, prompting the agency to review its evaluation and best-value determination. Just weeks before NASA’s new prime contractor was set to begin work on the $1.8 billion COSMOS contract, the agency has backtracked on that decision in the face of a challenge from the disappointed incumbent. […]
Growth, tech and operations leadership moves across the market
One of the market’s notable founders lines up a new role and a second returns to the company he helped start nearly a decade ago, among other hires and promotions highlighted in here. Axiom Space Tracey Davies has joined the commercial space station developer as chief legal officer, while also taking on the roles of general […]
Polaris small business protests continue as GSA seeks to update the administrative record
Six companies are at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims challenging GSA’s evaluation of their scores, claiming that improper point deductions cost them spots among the top 100 awardees. While the General Services Administration made awards this week for two pools of Polaris small business categories, the legal battle surrounding the general small business category continues. […]
GSA finalizes a pair of Polaris award pools
Six apparent winners were dropped from the HUBZone and service-disabled/veteran-owned pools after challenges, adding 53 new companies on the 10-year IT vehicle. The General Services Administration has finalized awards for two pools of small businesses that qualified for positions on the Polaris government-wide IT vehicle. Back in August, GSA announced the “apparently successful” winners of the HUBZone and […]
Voyager acquires rocket motor, energetics supplier
Estes Energetics is the U.S.’ only producer of military-grade black powder, a key ingredient for the onshore integration and assembly of defense systems that the Pentagon wants more of. Voyager Technologies, the space company that went public in June, has acquired a maker of solid rocket motors and energetics in a move aimed at further consolidating […]
Carahsoft files and withdraws protest of Palantir’s $385M VA win in 24 hours
Neither company wants to talk about the brief challenge regarding the data analytics contract. Two unlikely competitors – Palantir and Carahsoft – came close to squaring off over a nearly $400 million contract with the Department of Veterans Affairs. Palantir won the $385.4 million contract on the last day of federal fiscal year 2025 – Sept. 30 […]