The federal government — and the Pentagon specifically — wants the newest technology on the fastest track. And to get there, government agencies are using taxpayer dollars to invest in private innovation.
As agencies shell out hundreds of millions of dollars in loans, loan guarantees, equity purchases and warrants, they are blurring the traditional roles of the public and private sectors, posing challenges for policymakers as well as for executive agency officials and regulators.
Pentagon Pushes Ahead With Plan to Overhaul Weapons Buying
The US government’s investments are also exposing the tension between pushing to speed up procurement and increasing ...