New technologies the US govt wants to fund
Autonomous Robots, Advanced Manufacturing, Microelectronics, Synthetic Biology and more
In 2022, the U.S. Department of Defense established the Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) to identify and help scale supply chain technologies critical for national security. In 2023, the US Congress formally authorized OSC to perform 3 core duties:
1. To develop, integrate, and implement capital investment strategies proven in the commercial sector
2. To identify and prioritize promising critical technologies and assets that require capital assistance and have the potential to benefit the Department of Defense; and
3. To make investments in such technologies and assets.
On January 2 this year, the OSC published its Investment Strategy for the Fiscal Year 2025. I find this is a good pointer to which industries will see quick innovation and increasing investment in the next 5-10 years.
The primary aim is to identify, fund and enable technologies with ‘national security impacts’
National Security Impacts are those that provide the United States and/or its allies and partners with a robust competitive advantage to its strategic competitors.
The OSC has identified 31 Covered Technology Categories, under which projects/companies are eligible for receiving loans, loan guarantees and technical assistance. Of these, the following have been picked as industries of ‘Particular Interest’:
A new financial product from the OSC, launched in September 2024, offers direct lending for equipment finance, to enable commercialisation of technologies.
There is a strong focus on Synthetic biology
The field’s potential national security impacts range from advancing the onshoring of critical chemical manufacturing, developing mobile energy solutions, and defending against malicious use of synthetic biology technology.
Of the industry segments of Particular Interest, 4 relate to biology - Biochemicals, Bioenergetics, Biomass, and Synthetic Biology.
Last week, on January 17, the U.S. DoD also approved 17 funds that are projected to invest upto $4 billion in 1700 portfolio companies DoD’s Critical Technology Areas.
Also interesting - Climate Change and Global Security, published August 2024 and the Report of the Commission on the National Defense Strategy