Peter Golden

A fascinating new report from Silicon Valley Defense Group tracks the latest figures regarding private raised and federal awards to the 100 leading venture-funded, national security focused (and dual-use) startups. The headline figures of $52.9B in private capital raised to date versus $21.8B in federal awards serve to illustrate the very real gap between the surge in venture capital funding for defense technology and the U.S. government's spending on substantial contracts to startups. Further analysis paints an even starker picture. SpaceX, the number one finisher, accounted to fully 81% of the $22B in federal awards, or almost $18B, while accounting for some $9.8B in funding. I would go one step further, and subtract the figures for the other company founded by a very high net worth individual, Anduril Industries (SpaceX was, or course, founded by Elon Musk, and Anduril by Palmer Luckey - both deep pocketed visionaries). That paints an even starker picture, taking us from $22B in contracts for $53B in investment (42 cents on the dollar) to approximately $3.5B in contracts for $41B in investment (only 9 cents on the dollar). The lesson here, if there is one, is that is pays to be well provisioned when attempting to cross the defense technology "valley of death."

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Government Contracting #govcon seems to be a labyrinth 😕to many outsiders and newer folks coming into the space. I once created an Access database🧮 at a previous employer many years ago to highlight the importance of good data management and common unique identifiers... As the company tended to have some byzantine processes and nomenclature that I was trying to flesh out and focus 🔍on measuring the things that matter. So I've seen quite a bit of diverse contracts from over $100M 💰annual jobs to ones under $100K. I believe the process is essentially the same to ensure a smooth transition from pre-award to 🥇post-award. It starts with being able to accurately code 🔣your contract into your system of record. Do your #proposal 📚and #pricing 💵documents match the contract award 📝documents? Check that before you 🖋sign! Had an experience recently where there was some ambiguity 😵with a contract modification document in what it was doing as it relates to the changes we proposed. Some contracts get complex when you get to a dozen mods or so with many CLINs, SLINs, and 🗜ARCNs... IYKYK We both had differing interpretations🗣 as we worked through the document. There was a 💪🏼challenge with all the moving parts and new CLINs added and old ones removed and it turns out that we both had the same initial confusion that it wasn't done correctly... However, when we dug ⛏deeper into the changes in Section B (contract values) and Section G (funding values) we determined that this customer was doing It's important to have a uniform 🥋methodology on how you read and review your contract documents before you sign it and book the funding and contract values in your accounting system. Set your books up right the first time, or you'll pay💸 for it over-and-over again each month. And get the right people 🤼 and departments involved! Make it a great week 👊🏼

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This week in Fortune, I shared my thoughts about the critical need for a “peace through speed” approach in our national security strategy.    In this new era of great power competition, maintaining our technological edge is paramount. The United States must embrace a whole-of-nation approach, leveraging the private sector’s ability to innovate swiftly and effectively. The future will be defined by our agility in communications, cyber, AI, and other emerging technologies.   Booz Allen Hamilton is committed to fostering deeper collaboration between industry and government to accelerate innovation cycles. This isn’t just about keeping pace; it’s about setting the pace. Our national security depends on our collective ability to iterate quickly, scale fast, and work together differently.   U.S. businesses need to play a pivotal role in this transformation. By prioritizing national security, making proactive investments, and co-creating solutions across traditional boundaries, we can ensure that our nation and our democratic values remain resilient and secure.

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