AFWERX Announces SameGrain, Inc. Among Top Selected Teams Across the Globe Vying to Build the Base of the Future
ELLICOTT CITY, MD (August, 31, 2020) – AFWERX, the catalyst for fostering innovation within the U.S. Air Force, announced SameGrain as one of the top 92 participating teams selected from across the globe competing to build the Base of the Future Challenge.
The AFWERX Challenge is centered around six topics - Base Security, Installation Resilience, Leveraging Technology for Operational Effectiveness, Reverse Engineering, Culture of Innovation, and Airman and Family Wellbeing. The proposals selected to advance represent innovative solutions ranging from new base security technology and VR training modules to virtual assistants and apps designed for wellness and leadership development.
Located in Maryland, SameGrain is competing in the Empowering Airmen & Family Wellbeing Challengealongside a diverse group of teams - originating from the vast regions of North America, Europe, Australia and other allied countries – representing entrepreneurial startups, small businesses, large enterprises, academic institutions and research labs all vying to build the Base of the Future and modernize the Department of Defense.
“The AFWERX Base of the Future Challenge is critical to our mission of increasing collaboration between large businesses and entrepreneurs to accelerate solutions for the Air Force,” stated Mark Rowland of AFWERX. “On behalf of AFWERX and the Department of Defense, we congratulate the teams advancing to the next phase. Their contributions are invaluable and have the potential to create game-changing results across the Air Force enterprise.”
The Empowering Airmen & Family Wellbeing Challenge aims to identify, expand and modernize the helping agencies and available resources for Airmen and their families. The Challenge seeks solutions that can provide real-time and actionable information to installation leadership about the specific needs of the military community and can enhance the overall resilience of our warfighters. In turn, administrative leaders are able to provide better care for Airmen and their families.
Built by Internet Pioneers and Data Science PhD’s, SameGrain’s award winning AI enabled community engagement platform uses deep data and patented technology to privately match individuals for relevant and meaningful connections that can provide much needed 24/7 “stigma free” support, as well as, actionable insights and predictive analytics. The solution proposed for this challenge will incorporate new features to connect users to mentors and supporting programs.
“We are honored to have been selected as an AFWERX Challenge finalist, commented SameGrain’s CEO, Eric Eller.” “SameGrain has successfully matched military members on our consumer platform for years, therefore this opportunity, along with our Phase II SBIR with Air Force Special Operations Command, will enable us to further expand our privacy focused solutions to foster supportive relationships for Airmen and their families,
The AFWERX Fusion 2020 Showcase recently featured 370 of the participating teams selected from a record breaking 1,500+ submissions received for the Base of the Future Challenge. Throughout the event teams pitched their solutions to a panel of subject matter experts from the relevant sectors of the Air Force. The top 92 selections were identified and invited to further engage with the Air Force during the week of August 31 with the hope of obtaining contracts. For a complete list of participating teams visit fusion.afwerxshowcase.com/.
The Base of the Future theme was inspired by Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, which was decimated by Hurricane Michael, a Category 5 storm that occurred in 2018. For decades, Tyndall had been home to many generations of Airmen and their families. In the storm's aftermath, nearly 500 buildings were destroyed or damaged beyond repair. Fortunately, Congress approved a $3 billion military construction rebuild program, sparking hope that Tyndall would re-emerge stronger than ever before. The aspirational initiative seeks to create a robust installation that will become a universal symbol of innovation and excellence that can scale across the U.S. Air Force. To learn more about the Base of the Future Challenges, click here.
ABOUT SAMEGRAIN
Built by Internet Pioneers and Data Science PhD’s, SameGrain’s award winning AI enabled community engagement platform uses deep data, patented technology, and unique communication tools to privately match individuals for relevant and meaningful connections, support, and access to resources. In addition, SameGrain anonymizes and aggregates data for actionable insights, predictive analytics, and market reports. The company, which is based in Maryland, also provides matching solutions to meet the specific needs of the military, universities, and commercial enterprises.
ABOUT AFWERX
Established in 2017, AFWERX is a product of the U.S. Air Force, directly envisioned by former Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson. Her vision of AFWERX — to solve some of the toughest challenges that the Air Force faces through innovation and collaboration amongst our nation’s top subject matter experts. AFWERX serves as a catalyst to unleash new approaches for the warfighter through a growing ecosystem of innovators. AFWERX and the U.S. Air Force are committed to exploring viable solutions and partnerships to further strengthen the Air Force, which could lead to additional prototyping, R&D, and follow-on production contracts.
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