On October 1, 2021, the US Aerospace News Network reported that the US Anti Innovation Team is soliciting ideas from space and information technology companies on how to build a "hybrid architecture" for government and commercial satellites, encouraging commercial satellite manufacturers, system integrators, and information technology companies specializing in software defined network architecture design to actively participate. The deadline for the solicitation activity is October 18.

The Defense Innovation Group stated that the Department of Defense is seeking a hybrid space architecture that integrates emerging commercial space sensors and communication capabilities with the US government's space systems, while incorporating best in class commercial practices to protect network security across multiple domains. The concept of a hybrid architecture that combines government satellites and commercial satellites has been discussed for many years, but there is still no detailed plan to implement it. The US military is an important customer for commercial satellite services such as communication, imaging, and weather, and the US Department of Defense is seeking ways to acquire commercial capabilities. When US satellites are attacked, a hybrid architecture will enable the Department of Defense to use commercial systems more flexibly during conflicts. The Defense Innovation Group stated that a hybrid architecture must be a payload (hosted or customized) capable of communicating between different government and commercial networks, and listed the following specific requirements:

·It can securely transmit data across multiple networks at multiple levels.

·It is a variable trust protocol that allows users to adjust trust factors commensurate with risk or task applications. Using weapons may require a high level of trust.

·Integrate data from multiple intelligence sources currently and in the future available to the US government.

·Develop analysis tools that are compatible with multiple commercial and government data sources.

Source: Interstellar Intelligence Hub