Modernization at the Edge: Bringing Compute, AI, and Communications to Airmen and Guardians

Presented by HII Mission Technologies

Scott Heitmann, Chief Technology Officer of the Department of the U.S. Air Force, says modernization matters most when it reaches the airmen and guardians closest to the mission. For Heitmann, the goal is not simply to introduce new technologies into the Air Force and Space Force enterprise. It is to move useful capability out of fixed, traditional environments and into the hands of operators working at the tactical edge.

He points to African Lion in North Africa as a practical example of that shift. During the exercise, teams brought persistent communications, ad hoc networking, compact Linux systems, and AI-enabled language translation into theater. The language translation capability allowed mission partners to hear commands and directions in their native language, improving coordination in a coalition environment. Heitmann describes that kind of capability as a true game changer because it directly supports the people executing the mission.

The larger story is the movement of compute, storage, AI, and communications farther forward. Heitmann notes that a lot of earlier AI work relied on large databases and infrastructure located safely in CONUS-based environments. Now, the Air Force is pushing those capabilities closer to the edge, where operators need to make decisions under more constrained and contested conditions. That includes the ability to flex across multiple mobile networks, operate with limited infrastructure, and deliver capability at what Heitmann calls the “speed of need.”

Closing the loop with airmen and guardians is central to that approach. Heitmann says he needs to get out of the building and hear directly from the people using the technology. He maintains an informal chat group with hundreds of airmen and guardians across the force, designed to reduce barriers and encourage honest feedback. He says rank cannot get in the way of understanding what operators need, where their pain points are, and what technologies they believe could help the mission.

That cultural change is as important as the technology itself. Heitmann says airmen may be reluctant to speak openly in front of senior leaders because they do not want to look foolish or have an idea shut down too quickly. By creating more informal channels — whether through chat, video calls, phone conversations, or face-to-face meetings — he can hear more directly from the field and bring those stories back to senior leaders.

The infrastructure challenge is significant. Heitmann points to satellite communications, commercial networks, low Earth orbit capabilities, tactical kits, small-form-factor cloud tools, edge compute, and efforts to shrink large AI models into deployable environments. Commanders are asking how capabilities like Maven or large language models can be brought into smaller systems that can operate on vehicles, autonomous platforms, or even in backpackable form factors.

Policy is another major part of the modernization challenge. Heitmann says secure cloud guidance and assumptions about commercial networks need to evolve. The current model often relies on physical separation or caged environments. He wants to move toward a gray cloud approach, where encryption at the edge allows the Air Force to use commercial networks more effectively and securely.

He also emphasizes resilience. The Air Force cannot rely on a single fiber line, one network, or one communications path. Heitmann wants multiple vendors, multiple spectrum options, satellite links, commercial networks, and flexible infrastructure that allow airmen and guardians to keep operating even when traditional systems are degraded or disrupted.

His message is that modernization is not theoretical. It is happening in exercises, in the field, and in direct conversations with operators. The future Air Force will need compute, AI, communications, and policy models that are as agile as the missions airmen and guardians are being asked to execute.

This interview was recorded on location at DefenseTech Live presented by HII Mission Technologies. Click Here for more insightful interviews from the event.