Senetas attended the Defense TechConnect Innovation Summit & Expo (November 19–21, 2025, National Harbor, MD), the premier U.S. event dedicated to accelerating the transition of dual-use commercial technologies into national security and critical infrastructure applications.
Our presence was a critical step in aligning our sovereign-grade encryption solutions with the urgent modernization priorities of the U.S. defense ecosystem.
Event Overview and Key Focus
The Summit served as a connection point for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), federal agencies (DHS, DOE), industry innovators, and investors. The core objective was to bridge the gap between emerging research and government acquisition programs.
Key Technology Themes:
- Cyber Resilience & Zero Trust: Ensuring robust, assured network security against evolving threats.
- Defense Innovation: Securing platforms across advanced domains, including AI/ML and Unmanned Systems.
- Critical Infrastructure: Solutions for secure, resilient systems in urban networks and essential services.
Stan Mesceda, Thales and Nish Kawale, Senetas
Senetas at TechConnect: Key Engagements & PQC Leadership
The Senetas team showcased how our high-assurance, certified encryption addresses key federal security requirements:
- Technology Demonstration: We featured a live demonstration of our CN4020/CN7108 encryptors, highlighting their capability to provide “Nested Encryption for Multi-Domain Resilience” and securing multi-site connectivity.
- PQC Thought Leadership: Nish Kawale, VP Engineering for the Americas, delivered a critical presentation titled, “Securing the New Digital Battlefield.” This session focused on the urgent need to implement a NIST-approved Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) crypto-agile solution today. By detailing a hybrid approach (running classical and PQC algorithms simultaneously), we demonstrated how to transition now to neutralize the “harvest-now, decrypt-later” (HNDL) threat posed by future quantum computers.
- Ecosystem Activation: We strengthened strategic alliances by actively collaborating with our distributor, Thales TCT, reinforcing the availability of robust, integrated solutions for defense primes and key government agencies.
Drone Dominance: Commercial Drones in Support of National Security
A key panel session at TechConnect, featuring leaders from Lockheed Martin, Boeing, VLC, Transcend Air, and Berry Aviation, focused on the urgent challenge of integrating rapid commercial innovation with stringent defense requirements.
The discussion centered on the necessity of accelerating Dual-Use Drone Technologies—innovations developed for the commercial market that can be rapidly adapted for military applications.
Panelists identified two main barriers to this transition:
- Bureaucratic Speed: The slow, complex process of granting an Authority to Operate (ATO)—the formal security certification needed for any system to connect to a DoD network or operate in a mission environment.
- Architecture & Supply Chain: The conflict between traditional, “isolated” defense supply chains and the modern requirement for Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA), which mandates open, interchangeable components to enable rapid technology refresh.
The Solution in Action: Blue UAS
The panel indirectly highlighted the DoD’s primary strategy to overcome these issues: the Blue UAS Program. This initiative creates a pre-vetted list of NDAA-compliant (secure, non-foreign adversary supply chain) drone platforms and components.
The goal of the Blue UAS program is to grant a Global ATO to these systems, effectively streamlining acquisition and ensuring the U.S. military can quickly field secure, cutting-edge commercial drone technology to counter evolving threats.
Event Summary
Connecting the Dots: The key takeaway reinforced our strategic direction: the need for rapid acquisition of secure, certified components to support next-generation capabilities like drones and AI. Our presentations on hybrid PQC and multi-domain resilience directly address the panel’s concerns regarding long certification cycles (ATO) and the need for open, high-assurance security components (MOSA).
