By The Octo Editor
“We’re here to show the world what we bring to GEOINT.” That’s what Rob Albritton, Octo’s Senior Director of AI oLabs™ Center of Excellence says about being at the biggest geospatial intelligence trade show in the nation. Whether it’s CDF™, OctoCX™, Hatteras™, or ShiftUp™ — all in the spotlight at Octo’s booth 531 — Octo’s offerings bring the best of emerging technologies to the Federal Government and the public they serve.
Octo’s SMEs talk GEOINT, talk products
Mahlon Braden, Senior Software Engineer and Navy Veteran, flew in from Octo’s St. Louis office. He describes some of the challenges addressed in the breakout sessions he attended at GEOINT. “The biggest issue right now is there is so much data. But how can we get to it? And how can we safely but rapidly share classified data with allies? That’s been a key theme here,” he says.
It’s a theme Octo’s other subject matter experts (SMEs) in attendance are familiar with, making their presence at GEOINT even more timely.
In an interview, Jovon Jackson, a Business Systems Analyst from Octo’s Chantilly, Virginia office says, “There are certainly lots of issues with data sharing. We’re well aware of that. And that’s where CDF comes in.”
CDF is Octo’s Common Data Fabric solution, and Jovon is at GEOINT to feature it. “CDF provides a unique environment to share data securely and rapidly,” he says. “It fixes the problem of having to manage multiple connections to access data. With CDF, you only need one connection. It’s a unique solution. I don’t know many companies that can make data sharing more efficient and secure like Octo has with CDF.”
Hailing from Octo’s Phoenix office and at GEOINT this week, Director of Product Development Jay McNallie explains how Octo’s CX suite of products is also addressing the issues Mahlon references. OctoCX brings 360° situational awareness to teams that require real time, accurate information, especially in areas where communications are weak or nonexistent. Used alone or as a complementary solution set, OctoCX collects, aggregates, sorts, sends, and stores actionable intelligence. “OctoCX allows us to get data into the hands of our foreign partners rapidly,” Jay says. “It’s different because it’s open source. And it’s in operation now.”
Ted Hallum from the Reston, Virginia office is an Army veteran and a Senior Defense Machine Learning Engineer at Octo, as well as a speaker at GEOINT. In his presentation, he described why machine learning (ML) models need to constantly be updated to ensure data shared to warfighters is accurate. He explained how Octo’s Hatteras can automate the process to keep warfighters safer. “Hatteras enables AI at scale, even at the tactical edge. It empowers warfighters by preventing model decay, automatically retraining ML models through a user interface that requires no DevOps experience. If you need a full-spectrum MLOps platform that’s designed with warfighters in mind, functions in bandwidth-constrained environments, and can scale to the tactical edge where you operate, then you should stop by booth #531 to check out our Hatteras demo,” he says.
At the heart of all emerging technology is DevSecOps. From Octo’s Denver office, Mark Wells, Vice President of DevSecOps, describes the role ShiftUp plays. ShiftUp is Octo’s modular, open source platform for building a modern, secure, scalable, automated digital software supply chain. “We took the best minds in DevSecOps and put them into ShiftUp,” he says. “With ShiftUp, you literally push a button and the entire platform, from the infrastructure to the tooling to the entire pipeline, is automated and ready to go.” Mark’s experience working in the Intelligence Community and his expertise in DevSecOps fuel his passion for bringing proven solutions to GEOINT and the Federal Government.
Octo according to the SMEs
When asked why the Federal Government should work with Octo, Ted says most companies in the government contracting world operate in the same way. Octo brings a fresh perspective. “We approach everything less like a GovCon company and more like a tech company.” And that makes a big difference when it comes to innovative thinking, collaborating on solutions with customers, and solving real problems agencies and organizations are facing.
Jay says about Octo, “Government has been solving the same problems over and over. Octo doesn’t do that. Octo brings in new thinking, turning technology on its head. We do it by staying on top of emerging trends.”
Rob adds, “Octo does things differently, and so do the people we hire. We bring in people who have the guts to turn right when the rest of the market is saying to turn left.” Because that’s what innovation is all about.
Octo’s experts also go above and beyond. These aren’t folks just driven by a paycheck, according to Rob. They are truly dedicated to the missions they serve, which Rob describes as keeping the nation safer. “Octo lives and breathes the mission,” he says. “We truly believe in it.”
Stay tuned for more insights from Octo’s SMEs at GEOINT as the week progresses. And for more information on Octo’s innovative products and approaches, email CTO@octo.us.