ATLANTA — Eighteen months ago, Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC) announced a partnership with ManTech, a company that provides advanced, mission-focused technology solutions and services to the federal government. That partnership would support the growth of startups built on cybersecurity-related technologies and emerging innovations.
The partnership with ManTech and the focus on cybersecurity and defense technology have been so successful that ATDC recently added two new people to work in this vertical. Bob Nunnally and Jan Norris will work alongside Blair Tighe, a startup catalyst in cybersecurity and defense, who has been in the position since the beginning of the partnership in 2023.
“The expansion of this vertical is in response to an interest by the defense sector to solve immediate problems by onboarding up-and-running, ready-to-go technologies,” said John Avery, ATDC director. “Our goal is to provide a very rich, robust pipeline of talent and companies to solve problems in the defense category.”
The men who work in this vertical all have military backgrounds and experience operating within the Department of Defense, a huge plus for small companies that need to learn to navigate government waters.
They will work together in three areas that, Nunnally said, need to happen simultaneously.
“One is advancing the visibility of ATDC and our mission,” he said. “Second is finding companies that want to be affiliated and can meet the requirements of being part of the ATDC portfolio. And then the third is coaching and growing those companies that are part of the portfolio.”
Georgia and the Southeast are increasingly important players with the Department of Defense. There are cybersecurity facilities in Augusta and military bases in Columbus and Warner Robins.
The DoD is one of Georgia’s largest employers, accounting for 150,000 direct jobs, more than 330,000 others indirectly, and about $22 billion in economic activity, according to the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.
Additionally, the DoD engages with the Georgia Tech Research Institute, Georgia Tech’s nonprofit, applied research organization, to develop innovations for the Army, Air Force, Navy, and other DoD units designed to keep the U.S. safe.
The DoD plans to help grow the Atlanta ecosystem by working with emerging technology programs, such as ATDC, in ways that benefit Georgia Tech, ATDC, the companies themselves, and the DoD. It’s an important sector that will help ensure the security — both physical and cyber — of our nation, while positively impacting the economy in the region.
An important part of the job for the three team members is helping entrepreneurs find the right people at DoD to talk with about their technology and helping companies ensure compliance with DoD and intelligence regulations.
“The federal government needs technology around supply chain, risk management, maintenance, contested logistics,” Norris said. “There’s a list of critical technology areas published regularly for which DoD is looking for solutions and capabilities.”
And ATDC is well-placed to provide the technology needed.
“There’s a need on the DoD side to continue to do things smarter, faster, and cheaper,” Nunnally said. “It’s technology that’s resident in the brilliant young minds of entrepreneurs. ATDC can be the bridge to solve some of the most important and challenging problems. It’s a matter of — can we take this brilliant idea on the napkin and make that company sufficiently strong and competitive to win that work?”
It’s a question Avery believes can be answered with a resounding affirmative.
“We think this is probably going to become our most active and impactful vertical,” he said.