Member Info for miningforgold

CEO & co founder of whitespace

“we are a Tier One asset for NATO and we bring in partners like Google, Oracle, Microsoft etc when needed”

Says it all

🚀

Fantastic piece

Thanks for sharing!!

This is the link I meant to share but they’re all relevant!

GDIT Successfully Demonstrates Google Cloud Air-Gapped Appliance at the Tactical Edge During the Mobility Guardian 2025 Exercise

https://www.gdit.com/about-gdit/press-releases/gdit-successfully-demonstrates-google-cloud-air-gapped-appliance-at-the-tactical-edge/

Also September -

GDIT Awarded $1.5 Billion Enterprise IT Modernization Contract to Strengthen U.S. Strategic Command’s Operational Readiness

https://www.gdit.com/about-gdit/press-releases/gdit-awarded-usd1-5-billion-enterprise-it-modernization-contract/

It’s so exciting being at the forefront of cutting edge tech being rolled out by Google right now in the US military and MOD simultaneously

Market cap of general dynamics

The market capitalization for General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) is approximately $92.43 billion, as of October 2025

Guyscheck out general dynamics tech division new contracts with the US army to give an idea of the size of the prizes and our first mover advantage with the MOD

October 2nd - https://www.gdit.com/about-gdit/press-releases/gdit-awarded-usd1-25-billion-enterprise-mission-information-technology/

1. Use of Google Distributed Cloud Air-Gapped

• Both are building on Google’s sovereign, air-gapped cloud infrastructure, designed to operate fully disconnected from the internet.

• Ensures data residency, security, and compliance while enabling sensitive AI workloads in defence environments.

2. Sovereign AI / National Security Focus

• Both aim to embed AI directly into national defence infrastructure.

• USA: autonomous edge operations for battlefield command and situational awareness.

• UK: protecting information integrity and resilience against disinformation and information warfare.

3. Integration of AI Middleware

• Both integrate a middleware AI platform to translate cloud compute into actionable defence capabilities.

• USA: GDIT Luna AI handles real-time data fusion, OCR, translation, and field intelligence.

• UK: Whitespace Collective OS orchestrates Generative & Agentic AI for secure operations across disconnected or classified environments.

4. Edge-to-Core Capability

• Both systems allow operations at the tactical edge, with secure synchronization back to central networks when connectivity is restored.

• Supports resilient operations in denied, degraded, intermittent, or limited bandwidth (DDIL) environments.

5. Co-Development with Specialist Partners

• USA: GDIT + Google co-develop the edge AI capabilities.

• UK: Defence Holdings + Whitespace co-develop the software and AI infrastructure.

• In both cases, this partnership model accelerates delivery while embedding sovereign standards from inception.

6. Sovereign Standards Embedded Early

• Both designs integrate security, Zero Trust, and compliance at the architecture stage rather than as an afterthought.

• Ensures that AI tools are operationally ready for classified or sensitive environments.

7. Strategic Outcome

• Both are creating sovereign AI ecosystems, making AI a mission-critical infrastructure, not just an add-on.

• Enables governments to control decision-making speed, situational awareness, and information integrity through technology they own and operate.

⸻

In short: different missions, same blueprint — sovereign, secure AI, cloud-based, co-developed with specialist partners, and capable of operating at the edge before syncing to central networks.

Wow just look at the values on these MOD tenders going live next month!!

https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/049782-2025#lot_3

“The Ministry of Defence has launched a £900 million procurement framework to accelerate the development of advanced digital decision-making tools for the British Army. The Digital Decision Accelerators for Defence (DDAD) Open Framework is designed to foster innovation across the supply chain, inviting contributions from Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as well as established defence contractors.”

This hasn’t even started yet folks.. don’t be spooked by the volatility

Defence Technologies

From 1 month ago -

From Intent to Impact: Formalising Our Strategic Partnership with Defence Holdings PLC on AI for Defence and National Security

Last week, we announced a Letter of Intent with Defence Holdings PLC (LSE: ALRT), built on a simple principle: critical AI for defence and national security must be developed, secured, and controlled here.

Today, that intent becomes execution. Whitespace and Defence Holdings have completed a binding Strategic Partnership to deliver sovereign AI infrastructure and mission‑ready applications on our CollectiveOS platform.

Why It Matters

AI is now a foundational component of national security. The UK needs a trusted, resilient capability that works in air‑gapped and low‑connectivity environments. Together we’ll deliver at the pace modern defence demands.

What’s Underway

First AI product for the UK Ministry of Defence now in development within a classified programme, with long-term deployment potential.

Initial portfolio on CollectiveOS focused on: autonomous decision-making and human–machine teaming; secure intelligence fusion; multi-domain awareness; critical infrastructure protection; and counter-disinformation.

CollectiveOS has already proven in classified environments, including a GenAI knowledge management app on a UK naval platform.

Sovereign by design, built to scale: UK-designed and hosted systems, deployable in secure, low-connectivity and air-gapped settings with full lifecycle data protection. Partnering with leading technology firms enables rapid scaling in support of NATO allies.

“Our focus is delivering operational advantage for priority UK defence programmes and preparing pathways for allied adoption, embedding with users, iterating fast on CollectiveOS, and scaling what works, safely and securely.” Paul Jenkinson, CEO, Whitespace

Andrew McCartney, co-founder of Whitespace, has transitioned to the role of Chief Technology Officer at Defence Holdings. His extensive experience in AI applications for defence, particularly within UK Ministry of Defence environments, positions him to drive the integration of advanced technologies into Defence Holdings’ offerings

Richard “Bertie” Bassett, a former Command Sergeant Major with 26 years in special operations, has been appointed Vice President of Defence Programmes at Defence Holdings.

imo it’s a 50:50 joint venture. Both need eachother for the products being created for the MOD who might have asked Whitespace to form

Whitespace is listed on the UK Government’s G-Cloud framework (Lot 2: Cloud Software) with published pricing, T&Cs, and product details, then

1. What That Means

• They’re pre-approved suppliers. The Crown Commercial Service (CCS) has already vetted them for compliance, security, and procurement standards.

• Any public sector buyer (MOD, NHS, police, local government, other departments) can procure their services directly through the framework, without running a full competitive tender.

• Pricing transparency (rate cards, software licences, day rates) means contracts can be called off quickly under standardised T&Cs.

2. Why This Matters

• For Whitespace, and by extension Defence Holdings’ Defence Technologies division, this framework listing acts like a fast-track sales channel into government.

• It means MOD teams or other departments don’t have to build a new procurement pipeline — they can literally “buy now” under pre-agreed conditions.

• This dramatically lowers the friction for pilots, prototypes, and scaled rollouts of software like Collective OS and Project Ixian.

3. Strategic Implication for Ixian

• Ixian itself may not yet be listed as a distinct “product” on G-Cloud (it’s still in build).

• But because Whitespace already has approved products and commercial frameworks live on Lot 2, Ixian could be contracted under that umbrella once it’s operational.

• That’s why Defence Holdings emphasises speed — they’re not waiting for new contract frameworks; they’re building on ones that already exist.

“ Surprised they didn’t do a funding at 4p a few days ago”

It would have made a lot of sense, however :-

Defence Holdings has now moved from vision to contracted build. That strongly suggests some form of funded development contract already exists with the MOD (otherwise they wouldn’t be able to say it’s “informed by end-users” and “co-developed” with MOD).

Defence AI projects are usually milestone-based:

1. Funded R&D / prototype (now)

2. Operational evaluation / pilot (post-DSEI showcase, late 2025)

3. Deployment & rollout contracts (2026+)

That means revenue may already be booked in H2 2025 under development income, but significant recurring revenues would start once Ixian enters operational deployment, which could realistically be early-to-mid 2026.

The MOD’s spend on sovereign cloud isn’t just about infrastructure. It exists to enable sovereign AI applications (like Ixian) that run on it. Defence Holdings is positioned to be one of the first downstream beneficiaries.

Being realistic and feet on the ground it doesn’t mean Defence starts booking big money on Ixian this December. But yes, it dramatically increases the certainty and speed of revenue potential in 2026, because Ixian is being built on the very infrastructure the MOD has just committed £400M to.

THE DAY AFTER IXIAN LAUNCHED

https://www.googlecloudpresscorner.com/2025-09-11-Google-Cloud-Awarded-Landmark-Sovereign-Cloud-Contract-with-UK-Ministry-of-Defence

Following yesterday’s AADP briefings at Army HQ Andover with Whitespace and Google Cloud, today marked a major milestone: Cohort 9 of the Army Advanced Development Programme officially launched, completing their first workshop and onboarding to CollectiveAI - Whitespace’s secure, enterprise-grade conversational AI and research platform, delivered in partnership with EY.

AADP is the Army’s flagship initiative to equip future leaders with the skills and tools to harness AI at scale and build sustainable consultancy capability across Field Army and Army HQ.

What CollectiveAI brings to AADP:

✔️ Cited insights and decision support via referenced research and multimodal analysis

✔️ Standardised delivery with reusable templates, role-based sharing and auditable knowledge transfer

✔️ MOD-compliant security with cleared personnel, role-based access and transparent audit trails

✔️ Model flexibility: support for Google Gemini (including Gemini 2.5) and Gemma, plus a range of LLMs and SLMs

✔️ Defence-ready deployment: secure cloud or on-prem, classification-aware processing, and multi-vendor fallback

Outcomes for Defence:

🔶 Faster, better decision-making with full auditability

🔶 Higher operational productivity and reduced cognitive load

🔶 Time and cost savings across critical processes

Our team is on the ground delivering directly into the cohort from day one - AI moving rapidly from concept to practice inside the UK MoD, tailored to Defence needs and workflows.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/whitedotspace_aadp-britisharmy-whitespace-activity-7379093960402845696-aIsT?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAn35gQBSkiTYH0WWfUWsp4fmcd_f3rBtWc

Gets less riskier every day, and there's 5 years of this ...... :D

The MoD sets the strategic stage: £400M investment in Google Cloud to create a sovereign cloud platform, air-gapped and UK-controlled. This is the backbone of the sovereign ecosystem.

Defence Holdings operationalises it

Project Ixian uses the platform to build a first-of-its-kind sovereign AI capability for information resilience. By embedding sovereign standards and demonstrating operational proof, it acts as a flagship project showing how the ecosystem works in practice.

Google enables scale and compliance

Google’s Distributed Cloud provides the technical and operational capability to meet sovereign requirements. They also provide the tools and platform that allow MoD and private actors like Defence Holdings to execute safely under UK law and standards.

Ecosystem creation

Together, MoD + Defence Holdings + Google are creating a UK sovereign cloud and AI ecosystem where:

Infrastructure is controlled and auditable.

Private and public actors can deploy operational AI capabilities.

Sovereign standards are embedded from platform to mission.

Lessons from one project (like Ixian) can scale across other programs.

Project Ixian is not just a single product. It’s proof-of-concept and operational anchor within a broader MoD-Google-led sovereign cloud ecosystem. It shows that sovereign AI can be both policy-compliant and operationally viable, turning a strategic £400M investment into an applied, multi-actor capability.

EDGE

will Edge be involved in this?

October 3, 2025

UK MoD invest £320m in new defence equipment platform. The new AI platform will replace 17 fragmented, siloed and outdated applications with one enabled modern streamlined platform.

This £320m ($430.9m) contract with IBM UK for the Defence Equipment Engineering Asset Management Systems (DEEAMS) will create 100 new highly-skilled jobs in the UK.

The new system will replace 17 fragmented, siloed and outdated applications with one enabled modern streamlined platform, using AI to bring over £1bn in benefits such as savings on support and IT costs. It will provide personnel with real-time information to predict maintenance and repairs, stock availability, and engineering planning across major equipment and platforms.

It will also enable the adoption of future productivity-enhancing technologies, making sure the UK’s Armed Forces stay ahead of defence innovation and capability.

“This is a major step forward in our commitment to ensuring our military has the very best equipment support available,” noted Luke Pollard, minister for defence readiness and industry.

“We are revolutionising how we provide our frontline personnel with the kit they need, when they need it, whether they’re operating at home or deployed overseas.”

Or could this be yet another AI roll out product from Defence Tech?

HUGE amounts of money being spent on AI within MOD right now and all within the last few months

Right place. Right time!

He was posting bullish tweets in July and August

Missed the rise and how chats absolute 5h1t on x all day every day. Zzzz

Advantages of Being a First Mover in Sovereign AI

Market Leadership

Being the first to develop and deploy a sovereign AI product on Google’s air-gapped infrastructure establishes Defence Holdings as a pioneer in the field, setting industry standards and attracting attention from potential clients and partners.

Strategic Positioning

The collaboration with Google Cloud places Defence Holdings in a unique position to leverage cutting-edge technology while adhering to stringent UK data sovereignty requirements, enhancing its credibility and trustworthiness in the defence sector.

Alignment with National Defence Strategy

By developing Project Ixian in line with the MoD’s digital transformation strategy, Defence Holdings ensures its solutions are not only technologically advanced but also strategically aligned with national defence priorities.

Long-Term Growth Potential

The five-year strategic plan announced by Defence Holdings indicates a commitment to expanding its portfolio of sovereign AI products, suggesting sustained growth and innovation in the coming years.

Defence Holdings’ partnership with Google Cloud for Project Ixian positions the company at the nexus of technological innovation and national security priorities. By aligning with the MoD’s £400 million sovereign cloud initiative,

Defence Holdings not only enhances its market position but also contributes to the UK’s broader defence digital transformation. This strategic move underscores the company’s commitment to delivering secure, sovereign AI solutions that meet the evolving needs of the defence sector.

Just getting started -

“just wanted to say finally in public space thanks to John Abel, Robbie Carroll, Philip Richardson OBE, Imogen Verret and the whole of the Google Defence Team for the support you have given Defence Technologies around Project Ixian. Also to have built it from the ground up on 100% Google Technology alongside some of your amazing AI Engineers at the pace the SDR demands, loved it.

There is I know many more exciting things to talk about outside of just current version and UK market but that will have to be for another day.

Again thanks for all the support and a wonderful way to be finally able to talk about it.”

They’re hinting there’s more beyond the UK market and beyond the current version so likely international deployments, further capabilities, or commercial spin-outs!

John Abel - UK MD Google Cloud

Robbie Carroll - UK defence lead Google

Philip Richardson OBE - MOD for defence Google

Imogen Verret - Business Princple Google

The same people involved with the £400M contract with the MOD that will strengthen secure communication links between the UK and US, building on the extensive intelligence and security partnership our two countries already share. This delivers a key recommendation from the Strategic Defence Review for a digitally integrated service, providing resilient and secure networks.

Been saying it was Google for weeks!

Doesn’t get better

“This initiative brings together our sovereign infrastructure with Defence Holdings’ focus, ensuring the UK benefits from technologies that are operationally relevant and sovereign by design.”

— John Abel, UK MD, Office of the CTO, Google Cloud

Https://www.linkedin.com/in/valerie-quinn/?originalSubdomain=uk

"Directed the MOD Durden project programme (£5m), guiding the AI decision-support system from concept through implementation and ongoing support"

Whitespace last project with MOD was a £5M Programme.

Wonder what IXIAN and the Edge AI projects will be worth?!

All to play for

Just remember, Whitespace have already deployed successful projects within the MOD, for example :-

"Next week, our team will be taking over the annual event, Disrupted Technology for Defence Transformation which is in partnership with Strategic Command and Defence Academy of the UK.

We're looking forward to meeting attendees and sharing the success of 'Project DURDEN'.

https://x.com/whitedotspace/status/1572223418493448194

We act as an innovation catalyst within Defence - deploying leading-edge #technologies that challenge the conventional approaches and put #innovation, and the #users, at the centre. We adopt a continuous development approach to ensure the customer benefits from the rapidly changing #technology landscape and always has access to the latest capabilities.

This is why we’re proud to be collaborating with the Eviden team and will be demonstrating our #AI Decision Intelligence capability, #Durden, within the Digital Engineering and Logistics Platform as well as our #LaaS (Large Language Models as a Service) capability within the Advanced Intelligence Platform live on the Eviden stand.

Like Eviden, our aim is to demo how the Defence sector can exploit #investments already made in AI capabilities as well as show how we work, in a co-creation model, to rapidly build, test, deploy and scale solutions to Defence, Security and Intelligence problems.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/whitedotspace_technologies-innovation-users-activity-7106195828632891392-3ov8?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAn35gQBSkiTYH0WWfUWsp4fmcd_f3rBtWc

Eviden is the Atos Group brand for hardware and software products with c. € 1 billion in revenue, operating in 36 countries and comprising four business units: advanced computing, cybersecurity products, mission-critical systems and vision AI. As a next-generation technology leader, Eviden offers a unique combination of hardware and software technologies for businesses, public sector and defense organizations and research institutions, helping them to create value out of their data. Bringing together more than 4,500 world-class talents and holding more than 2,100 patents, Eviden provides a strong portfolio of innovative and eco-efficient solutions in AI, computing, security, data and applications.

New £320 million contract for a platform to revolutionise how the Armed Forces manage and maintain defence equipment to help the military make better decisions faster will create 100 new highly-skilled UK jobs.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/boost-to-jobs-and-military-capability-with-new-defence-equipment-system

That's one of the biggest buys I've seen in a long time, over half a mil at 4.5 when the share price was 4.0 v 4.2

TR1 next week if not tomorrow

Our new AI enabled “edge” software is designed to process data locally on deployed units, helping soldiers and systems make faster, smarter decisions without waiting for HQ. For the MOD, this isn’t just cool tech, it could have a real financial impact.

By extending the life of existing vehicles, UAVs, sensors, and other hardware, edge AI can defer costly replacements, potentially saving BILLIONS over the next five years.

Processing data at the edge also reduces the need for expensive satellite and secure network bandwidth, while improving identification and reducing operational errors all of which cuts costs further.

On top of that, adopting a software first approach allows the MOD to avoid unnecessary bespoke hardware programs, making procurement more efficient. Taken together, our approach could realistically save the MOD and allied forces between £3–5 BILLION over five years, all while giving them a critical speed advantage in the field staying ahead of an adversary’s OODA loop.

With the backing of Field Marshal Lord Houghton and a new major hyperscale partner, this positions us as a credible sovereign AI provider, aligned with UK and NATO strategic priorities, and ready to deliver both operational and financial value.

The savings are going to be astronomical for the MOD

"The relevant shares have been sold by that holder, ensuring that no material block of stock will come to market following issue."

Lovely!