How AI Startups Can Leverage Multi-Function Aperture Technology for Defense

Multi-function aperture (MFA) technology is redefining how the defense industry approaches data. By fusing radar, communications, and electronic warfare into a single aperture, MFAs not only enable faster, smarter operations but also reshape who gets to participate in this market. In fact, multi-function aperture technology in the aerospace and defense industry is broadening the supplier base and opening the door for new entrants.

For AI startups for defense, that shift is especially significant. The same technology that powers real-time battlefield awareness is also creating an entry point for innovators who bring advanced algorithms and agile development to the table. Understanding how MFAs intersect with modular open systems and data-driven defense strategies is the first step toward carving out a role in this rapidly evolving ecosystem.

MFA and MOSA

With its Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA), the Department of Defense requires systems to be:

• Modular: Built from interchangeable components
• Open: Not locked into a single vendor’s ecosystem
• Interoperable: Cross-compatible with vendors and platforms

That approach lowers the barrier to entry for vendors. Startups and small businesses no longer need to deliver entire systems — just the components that power them. Whether it’s a processor, an aperture, or a fiber optic cable, if your technology contributes to the solution, there’s a place for it in the market.

New Algorithms, AI, and Machine Learning Applications

AI and related technologies are taking the world by storm, and it’s extending to military and aerospace applications. This shift is creating opportunities for vendors and AI startups for defense that specialize in machine learning and algorithm development to carve out unique and potentially lucrative niches.

Examples include edge AI/ML algorithms for combat, such as real-time threat detection, smart targeting, and comms that make intuitive, real-time battlefield decisions based on full-spectrum sensor data. Multi-function aperture systems make that data accessible to those in the defense and aerospace industries. Startups and small businesses that harness that data can carve out their own impactful market niche.

Cross Compatibility

Interoperability and standardization allow new, smaller vendors to enter the market. For example, you might have:

• Sensors from one vendor
• Processors from another
• Algorithms from a third vendor
• … all integrated through standards like VITA and SOSA

This allows for a more diversified supplier base and creates opportunities for new companies to enter the market. Rugged chassis vendors, 3U VPX module suppliers, I/O specialists, backplane developers and systems integrators — these are all examples of individual suppliers who may collaborate to develop and supply a single system operating within the same open architecture ecosystem.

How New Wave Design Can Assist Startups and New Vendors

MFA systems require tight integration between sensors, processors, firmware, and AI/ML software, creating new opportunities for collaboration between technology providers.

New Wave Design supports these emerging partnerships by offering deep expertise in high-performance embedded systems, including rugged processing and high speed serial interfaces. RoCE v2 offloads of digitized RF data from an MFA via our V1162 Dual-Port Programmable 100G Rugged Ethernet XMC ASoC Card is one example of a real-world application. That digitized data needs to be processed at a mission processor, ingesting high volumes of data, up to 700Gb, in our V6067 3U VPX Versal® Premium ASoC FPGA module, which includes an open QMC mezzanine site to add additional features and capabilities to the chassis while potentially saving a slot. These are a few examples of solutions enabling MFA applications in near term systems.

Major defense and aerospace contractors will always be there, but MOSA changes who gets to participate. MFAs present new opportunities for startups and specialized vendors to get their foot in the door. If your technology can enhance aerospace or defense capabilities, there’s never been a better time to enter the market. Need help taking the next step? Let’s talk.