US Army to Take Delivery of First Microsoft HoloLens Devices After Successful Tests

US Army to Take Delivery of First Microsoft HoloLens Devices After Successful Tests

The controversial partnership goes back as far as 2018, when Microsoft won a $480 million contract to provide AR tech to the US military. Their mutual goal? To “increase lethality by enhancing the ability to detect, decide, and engage before the enemy.” Some of Microsoft’s own employees protested the company’s bid for the contract, noting that it was inappropriate for the tech giant to develop tools that might eventually be used to wage war. But Microsoft went through with it anyway, and aside from this most recent exception, it’s been fumbling the bag ever since.

In March, Business Insider obtained an internal Microsoft memo in which an employee said the HoloLens team was “expecting negative feedback from the customer.” The employee went on to say soldiers’ expectations were low, which might work out in Microsoft’s favor given that the “delivery delta might not be big.” The HoloLens devices, which are referred to officially as Integrated Visual Augmentation Systems (IVAS), were said to adapt poorly to low light and possess degraded thermal imaging performance. Just a month later, a US government watchdog warned that the Pentagon might have wasted its time and money on the deal—the latter of which, at the time, had stacked up to $22 billion.

US Army to Take Delivery of First Microsoft HoloLens Devices After Successful Tests

But things appear to have turned around since. Assistant Secretary for Acquisition Douglas Bush has reportedly cleared a delivery of an undisclosed number of devices, according to Bloomberg. Field testing has reportedly yielded encouraging results. “We did a good test and will learn from it,” Bush said in a statement. “The Army remains confident that the program will succeed.”

This doesn’t mean everything is all butterflies and rainbows, however. Army spokesperson Jamal Beck said in a separate statement that the branch is “adjusting its fielding plan to allow for time to correct deficiencies,” which weren’t elaborated on further. Nothing appears to have been said about Microsoft’s ability (or failure) to correct the aforementioned low light and thermal imaging issues, which are likely foundational to the Army’s potential success with the program. Bloomberg reports that the Pentagon’s director of operational tests and evaluation is working on a final test report slated for next month, at which point these adjustments might be revealed.

Continue reading

Microsoft Reportedly Scrapping Its HoloLens 3 Project
Microsoft Reportedly Scrapping Its HoloLens 3 Project

Microsoft wants to be a part of the metaverse, it's just not sure if its current hardware is the best way to go about making that happen, according to the report.

Microsoft Expects HoloLens to Disappoint Soldiers
Microsoft Expects HoloLens to Disappoint Soldiers

Microsoft seems to have lost its steam on the US Army HoloLens project.

The US Government May Have Wasted $22 Billion on HoloLens
The US Government May Have Wasted $22 Billion on HoloLens

A US government watchdog is warning that the Pentagon may have wasted more than $22 billion on Microsoft’s HoloLens by failing to ask if the soldiers who would be theoretically responsible for deploying the hardware actually wanted to use it or perceived any benefit from doing so. This is an observation so banal, one might…

Microsoft Partners With VW on HoloLens 2
Microsoft Partners With VW on HoloLens 2

Drivers may eventually use HoloLens 2 to navigate challenging road conditions or experience self-driving vehicles in a new way.