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From academia to the battlefield: AFCEA Innovation Summit aims to give military and industry a "decision advantage"

By Eddie Velazquez, posted Jan 22, 2026 on BizFayetteville.com

AFCEA- NC Fort Bragg Chapter’s annual summit brings together leaders 
from industry, academic and research institutions, innovation hubs, Veteran 
organizations and elite Army and Special Operations commands. Graphic provided by Phil Williams.

The North Carolina, Fort Bragg chapter of Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association International (AFCEA) is hosting its annual “Innovation Summit,” aiming to bring the best and brightest in academia, defense contracting, the federal government and the U.S. Military, all under one roof. 

The event, which will take place the week of Feb. 17-19 in Fayetteville at the Crown Complex, is meant to provide networking and business opportunities as a result of the collaboration among key stakeholders in academia, the military and the private sector. The theme for this year’s event is “Decision Advantage” and it will feature more than 50 speakers, panelists and briefs. 

For Phil Williams, the vice president of corporate engagement at the North Carolina, Fort Bragg chapter of AFCEA, the theme is meant to promote technologies that benefit the U.S. Military in bridging the gap in time between decision-making and reaction. 

“Getting in the mindset of the war fighter, it’s time-to-decision,” Williams said. “Our threats are using a lot of things we would not use. They sometimes play unfairly. We like to give our war fighters a fair advantage, and part of their fair advantage would be helping them to make decisions in the presence of [a] preponderance of information. So for the exhibitors and the speakers, they’re coming to the table already aware of these threats and challenges and the need for ultra-low latency.”

Attendees, speakers and exhibitors will each fall under one of five focus areas. These include the future of warfare — which entails the empowerment of soldiers through innovation. 

“Translate that to artificial intelligence and machine learning,” Williams said.

The others are integration of human and machine teams across every echelon, emerging technology and innovations, eliminating hindrances to decisions and increasing collaborations across academia, industry and the military.

“The exhibitors, the speakers, bring their solution set and their capabilities that they think might be a fit. Then we have the panelists, and the generals speaking will be sharing some of the issues they find,” Williams said. “Then what happens would be over the group of sessions that we have, we have planned networking breaks, and we have planned opportunities to get people together, and that’s where the real outcomes begin. The exhibitor finally gets a chance to talk to an experienced operator or a developer, and they get to understand each other.”

The summit is expected to attract a diverse group of attendees. 

“We get a mix of people and skills together, and we work to help them get connected,” Williams said. “Typically, teams evolve the sharing of technologies and the focus on going forward together for a pursuit.”

Last February, the event gathered 1,400 attendees and had more than 100-plus exhibitors. 

“We have the military community who will be a part of at least four panels. Each of those four panels are the Colonels or the Commanders of units that most technology companies love to get a chance to talk to,” Williams said. “They are the ones with the user experience. We are trying to create this engaging environment.”

The summit is expected to attract more than 1,400 military, government civilians and industry technology professionals from the North Carolina region.

Other tangible outcomes from the summit include professional headshots, resume support, availability of job opportunities and networking opportunities across industry, academia and government. 

For Williams, the event represents the culmination of years of effort and hard work aiming to link the state’s biggest industries, the military and higher education.

“In North Carolina, we’ve got all the ingredients kind of lining up,” Williams said. “In the next five to 10 years, you’ll see a dramatic difference in how North Carolina shapes itself, especially with its research institutions in this facility.”

Learn more about this year’s Innovation Summit and register online at www. ncinnovationsummit.com.

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