The Army recently received the new IVAS 1.2 prototype for a series of tests. (US Army)
WASHINGTON — The US Army is taking the next step in recompeting its multi-billion dollar mixed-reality goggle production contract with an official ask to industry to send in viable options.
The service published its new Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) Next request for information today, giving interested companies until Feb. 26 to respond with their solutions for the combat-suitable heads-up display.
“IVAS provides soldiers and squads a single platform for increased lethality, mobility, and situational awareness necessary to achieve overmatch against current and future adversaries,” the Army wrote in the release. “It is a ‘fight first’ system with the benefit of rehearse and train capabilities.”
While the RFI doesn’t guarantee the service will recompete its current 10-year production contract with Microsoft valued up to $22 billion, it does kickstart such a process after surveying the market last year.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to questions about the new RFI today but has previously said it will throw its hat in the ring. Anduril founder Palmer Luckey has also teased development of a new mixed-reality device, though it is not clear if this would be a partnership with Microsoft. Massachusetts-based Kopin has also said it’s interested in completing, while companies like Palantir may also be eyeing a bid.
One industry source closely following the program welcomed today’s RFI, saying it signals that the Army is ready for a new approach and has seen “competitive/superior” technology on the market and is ready to move forward.
Initially pitched as a game changer for the service, the current IVAS contract is based around Microsoft’s HoloLens 2 heads-up display. The idea was a single device soldiers could use both in combat (including under the cover of darkness) and for virtual training. However, reports began emerging in 2021 about problems with the device, followed by a scathing Pentagon inspector general report that detailed soldiers complaining of discomfort, dizziness, nausea, and system reliability.
Service leaders publicly stood behind the program at first, before they began tempering expectations and splitting the program up into three initial versions — the 1.0, 1.1 and 1.2 iterations of the goggles. (The service has acquired 5,000 1.0 units, with plans to acquire an additional 5,000 1.1 units for limited use.)
It then billed the new 1.2 version as the make-or-break upgrade — an iteration to correct past problems, in part, by transitioning the device from a helmet-like display with a 70-degree field-of-view, to a hinged, flat design with a 60-degree field-of-view that soldiers can flip up.
But while the service worked with Microsoft on the redesign and testing, it also began teasing an IVAS Next initiative. After attending Army-led industry days and one-on-one meetings with the government last year, a trio of industry sources independently told Breaking Defense they were preparing for a new open competition to decide who wins a lucrative contract to produce the headset.
In tandem, Army leaders began taking inventory of all of their night vision devices to help decide just which units need what and help define IVAS Next requirements for an upcoming competition, one service official told Breaking Defense last year.
Specifically, members of the from the 75th Ranger Regiment were tasked with running IVAS 1.2 through the ringer alongside dedicated night vision systems like the Enhanced Night Vision Goggle-Binocular (ENGV-B) and another system dubbed PVS-14, the official told Breaking Defense.
“They’re going to provide the best feedback in terms of, here’s what the ENGV-B can provide versus a PVS-14 versus the capability inside of IVAS,” the official said. The goal is for those Rangers to provide a “more mature look” at how they use night vision while also answering questions about the ideal IVAS form factor, battery needs and more.
