US Army awards $11.26 million contract to GPS alternative Tern
Austin-based Tern will deploy its non-GPS navigation system in military vehicles, although the scale and operational scope remain undisclosed.
The US Army has awarded Austin-based Tern an $11.26 million contract to deploy navigation technology designed to operate when GPS is disrupted or unavailable.
Tern’s system uses data generated by a vehicle, alongside edge processing, to estimate position and provide routing. The company says its equipment connects to a vehicle’s diagnostics board and sends navigation information to a tablet used by soldiers.
Tern co-founder and chief executive Shaun Moore told TechCrunch that the system passively receives vehicle data without disrupting its normal flow. The company uses proprietary processing methods to turn that information into latitude and longitude coordinates, though it has not disclosed the technology’s specifics.
Tern says the system is intended to work across tunnels, deserts and off-road environments. It also describes the technology as a closed system that is harder for adversaries to disrupt, rather than simply a backup for satellite navigation.
The contract comes as reported GPS disruption increases in areas including the Middle East and around Ukraine and Russia. The Army’s contract duration, vehicle numbers, deployment locations and broader operational scope have not been disclosed, and the agreement should not be read as a full-scale Army-wide deployment.
