Followers | 8 |
Posts | 864 |
Boards Moderated | 1 |
Alias Born | 01/10/2003 |
Friday, September 01, 2006 10:31:15 AM
The CIA Has a New Small Secret
By Jack Uldrich
August 30, 2006
In-Q-Tel, the venture capital arm of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), recently announced that it hired Christopher Darby, a former Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) manager, to be its new CEO.
Among Darby's top priorities are longer-lived batteries and nanotechnology. Given Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) and Dell's (Nasdaq: DELL) recent problems with lithium-ion batteries, he is in good company in wanting new and improved battery technology; but his public emphasis on nanotechnology was something new.
A year ago, I discussed In-Q-Tel's investment in Nanosys -- a private nanotechnology company in which Motley Fool Rule Breakers recommendation Harris & Harris (Nasdaq: TINY) also has an equity stake -- and noted how the investment could pay dividends by helping the government develop specialized antennas through the use of high performance thin-film electronics.
What I did not mention at the time was that Nanosys also possesses patented proprietary nanowire technology could play a big role in the creation of ultra-sensitive biological and chemical detectors.
Security from biological and chemical attacks is, though, just one of the many areas where nanotechnology can assist the intelligence community in improving our national security.
The CIA has publicly stated that it is also interested in information security, making the Internet more hacker-resistant, creating distributed architectures, and increasing "knowledge generation."
Nanotechnology can assist in each of these areas. For instance, by taking advantage of the unique quantum properties of individual atoms, it is possible that foolproof encryption systems could be devised. Similarly, the advances that nanotech companies are making in nanoscale data storage, in combination with the progress being made in the fields of nanosensors and nanophotonics (for wireless telecommunication technology), could lead to the collection and dissemination of an unprecedented amount of information.
This new information, if properly processed and analyzed, could, in turn, lead to valuable knowledge.
This is not necessarily the type of knowledge that investors probably can profit from directly, because it will be classified. But I do encourage investors to keep an eye on the companies that In-Q-Tel is investing in, because they are likely to be at or near the forefront of technological advances that will not just keep us safer as a society -- they will also have widespread applications in a commercial marketplace that is always looking for better information security, distributed architecture systems, and knowledge generation.
If you do keep up, this is the type of information that can give you a small, semi-clandestine advantage in identifying the next "small" opportunity in nanotechnology
Recent SLNH News
- Soluna Achieves Critical Milestones to Unlock $25M Growth Capital Line • Business Wire • 10/03/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna CEO John Belizaire to Participate in Live Virtual Event on Sustainable AI for the Future of Business • Business Wire • 10/02/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Signs Term Sheet with Renewable Energy Leader for New Data Center Project • Business Wire • 09/16/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Announces Monthly Business Update • Business Wire • 09/11/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Secures New $25M Growth Capital Line • Business Wire • 09/09/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Breaks Ground on Project Dorothy 2, its Flagship Sustainable Data Center in Texas • Business Wire • 08/29/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna to Participate in Water Tower Research Fireside Chat Series • Business Wire • 08/26/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Holdings Reports Strong Adjusted EBITDA and Q2’24 Results • Business Wire • 08/15/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Announces Monthly Business Update • Business Wire • 08/07/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Announces Sustainable AI Soluna Cloud Supported by Hewlett Packard Enterprise • Business Wire • 07/30/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Closes $30M Funding from Spring Lane Capital for Project Dorothy 2 • Business Wire • 07/24/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Cloud Expands Funding for AI Business to $13.75 Million • Business Wire • 07/17/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Announces Immediate Availability of Sustainable AI Cloud Services • Business Wire • 07/11/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Announces Monthly Business Update • Business Wire • 07/09/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Unleashes First Batch of NVIDIA GPUs, Targeting $80 Million Revenue Over Three Years • Business Wire • 06/24/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Announces Monthly Business Update • Business Wire • 06/05/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna to Participate in Water Tower Research Fireside Chat Series • Business Wire • 06/04/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Holdings’ CEO John Belizaire Shares Roadmap to Profitability in Shareholder Letter • Business Wire • 05/23/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Signs Power Purchase Agreement with EDF Renewables for Texas Data Center Project • Business Wire • 05/22/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Secures $30M from Spring Lane Capital to Fuel Project Dorothy 2 • Business Wire • 05/21/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Holdings Reports Q1’24 Results • Business Wire • 05/16/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Launches New AI Cloud Service in Collaboration with Leading High Performance Computing Company • Business Wire • 05/08/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna Announces Monthly Business Update • Business Wire • 05/06/2024 12:00:00 PM
- Soluna to Participate in Water Tower Research Fireside Chat Series • Business Wire • 04/22/2024 12:00:00 PM
- AI & Technology Hybrid Investor Conference Agenda: Presentations Now Available for Online Viewing • GlobeNewswire Inc. • 04/12/2024 02:07:03 PM
North Bay Resources Announces Assays up to 5 oz/ton Gold, 1.5 oz/ton Platinum, 0.5 oz/ton Palladium, and 0.5 oz/ton Rhodium at Mt. Vernon Gold Mine, Sierra County, California • NBRI • Oct 4, 2024 9:15 AM
Basanite, Inc. Appoints Ali Manav as Interim Chief Executive Officer • BASA • Oct 3, 2024 9:15 AM
Integrated Ventures Announces Launch of MedWell Facilities, LLC and Lease Agreement with Giant Fitness Clubs • INTV • Oct 3, 2024 8:45 AM
Beyond the Horizon: Innovative Drug Combinations Offer New Hope for Alzheimer's and More • NVS • Oct 3, 2024 8:45 AM
SMX and FinGo Enter Into Collaboration Mandate to Develop a Joint 'Physical to Digital' Platform Service To Enhance Natural Rubber Industry's Ability to Report on Sustainable and Ethical Supply Chains • SMX • Oct 3, 2024 7:00 AM
Transforming Alzheimer's Treatment: Innovative Combinations to Boost Cognition • PFE • Oct 2, 2024 9:00 AM