FA8650-21-S-6004_RFI AF Cognitive Engine_FINAL.pdf

FA8650-21-S-6004

Air Force Cognitive Engine

Request for Information (RFI)

1. Contracting Office Address

Department of the Air Force, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) – Wright Research Site, AFRL/RAKHA, Area B, Bldg. 45, 2130 Eighth Street, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH, 45433-7541

2. General Information

This is a Request for Information (RFI) only, as defined in FAR 15.201(e), to obtain information about capabilities and other market information for planning purposes. This RFI is not a request for competitive proposals; therefore, responses to this notice are not considered offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responses should include information identifying whether the responder’s firm is a small or large business. The size standard is 1,000 employees. The NAICS code for this potential effort is 541715 (Research and Technology in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology). Companies that respond will not be paid for the information submitted except as an allowable cost under other contracts as provided in FAR 31.205-18, “Bid and Proposal Costs”. All information received shall be safeguarded from unauthorized disclosure.

Please do not submit any proprietary or classified information.

3. General Intent

The Air Force Research Laboratory, Autonomous Capability Team 3 (AFRL/ACT3) located at Wright- Patterson AFB (WPAFB) is in the planning stage for a research program to provide rapid, flexible, and innovative architectural and software engineering support to enable ACT3’s strategic objective of operationalizing AI at scale. The goal is to lower the barriers to entry for AI applications, and provide capabilities and collaboration which address a range of AI problem classes for end-user application through the development and application of an AI software platform, the Air Force Cognitive Engine (ACE). ACT3 envisions the ACE as the backbone of an outward facing structure, providing an agent-based architecture that enables the development and refinement of autonomy and AI technologies and connection between people, algorithms, data, and computational resource infrastructures. This structure must be instantiated in a manner which is scalable and adaptable to support the application of autonomy and AI technologies against various Air Force problem sets, and requires integration in a cloud-based construct, yet capable of running on a single laptop, and on embedded systems.

4. Statement of Need

ACT3 requires a technical partner with very specific experience documenting system requirements, designing and developing new software capabilities to meet the ACT3 strategy, as well as the architectural and software engineering needs for an Authority to Operate (ATO)-accredited ACT3-AFRL research network and operational AI platform. Furthermore, ACT3 requires a technical partner that has demonstrated experience and success testing, integrating, and fully operationalizing AI for Air Force use.

Specifically, ACT3’s technical partner must have demonstrated experience with AFRL’s ACE-Edge environment and enterprise software, as well as DISA’s Big Data Platform (BDP) and explicit experience with the Defense Information Systems Agency’s (DISA) flagship enterprise collaborative analytics, the Cyber Defense Environment (CDE), and Analyst Collaboration Tool (ACT).

5. Program Information and Information Requested

Interested respondents should address the requirements described in the statement of need section and the following:

• Describe your company’s capability to employ Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) approaches.

• Describe experience and knowledge in successfully deploying software into Amazon Web Services, Amazon GovCloud, and Azure cloud environments.

• Describe knowledge and experience with the Multi-Agent System Module (MASM) methodology and software.

• Explain in detail your company’s capability with respect to integrate with enterprise operational capabilities (specifically DISA’s Big Data Platform (BDP), and DISA’s Cyber Situational Awareness Analytics Capability.

• Explain in detail your company’s capability with respect to personnel and facilities for handling classified data – up to and including SECRET data.

6. Required Responses / Submission Instructions

Responses to this RFI are limited to 7 pages with one inch margins using standard letter-size 8 ½” x 11” paper. The page count includes any title page. Font must be 10-point Arial.

Responses must be unclassified, and should not contain company proprietary information. Any responses containing classified information will be returned to the responder without being assessed/considered.

Please pay attention to any company templates that automatically create a “company proprietary” or similar type statement. Please ensure your response does not have any markings stating the information is proprietary, or it will not be considered. IF APPLICABLE, clearly indicate the appropriate distribution statement (B, C, D, etc.), For Official Use Only (FOUO), or ITAR-restricted. Multiple responses from a firm are acceptable. Marketing information is NOT acceptable in the response. Endorsements from elected officials at the federal, state, and/or local levels are NOT acceptable in the response.

Responses to the RFI are due to the Contracting Officer identified below by 3:00 PM EST, 23 November 2020. Responders shall provide one (1) electronic copy (in Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat) of their response to the Contracting Officer, Adrianna Menker, via email at adrianna.menker@us.af.mil.

7. Request for Clarification / Technical Questions

A responder may request clarification, in writing, from the Contracting Office for any aspect of this RFI that is unclear, by sending an email to the Contracting Officer below:

AFRL/RAKHA

Adrianna Menker adrianna.menker@us.af.mil mailto:adrianna.menker@us.af.mil

Any requests for clarification must be received no later than seven (7) business days prior to the close of the RFI in order to receive a timely response. Clarifications may be posted on the RFI announcement website to benefit all interested parties. Interested respondents are encouraged to periodically check the website during the response period for clarifications.

Technical questions regarding this RFI should be directed to Dr. Juan Vasquez, (937) 580-9044, juan.vasquez.11@afresearchlab.com.

8. Additional Information

All responsible sources may submit information that shall be considered by the agency. If late information is received, it may be considered, depending on agency time constraints. All routine communications regarding the announcement should be directed to the contractual point of contact listed above. The Government may or may not use any responses to this RFI as a basis for a subsequent project. Any projects developed from the RFI responses may be the subject of a subsequent acquisition.

Responses to this RFI will not be returned. The Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received, or provide feedback to the respondents with respect to any of the information submitted under this RFI. No requests for a bid package or solicitation will be accepted; a bid package or solicitation does not exist at this time. In order to protect the integrity of any possible future acquisition, no additional information will be provided and no appointments for presentations will be made in reference to this RFI.

9. Support Contractors:

Only government employees will review submitted capability statements. Respondents are advised that employees of commercial firms under contract to the Government may be used to administratively process submissions and perform other administrative duties requiring access to other contractor’s proprietary information. These support contractors include nondisclosure agreements prohibiting their contractor employees from disclosing any information submitted by other contractors or using such information for any purpose other than that for which it was furnished.

10. Submission Checklist

• Maximum 7 pages, including any title page

• 8 ½” x 11” paper

• One inch margins

• 10-point Arial font

• Unclassified

• IF APPLICABLE, clearly indicate the appropriate distribution statement (B, C, D, etc.), For Official

Use Only (FOUO), or ITAR-restricted

• No marketing information, commercial documentation, or product literature

• No endorsements from elected officials at the federal, state, and/or local level

• Submitted via email to adrianna.menker@us.af.mil

• Due date 3:00 PM EST, 23 November 2020

11. Disclaimer

There is no guarantee that any submission in response to this RFI will result in a Government program.

This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation.

mailto:adrianna.menker@us.af.mil

Responders to this RFI will have no competitive advantage in receiving any awards related to the submitted topic area. The information submitted in response to this RFI may be used to help the Government further define its requirements. If the Government develops a program that addresses any submitted or similar topic, the resulting procurement will address technology and business specific requirements as defined by the Government to achieve the required objectives.