In an age of rapidly changing technology, where tech becomes obsolete almost as soon as it hits the shelves, staying on top of the wave is the only way to keep from being rolled over. Mike Wimmer is doing a good job of riding that wave.

Mike Wimmer is an American entrepreneur. He has some exciting ideas on artificial intelligence the US government is interested in. His achievements include being Valedictorian at his high school graduation, starting two tech companies, having membership in Mensa, Congressional briefings, and being coined by the United States Special Operations Command’s (USSOCOM) directorate of science and technology. Did I mention he’s 13 years old?

Mike Wimmer, Entrepreneur. (Photo from nexterainnovations.com)

Real (Young) Genius

About the same age you and I were learning not to finger paint with the contents of our diapers, Mike was learning trigonometry. While we were playing with Hot Wheels cars, Mike was too, developing computer algorithms to recognize his Hot Wheels. At the same age, I was standing against the wall, too nervous to ask a girl to dance at Homecoming; Mike was signing contracts with USSOCOM. Where did I go wrong?

Oh, wait, I didn’t. I spent long years reaching this point, where I could tell you about Mike Wimmer, the cool things he is doing, and how expertise like his is how the US military is stepping into the new millennium. We each have our roles in this life. Mike’s role is different than mine. Or yours. Or most everyone else.

Global Shift to Technological Warfare

In recent articles, the SOFREP team has brought you more information about the future of artificial intelligence in warfare. Technological leaps in global warfare have brought China to the top of the news cycle. Russian hackers appear to have access to nearly every network on the planet (and beyond). Every military branch and office within the US government has a cyber operations division. Globally connected systems are here to stay.

Real-time cyber attacks, including information on the attack’s origin, type, and target, as well as the attacker’s IP address, geographic location, and ports being utilized, are displayed on the Norse attack map on the 275th Cyberspace Squadron’s operations floor, known as the Hunter’s Den. The squadron is one of four squadrons compromising the 175th Cyberspace Operations Group of the Maryland Air National Guard at Warfield Air National Guard Base, Middle River, Md., Dec. 2, 2017. (U.S. Air Force photo by J.M. Eddins Jr.)

That is what makes people like Mike Wimmer so important in the future of the US. Wimmer seems to innately understand how systems work, how to get the most from them, and how to tweak them to get new results.

DEFENSEWERX and SOFWERX

Wimmer is a participant in USSOCOM’s SOFWERX events. SOFWERX is a collaborative effort between USSOCOM and DEFENSEWERX, a “facilitator” between the DoD and private firms. DEFENSEWERX acts as an intermediary, taking the needs of the government and linking them with companies that are most likely to deliver or at least rise to the challenge. SOFWERX is the Special Operations-driven platform for DEFENSEWERX.

Mike has been invited to attend numerous SOFWERX events in the last few years, along with engineers and programmers from around the country. These events are in the same spirit as the Wright Brothers or the Mercury Space program. Many intelligent people from disparate backgrounds come together to “throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks.” The idea is to gather perspectives from numerous viewpoints, looking for ways to use what we already have in innovative ways.