Episodes

This episode is a different take to our normal subjects. We are joined by Christina Balis, Global Campaign Director for QinetiQ, who looks at the non-technological aspects to tackling the challenges of Training Transformation. Christina brings broad experience to this problem, from outside defence as well as within. Christina argues that the challenges in training for a multi-domain battlespace are predominantly NOT a technological challenge. Rather one around the people, processes and instituti...

We are joined by the CEO of Conductrr, Robert Pratten, who takes the time to provide us with a masterclass in the development of virtual copies of the internet - or synthetic internet. While not necessarily a new idea, Robert explains some of the more recent approaches and applications for this type of technology, which is especially relevant to multi-domain operations and the ‘grey zone’. Robert explains typical use cases, the need for a digital twin of the internet, the advantages for such a s...

In a long anticipated episode, we are joined by Joe Robinson who is the CEO of Improbable Defence. In a wide ranging discussion, Joe kicks off by tackling the Metaverse question, defining what it means to Defence, and providing his own personal views on how it might be implemented over the coming years. Joe also provides a short update on some internal developments within Improbable as the organisation matures its service delivery offerings. We also take the time to discuss with Joe some of the ...

For this episode we are pleased to be joined by Lon Bartel, who offers his insights from the perspective of Law Enforcement training. Lon is the VP of Training & Curriculum at VirTra, based in Arizona. He is a former police officer with over 25 years of experience, qualified as a range and tactical instructor and a published author. He is currently embarking on a PhD in Performance Psychology. Lon describes some of the systems in use across law enforcement, including the 360 degree system develo...

For this episode we are very lucky to be joined by John Hoggard from Cranfield University based at the Defence Academy of the UK, in Shrivenham. John is a full time lecturer in Defence Simulation and Modelling, and teaches on a number of courses delivered to civilian and military personnel who go on to work on major simulation projects across industry, defence and the civil service. We invited John to speak about anything he wants, and his particular passion is real time graphics, which leads on...

This week Colin has been finding all the rust holes on his Landrover chassis, whilst Tom was playing with ChatGPT, and some other AI tools. The results are revealed later in the episode. This week the format changes slightly as we are joined by two guests from the UK Defence & Security Accelerator (DASA) - Stacey Crump and Tom Adamson. Our guests give us an introduction to the work of the organisation and how they seek to foster innovation and technology that can not only be used to support defe...

Tom has Starlink problems and Colin is wondering if it was wise to install AI to control his garage door. Lots of exciting episodes planned, not least from our sponsor, Improbable. This week the Warfighter Podcast is joined by Al Roan who is Managing Director of Cervus - a company which delivers data insights for Defence and Security. Al, an ex-Army officer turned data entrepreneur, started on this journey after a poignant event when he was tasked to look into information related to the death of...

This episode, continuing our Education series, Tom and Colin are joined by Ian Ferguson who is a QGI working at the Royal School of Artillery, teaching and advising on simulation and training matters for the British Army. Ian has spent the last 3 years working in the Simulation Wing of the RSA, trialling and experimenting with a range of XR technologies. (We would like to note that the views expressed on this podcast are from Ian’s personal experience, and do not necessarily reflect the position...

Tom is recovering from the usual bout of seasonal flu, but still finds time to reflect on what a fascinating time it is for the M&S world. As this is the penultimate episode for the year it was a chance to look back on what’s gone on as well as think about what might be in store for 2023. Our guest for this episode is none other than Robert Seigfried who has spent a large part of his career supporting the NATO Modelling and Simulation Group (NMSG). Robert provides us with an overview of what NAT...

Tom & Colin provide an update on their preview of the Improbable Defence Skyral platform, at their HQ in London. Colin has returned from I/ITSEC in Orlando and was able to see the Improbable Defence demo and provides a summary of the main discussion themes from the show. We discuss how there is a greater demand for realism and scale across simulation and training, which is being supported across a number of UK, US and Nato projects in the coming years. Our guest on this show is Chris Covert, who...

Tom & Colin introduce the first episode of Season 1's education episodes. This episode is designed to be referred to when you (the listener!) have a need to 'gen up' on 3D modeling. Specifically related to the defence industry. 3D Modeling Topics Covered: 1. Scoping the work/Design A careful process that can take several discussions with a new client. Setting expectations; defining deliverables. Most projects succeed or fail in the planning phase, and it happens all the time (e.g., recent M4A1 m...

Tom & Colin discuss the forthcoming demo of the new Improbable platform that is scheduled for an early demonstration this week. Also some comments about the international breadth of listeners and guests scheduled for later episodes - please keep the suggestions coming. Our guest on this show is Steen Bisgaard who heads up an Australian startup developing robotic targets for training, as well as decoys and robots for use in offensive actions in the real battlefield. Steen discusses the latest dev...

For our first episode, the Warfighter Podcast was honoured to host a real live, all-American Warfighter - Col Arnel David, US Army. Arnel speaks about what it means to be a Warfighter, and the importance of exercising the decision making process for leaders and how this can be enabled through wargaming techniques. Through the Fight Club initiative that Arnel is heavily involved in, he aims to increase understanding of Wargaming amongst commanders and how these techniques can be integrated within...

Episode Overview: Tom and Colin introduce their new Simulation & Training Podcast, discuss the motivation behind it and provide a glimpse of the subjects and people that will be covered. The Warfighter Podcast is partnering with Military Simulation & Training (a respected industry publication) and will feature a regular slot with their Special Correspondent Andy Fawkes. A monthly education feature will be a cornerstone of the show, which aims to demystify common concepts and terms across defence...