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CoreSite, a hybrid IT solutions provider and subsidiary of American Tower Corporation was certified as part of the NVIDIA DGX-Ready Data Center program to host scalable, high-performance infrastructure for organizations looking to capitalize on rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and other high-density applications, according to a CoreSite announcement.

“I am excited to share that CoreSite has been certified as a Nvidia DGX-Ready data center partner,” said Juan Font, President and CEO of CoreSite, and Senior Vice President of American Tower. “Our VA3 data center, located here in Fairfax County, is one of four CoreSite data centers that are included in this innovative Nvidia data center program. Our Reston data center campus currently serves as the interconnection hub for AI developer platforms because it provides access to geographic and fiber diversity, and importantly the available power and capacity needed for our customers to scale.”

CoreSite provides colocation services enabling enterprises, network providers and digital platforms to build and deploy custom hybrid IT strategies that monetize and future-proof business. CoreSite is owned by American Tower, a Fortune 500 company based in Boston, Massachusetts. With three data centers in Reston, CoreSite’s presence in Fairfax County will total more than 1.3 million square feet of colocation data center space upon full build-out to serve local businesses.

As AI adoption accelerates, CoreSite data centers serve as hubs for interconnection, providing broad and efficient access to the data sources that are training AI models. From flexible low-latency networks, interconnection and cloud networking options to power and cooling sufficient to support the operating requirements of AI infrastructure, CoreSite’s network-dense data centers can serve as a funnel for data produced at every end point, by every connected device. CoreSite’s data centers also are environments where leading enterprises can operationalize AI technologies such as:

• Deep learning that requires scale, data access and GPU-class performance
• Data science applications that use machine vision, natural language processing, ML and data processing application programming interfaces (APIs)
• Process modernization related to administration, operations and collaborative research and development

CoreSite customers include AI experts and innovators who are implementing AI in their business models today, leveraging high-density, high-performance, reliable and secure data centers combined with digital ecosystems consisting of carriers, platform providers and IT services providers. Current CoreSite customer AI use cases include:

• Autonomous vehicles and driverless delivery systems
• Software solutions offering real-time development platforms for companies in gaming, media and entertainment, general enterprise, manufacturing, government and more
• Entertainment streaming services making individually tailored recommendations and building customized playlists
• Drug discovery, preventative medicine and advanced diagnostics

SEE: FCEDA’s Interview with CoreSite CEO Juan Font

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NVIDIA to Headline NVTC Impact AI Summit May 16

Interested in learning more about AI? NVIDIA’s VP North America Public Sector, Anthony Robbins will be the keynote speaker at the Northern Virginia Technology Council’s (NVTC)  2024 Impact AI  Summit on May 16, 2024 at the Inova Center for Personalized Health Conference Center in Fairfax, Virginia.

Join the conversation with tech innovators, policy makers and experts to learn how businesses and government agencies are using AI to accelerate innovation, gain competitive advantage and create operational efficiencies.

Click here to see the list of additional speakers and to register.

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Celebrating Small Businesses in Fairfax County

In celebration of National Small Business Week, Fairfax County proudly highlights three examples of businesses that started as small businesses in Northern Virginia and are now global corporations. Each company maintains its corporate headquarters in Fairfax County.

Omega World Travel

Gloria Bohan launched Omega World Travel in 1972 as a small-town storefront travel agency. Today, Omega is one of the top woman-owned businesses in the U.S.  With many locations worldwide, Omega World Travel is a top, woman-owned, privately held U.S. travel management company integrating technology solutions and multiple services. Ms. Bohan is known as a very hands-on owner, focusing on strategic partnerships and long-term direction of the organization, Omega Travel’s employee count, which includes both full and part-time staff,  is over 920 employees. In 2023 the company’s revenues topped $160 million.

ScienceLogic

Reston-based software and  services provider ScienceLogic was founded in a Falls Church garage in 2003 by Dave Link, Richard Chart and Christopher Cordray. Within five years, ScienceLogic was posting nearly $6 million in annual revenue and had made Inc. Magazine’s list of Top 100 IT Services Companies and its list of America’s 500 Fastest Growing Private Companies. A snowball effect of brand visibility and venture capital investment further propelled the company’s growth, including more than $15 million in Series A funding from New Enterprise Associates in 2010; another $15 million in 2012 from Intel Capital; and $43 million in Goldman Sachs-led Series D funding in 2015. ScienceLogic also acquired Restorepoint, Zebrium and AppFirst, as subsidiaries. The company has expanded globally to today’s network of seven major corporate locations spread across four continents. Click here to read an interview with ScienceLogic’s CEO Dave Link.

Thompson Hospitality

Founded in 1992, Thompson Hospitality is the nation’s largest minority–owned food service company. The family-run organization prides itself on building client, customer and community relationships and aims to “redefine the art of hospitality.”

The company’s founder and CEO, Warren Thompson, created Thompson Hospitality Corporation in 1992, then in 1997 Thompson established a strategic partnership with Compass Group, the world’s largest food service company. Today, Thompson Hospitality has a presence in more than 45 states and four foreign countries, while maintaining its roots in Fairfax County.  Brand names within the Thompson Hospitality Restaurant Group include Maker’s Union, Be Right Burger, Willie T’s, Hen Quarter, Milk & Honey, American Tap Room, Big Buns Burgers, The Delegate, Austin Grill and Matchbox.

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Employers: Get Free $50 SmarTrip Cards for Your Staff to Try Local Transit

Fairfax County Department of Transportation Commuter Services is offering local employers free $50 SmarTrip cards to provide to their employees, according to WTOP. Developed in conjunction with WMATA, the SmartBenefits Plu$50 program presents an opportunity for local employers, such as businesses, nonprofit organizations and associations, to enhance employee benefits while simultaneously contributing to broader sustainability and transportation initiatives in the region. For more information contact the Fairfax County Department of Transportation Commuter Services team by calling 703-877-5900 or emailing DOTCommuterServices@fairfaxcounty.gov.

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Weekly Business News Digest 

Place for innovation: Inova CEO Dr. Stephen Jones provided an update on Inova’s Merrifield campus development plans in an interview with Washington Business Journal. In addition mentioned in the article is on how Inova is leasing space on the ICPH campus to the University of Virginia for multiple degree programs, as well as for other educational uses. That space, slated to open in January, creates “a very, very strong element, because it provides an introduction of entrepreneurship,” said Victor Hoskins, president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority. “I think that’s what the campus is going to be; it’s going to be a place of innovation.”

Expanding multi-orbit space network: SES is acquiring Tysons-based Intelsat for $3.1 billion, a deal that would bring together two of the major GEO satellite operators in a market facing increased competition from LEO constellations, reported SpaceNews. The combined company will remain headquartered in Luxembourg, where SES is based, but will maintain a “significant presence” at Intelsat’s home in the Greater Washington, D.C. area. “In a fast-moving and competitive satellite communication industry, this transaction expands our multi-orbit space network, spectrum portfolio, ground infrastructure around the world, go-to-market capabilities, managed service solutions, and financial profile,” said Adel Al-Saleh, chief executive of SES. Satellite News has more on the reasons for the acquisition.

More SES news: SES and SES Space & Defense have inked a 35,000-square-foot lease restructure and relocation at Reston Square, 11790 Sunrise Valley Dr. in Reston, Washington DC CRE News reported April 26. As part of the deal, SES, a Luxembourg-based satellite communications company, will consolidate operations at the Reston property, serving as one of its main U.S. offices. SES Space & Defense has been a tenant at Reston Square since 2014. “Consolidating into more efficient office space isn’t just about saving square footage; it’s about optimizing collaboration, creativity, and cohesion within SES’s core,” said Sam Heiber, a managing principal with Cresa’s Washington, D.C., office.

And more Intelsat news: Tysons-based Intelsat agreed to install, connect and operate ruggedized multi-orbit satellite terminals on farm equipment operating in remote farmland throughout Brazil with Intelsat’s global network, Sat News reported. “As the first satellite communications company to provide multi-orbit connectivity to farmers around the world, Intelsat’s collaboration with CNH will unlock new capabilities in the most remote locations through our global communications platform,” said Dave Wajsgras, CEO of Intelsat. “We’ve proven that ruggedized, built-for-purpose terminals that can access multiple satellite orbits from anywhere offer the highest network reliability, greater throughput and the best user experience.”

Building a diverse space workforce: The Aerospace Corporation, based in Chantilly, and Space Foundation are diversifying the space workforce, according to a Fast Company article. Their Space Workforce 2030 initiative is ramping up efforts to bridge the space industry talent and diversity gap by the end of the decade by guiding minority STEM aspirants from kindergarten through college and into jobs. Since its April 2022 launch, SWF2030 has enlisted 29 space firms and reached out to more than five million students via individual STEM programs, a Girl Scouts partnership, and a National Space Day YouTube broadcast on May 3. It also created a National Space Intern Program for university students. “We are a showcase for what humanity is capable of doing in so many positive ways and we’re an expanding industry,” said Aerospace Corp. CEO Steve Isakowitz, who founded the Space Workforce 2030 program. “If we’re going to get to that next level, we need to reach out to those who are underrepresented in the workforce—particularly women and people of color. Instead of us competing for the same small pool of talent out there, we need to expand the pool.”

Vertical integration: Reston-based Bechtel has become part owner along with Austria’s Unger Steel of a steel fabrication business in the United Arab Emirates, according to Washington Business Journal in subscriber content. Unger is currently the main supplier of fabricated steel for many of Bechtel’s international projects. The new joint venture is called the Unger Steel Fabrication Free Zone Establishment and it includes a steel fabrication facility located within the Hamriyah Free Trade Zone in Sharjah, the UAE’s third-most-populous city. The zone, which is not subject to customs duty, has ports on the Arabian Gulf’s west coast and east coast with direct access to the Indian Ocean. “By establishing this new company, and vertically integrating with Unger Steel, we are securing our ability to provide a supply of high-quality steel on time to Bechtel projects across the globe,” said Tarek Amine, Bechtel’s chief supply chain officer. 

Brick by brick: Tysons-based Bricklayer AI, an AI cybersecurity solution that enables autonomous AI specialists to work alongside human experts, raised $2.5 million in pre-seed funding, citybiz reported. Backers included Sovereign’s Capital, Dreamit Ventures, VIPC’s Virginia Venture Partners, BlueWing Ventures, and Blu Ventures, as well as cybersecurity industry leaders. The company intends to use the funds to expand product development creating Autonomous AI Specialists that work alongside human experts, to run security operations.

Microgravity research alliance: Florida-based space infrastructure company Redwire, which has a recently announced Chantilly location, is teaming up with Boryung, a Korean health investment fund, to launch a series of new human health investigations to the International Space Station (ISS), according to Payload. Boryung’s third annual Humans in Space contest, which opens the first week of May, will give researchers the chance to pitch their microgravity experiment proposals to the two firms. Selected projects will be taken to the ISS and executed by Redwire, likely starting in 2025.  Boryung began life as a pharmacy in 1957, before becoming a pharmaceutical company. In 2022, it began backing space research, investing in Houston, Texas-based Axiom Space and creating a joint venture with the U.S. spaceflight company in January 2024. “Boryung’s Humans In Space program is a pivotal opportunity to transform the future of space research and drive critical insights to improve human health by engaging with a global community of researchers to leverage the benefits of microgravity,” said President of Redwire In-Space Industries John Vellinger. 

Change the world via collective ingenuity: Tysons-based Booz Allen Hamilton has released an open-source version of its software development toolkit meant to advance the design, development and fielding of artificial intelligence systems, according to ExecutiveBiz. The aiSSEMBLE Baseline is an AI development and management toolkit that includes foundational code and documentation publicly available to government, industry and academia. “Through innovations such as aiSSEMBLE, Booz Allen is laying the groundwork for repeatable, scalable, secure, and explainable AI solutions for our clients’ most pressing missions. And, in making aiSSEMBLE open source, we are empowering people to change the world via their own collective ingenuity,” said John Larson, executive vice president and leader of Booz Allen’s AI practice.

New case: Herndon-based CyberKinetics, a specialist provider of cloud-based services and cyber solutions to the national security community, has merged with  CASE, a Leesburg, Va. provider of high-end software development and cloud engineering services to the U.S. intelligence community and private industry. “We are very excited to become a part of CASE, as we share a heritage of excellence and innovation, a focus on developing great talent, and an unwavering commitment to high standards,” said Brandon Lally, former CEO of CyberKinetics, and Chief Customer Officer at CASE. “I look forward to leveraging our combined resources to provide differentiated solutions to new and existing government and private clients.” FinTech Global has more.

And Yee-Haw, Reston-ites & Tysons-ites! Expanded Route 7 is now fully operational from Reston to Tysons, FFXnow reported. New vehicle lanes and a shared-use trail are officially open to travelers on Route 7 (Leesburg Pike) after almost five years of construction. The Virginia Department of Transportation announced Tuesday that it has finished expanding the roadway from four to six travel lanes — three in each direction — between Riva Ridge Drive in Reston and Jarrett Valley Drive just north of the Dulles Toll Road in Tysons. Happy commuting!

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Contract Wins

Northrop Grumman (Falls Church area) will continue providing logistics services in support of RQ-4 Global Hawk aircraft under a $387.5 million definitized contract action from the U.S. Air Force. ExecutiveGov

Carahsoft Technology (Reston) secured a $172.8 million contract t to provide the Department of Navy with VMware by Broadcom products and services. GovConWire

V2X (Tysons) will provide the Naval Computer and Telecommunications Area Master Station Pacific with operation and maintenance support under an $88 million contract from the U.S. Navy. ExecutiveBiz

QinetiQ US (Tysons) will help the U.S. Army’s C5ISR Center develop, demonstrate and field advanced threat detection technologies under a $41 million contract. ExecutiveBiz

SOSi (Reston) won a $19 million contract with the U.S. Army Enterprise Services Agency for declassification and records management technical support services. WashingtonExec

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May 9, 2024 — Youth Apprenticeships and the Future of Virginia’s Technology Economy. Join BuildWithin for the inaugural Youth Apprenticeship Week featuring guest speakers and a panel discussion on the critical role of youth apprenticeships in evolving Virginia’s Tech Economy. Moderated by Mike Batt, VP of Talent, FCEDA, panelists will include Julie Coons, president and CEO, Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce; Jennifer Taylor, CEO, NVTC; Wood Powell, Dept. of Labor Program Manager and Director; Shub Debgupta, CEO and Founder of Predict Health; Liam Rathke, Converted Youth Apprentice, Software Engineer; and Drew Shea, former apprentice and current technology leader.  The event will be held at the Tower Club in Tysons. Click here for more information and to register.