Army Launches Data Operations Center, Giving Warfighters Decisive Edge

The Army launched the Army Data Operations Center April 3 — a key initiative designed to transform how it manages and uses its vast data resources to ensure decision dominance on the modern battlefield.

The data center will serve as the operational engine for the Army’s transformation into a data-centric force. It will connect commanders at all echelons to the full power of the Army’s enterprise data, ensuring warfighters have access to the right information at the right time.

Although the Army possesses a wealth of data from operations worldwide, much of this information has been fragmented across legacy systems and organizational stovepipes. The data operations center is designed to bridge that gap.

“Commanders are not short on data,” said Army Lt. Gen. Jeth Rey, deputy chief of staff for the Army G-6. “We have tons of data on our battlefield and in our enterprise. We don’t have a data problem. We have a data management problem, and data becomes the ammunition that we need to provide to our senior leaders in order for them to make quick and informed decisions and gain decision dominance.”

Organized under U.S. Army Cyber Command, the data operations center will function as a centralized data service, described by officials as a “911 for data.” A team of expert data brokers will be responsible for identifying authoritative sources, establishing secure connections and routing critical information to the point of need — from enterprise systems to joint and coalition partners.

“The Army Data Operations Center represents a pivotal step in our journey to becoming a truly data-centric force,” said Army Lt. Gen. Christopher Eubank, Army Cybercom commander. “By enabling seamless access to trusted, actionable data, [the data center] ensures that our commanders and soldiers are equipped to make precise, timely decisions. This capability is essential to maintaining our advantage. … Ultimately allowing us to set the land domain through the cyber domain.”

To guide the center’s development, the Army established a task force to execute a 180-day pilot program.

“The is ultimately intended to be the 911 for the operational force to call when they have a data management [or] data connectivity issue,” said Army Brig. Gen. Michael Kaloostian, data center task force director. “We are the ones [who] are going to alleviate the burden from those divisions.”

As it matures, the Army Data Operations Center will also aim to operationalize data for artificial intelligence and machine learning — managing the Army’s AI model garden and shortening the sensor-to-shooter timeline. By refining raw data into actionable intelligence, the data center will enable soldiers at every echelon to out-think and outmaneuver adversaries, securing the Army’s advantage now and in the future.