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AETC’s iChallenge competition offers $225,000 to winning innovative idea

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JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH,Texas-- Air Education and Training Command will gather innovative ideas through April 29 as part of the 2022 iChallenge competition.  Winners will be announced May 24 during ForceCon 22 at Port San Antonio, Texas.  The top award is $225,000 with runners up taking home $125,000 each.

The competition captures and funds innovative ideas that directly align to one of the four force development gaps or challenges recently identified.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to have your idea recognized and awarded up to $225,000 and advance AETC’s innovation efforts.

“Airmen must be empowered to be innovative in a dynamic global environment,” said Lt. Gen. Brad Webb, commander of AETC. “This challenge gives innovators the opportunity to think out of the box and make improvements under the force development umbrella.  Removing bureaucratic processes and eliminating redundancies can help us increase effectiveness, solve problems, drive innovation and achieve success.”

Here is how the iChallenge works 

  1. Airmen submit their idea through the Guardians and Airmen Innovation Network (GAIN) ideation platform at AETC 2022 iChallenge.
  2. Select the force development focus area that your innovation aligns to (outlined below) and explain how the idea supports the initiative:
  • Multi capable Airmen (MCA) training focused on accessibility & modernization:  Developing Airmen familiar with and capable of assisting in certain key functions in a wartime situation that isn't necessarily in line with the training from their Air Force specialty code.
  • Customizable content focused on development & delivery:  Build and deliver customizable software applications.
  • Next reality focused on AR/VR/MR/XR:  Innovations that further enhance Air Force capabilities using Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), Mixed Reality (MR), or Extended Reality (XR).
  • Soft skills focused on delivery to the Air Force’s diverse workforce: Innovations that further enhance our Airmen’s and leaders’ soft skill delivery.

Once winners are named, experts from AETC’s Innovation and Analysis Directorate will connect innovators to resources needed to refine their ideas, define a way forward and connect innovators to others who have developed similar concepts for collaboration on lessons learned.

Call to Action: Give it your best shot! Submit your ideas through the GAIN ideation platform at https://gain.apps.dso.mil/usaf/aetc-2022-ichallenge/overview.