The mega-contract of “cloud” (remote computing) worth ten billion dollars awarded in 2019 by the US Department of Defense to Microsoft, and which was contested by Amazon, announced the Pentagon on Tuesday.
In a press release, the Ministry of Defense explains that this contract “no longer meets its needs” due in particular to “changing requirements” and “advances in the sector”.
Modernize the computer systems of the American armed forces
He plans to start a new procedure to hire various companies specializing in the “cloud”. “With the evolution of the technological environment, it has become clear that this contract (…), which has been delayed for a long time, no longer meets the requirements to fill the capacity gaps” of the Ministry of Defense, indicated a spokesperson in a press release.
This large ten-year contract aimed to modernize all the computer systems of the American armed forces in a system managed by artificial intelligence. As soon as the call for tenders was concluded in the fall of 2019, Amazon, initially considered a favorite, strongly questioned the choice of the ministry.
A choice driven by Donald Trump?
The online commerce giant, which has become an expert in cloud computing services, accused in particular the former US President Donald Trump of having piloted the choice of the Pentagon because of his animosity towards Jeff Bezos, its founder.
The ministry now plans to turn instead to several companies, starting with Microsoft and Amazon, the only two groups currently “able to meet its needs.” But the ministry will “continue its market research to determine if other suppliers based in the United States” could also meet its requirements.