GoKawiilTern lands $11.26M Army contract for GPS-free vehicle navigation
Austin startup Tern has secured an $11.26 million U.S. Army contract to install its GPS-alternative navigation system in military vehicles. The technology uses a device connected to a vehicle's diagnostics board, paired with a tablet, to calculate location and routing by passively analyzing data the vehicle already generates, rather than relying on satellite signals.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
GPS jamming and spoofing have become common battlefield threats in conflicts like Ukraine-Russia and across the Middle East, and even the U.S. military's own jamming experiments have raised safety concerns, including a possible link to a fatal medevac crash. A working, low-cost alternative that lets vehicles self-locate using existing onboard data could reduce reliance on vulnerable satellite systems and give troops a fallback in contested electromagnetic environments.
- Tern's system taps existing vehicle diagnostic data instead of satellite signals to determine position.
- The Army contract is worth $11.26 million, though deployment scale wasn't disclosed.
- Rising GPS jamming risks in modern conflicts are driving military interest in alternative navigation tech.
Garmin GPSMAP 67i Handheld Navigator — If reading about battlefield navigation makes you want rugged wayfinding of your own, Garmin's GPSMAP 67i is a purpose-built handheld with inReach satellite messaging for places where phone service disappears. It's the civilian answer to going off-grid with confidence, whether you're backcountry hiking or overlanding far from a cell tower.
See Garmin GPSMAP 67i Handheld Navigator on Amazon → Affiliate link — we may earn a commission on purchases, at no extra cost to you. Product picked by AI based on this article; it is not a tested recommendation.Source: techcrunch.com — Sean O'Kane, 2026-09-10
Published there as: “US Army places $11M bet on Austin-based GPS alternative Tern”
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