This is what the city’s largest conference and one of the city’s largest non-sporting events looks like.
TechNet Augusta 2026 is underway at the Augusta Convention Center. This marks the 14th year Augusta has hosted the event. Destination Augusta estimates 6,000 attendees will pump $3.5 million into metro Augusta’s economy.
Sponsored by the Augusta Chapter of AFCEA International, it brings together the military and private sector to present the latest advances in technology from military, government, academia, and industry professionals.
Tuesday’s keynote addresses included speeches from MG Ryan Janovic of the U.S. Army Cyber Center of Excellence at Fort Gordon, Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson, and Dr. Russell Keen, president of Augusta University.
This year’s theme is Command and Control (C2) and Counter Command and Control (c-C2) in support of Army Warfighting.
“(This) isn’t an abstract concept for this room. This isn’t something new to you. You actually live it,” observed LTG Bruce Crawford (Ret.), president and CEO of AFCEA International. “Command and control is the absolute heart of the force, and I know that point’s not lost in this audience. Our adversaries have actually studied our reliance on resilient networks, on data and on a competitive advantage to sense, decide, and act faster than they can. They’re building capability every day to actually contest the competitive advantage that we have.”
Keen said the necessity of protecting that advantage highlights the challenge facing the military as well as the private sector and educational institutions.
“Our military men and women need secure and resilient capabilities, and they need them faster than any one institution or sector can deliver alone,” said Keen. “Our greatest opportunities come when government, industry, and universities work together with a shared purpose. Few places in America demonstrate that model better than Augusta.”
Eric Toler, Executive Director of the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center (GCITC), told ABD TechNet Augusta is about bringing everybody together, particularly from the Army, to talk about communications, electronic warfare, and cyber operations.
“It’s really to bring people together, to have the hard conversations, to talk about innovation. How do we move quicker, particularly in this era of AI, where it’s taking over everything? We can’t wait any longer. We’ve got to get moving and start addressing these problems now. And this is the forum that gets that going,” he said.
Keen said Metro Augusta has an extraordinary concentration of talent and capability, and Augusta University plays a major role in providing educational opportunities through its programs offering computer science, cybersecurity, intelligence, and national security.
“Augusta University is educating more than 1,000 students for careers that support our nation’s security resilience. We are the only university in the state of Georgia to hold national designations in both cyber defense and cyber operations, and nearly 1,800 military-connected students are part of Augusta University’s community,” he explained.
Toler said this also brings into focus the role GCITC plays in preparing leaders from the military and private sector.
“This is directly in line with our mission,” he said. “Our whole purpose was to bring together government, academia, and private industry, not just for a conference, but every day. That is our mission. It’s the one-stop shop for cyber when it comes to education, training, workforce development, research and development, the delivery of capabilities quicker, and providing services to the local community, where we can leverage all the talent that’s around us for the greater good and for our national security.”
TechNet Augusta runs through tomorrow, with closing events set to begin at 12:30 p.m.
There is an app available to learn more about TechNet Augusta. It is available for download in both the Apple App Store and Google Play.
