Homeland Tech in Focus: Cell Towers, AI and Smart 911 Response

A fresh alarm has rung through U.S. government ranks: nearly two dozen FEMA IT personnel—including top CISOs—have been fired following a massive cybersecurity breach. The action was taken by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, who blamed a failure to deploy basic safeguards like multifactor authentication. This stark reminder of systemic vulnerability throws homeland security tech providers into sharp relief—who they are, what they guard, and how they’re shaping resilience at the national scale.

Anduril Industries – Autonomous Surveillance Towers at the Border

Anduril Industries pioneered the concept of a "virtual wall" through its solar-powered, AI-infused Sentry Towers. These autonomous towers combine radar, thermal imaging, and communications to monitor remote border zones—and feed intelligence into the Lattice command-and-control system. The company has conducted pilot deployments with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and continues to lead in scalable, rapid-setup border surveillance.

Brian Schimpf, Co-Founder and CEO of Anduril

Carbyne – Smarter Emergency Response via Live Stream and Geo-Data

Shifting from border defense to crisis response, Carbyne brings real-time video and location insights directly into emergency operations. Formerly known as Reporty Homeland Security, this tech provider powers modern “911” systems in nearly 300 emergency centers globally. With its recent $100 million funding round and partnerships with major providers like AT&T, Carbyne’s platform is enabling smarter, faster decisions in moments that can mean the difference between life and death.

Peraton – Infra & Cloud Support for HLS Mission-Critical Ops

Peraton, built from the legacy of Harris and Northrop Grumman’s federal divisions, is a dominant player in HLS infrastructure. It holds multi-billion-dollar contracts with DHS for cloud and data center modernization, and similarly sized work for the Pentagon to fight misinformation. Peraton powers the backend mettle required to keep agencies running—and now, to help future-proof them against breaches like FEMA’s.

Three Technologies, One Critical Task

Technology Role	Anduril Industries	Carbyne	Peraton
Core Capability	Autonomous border surveillance towers	Smart emergency response and geo-streaming	Infrastructure modernization and cloud support
Ideal Use Case	Remote border zones with limited staff	Real-time 911 dispatch and situational awareness	Mission-critical HLS system stability
Strength	Rapid deployment, autonomy, AI integration	Speed and clarity during emergencies	Scale, reliability, and backend resilience
Privacy & Oversight Concerns	Surveillance reach, data governance	Live video streaming and geolocation tracking	Cloud/data access and system control

Why It Matters in 2025

The FEMA breach is more than a scandal—it’s a failure in baseline protections that should have been secure years ago. As threats evolve, agencies increasingly depend on autonomous systems, real-time crisis technologies, and modernized infrastructure to respond effectively. The innovations by Anduril, Carbyne, and Peraton each address a piece of that puzzle—whether safeguarding borders, accelerating emergency workflows, or fortifying system integrity.

Public trust hinges not only on cutting-edge tools—but on their responsible deployment and resilient architecture. As HLS agencies plan their next moves, understanding which tech fits their operational and governance needs could define national readiness for years to come.