"I'm a little confused about the end goal of this service platform. Since you already have the H1 assistant and various apps, is there really a market for a standalone hotline platform?" asked a younger expert on the team, voicing his skepticism.
"You're missing the forest for the trees. Nick's personal assistant and the apps are for individual use. This platform, however, is built for the public sector. The positioning and the service architecture are completely different," Garry said, shaking his head.
Nick nodded, adding a smile. "The goal of this platform is to phase out traditional, manual call centers. In the future, this won't just be a phone line; it'll be a real-time information hub and news center.
Corporations need this kind of tech to bridge the gap between their services and the consumer experience. It creates a high-quality, frictionless connection. The applications are everywhere—it works for the private sector, and I'm confident it'll revolutionize the military as well."
"That's exactly right. We're very interested in the service platform, but we're even more focused on the H1 tech itself."
Liam nodded. "Think about it. In the military—especially on advanced weapon systems—there's usually a dedicated position for data collection, processing, and reporting.
However, the interior of a tank or a cockpit is incredibly cramped. Every extra person adds weight and takes up volume. That means less room for ammo, fuel, or vital electronic gear.
Take a fighter jet, for example. In some high-stakes missions, a pilot is solely focused on flight and combat. They often don't have the luxury of reading every gauge or processing every data point on their instruments. That split-second delay can cost them a mission—or their life.
Traditional two-seat jets? They're expensive. Adding a second cockpit and another pilot adds hundreds of pounds. It's a massive drain on the aircraft's payload, and having two pilots in the air doubles the personnel risk.
If an Intelligent Voice Assistant could process and relay that data to the pilot, it would exponentially increase combat effectiveness while cutting down on weight and cost.
More importantly, our pilots are the elite—the 'sons of heaven'—trained with millions of dollars in resources. Each one is irreplaceable. If your tech can make them safer, that's a massive win for the country. That's why we're here: to gauge your capabilities and discuss integrating this voice tech into our next-gen equipment. And so far, Nick, you've given me more than one surprise."
"Hahahaha!" The room erupted in laughter at Liam's praise.
Nick led the group down to the main conference room on the first floor. An admin assistant was already waiting to serve tea as they settled into their seats.
"Let's get down to it. We've seen the labs; now let's hear some honest opinions." After clearing the room of non-essential staff, Liam took the head of the table to preside over the meeting.
Seeing the experts hesitating to jump in, Director Kai took the floor. "I'll start. I've worked with Nick before, and we know him well.
I won't bore you with a long intro, but everyone should know his background is clean. He's an outgoing, positive guy who was highly active in university leadership and consistently aligned himself with national interests. We did a comprehensive deep-dive on him during previous projects, and he's proven himself to be 100% trustworthy."
Nick was touched. For Director Kai to set the tone like that showed how much he was looking out for him.
It was actually funny when he thought about it. Back in freshman year, Nick had been a hyper-active student leader, playing intramural sports and running various clubs, which had landed him on the track for some leadership designations. By his junior year, he'd mostly forgotten about it out of laziness, but the "activist" tag stayed on his permanent record. He never realized that a little college extracurricular work would pay off like this.
The room nodded along. Even if they didn't know Nick's full history, Director Kai's endorsement carried a lot of weight.
"I trust Nick's character, but the lab we just toured is... rudimentary," a stout colonel in uniform said, his voice serious.
"What worries me more is security. Once you take on defense contracts, you become a high-value target for hostile actors. Nick, can you guarantee the security of this tech? How do you plan to resist a targeted breach?"
Nick knew this was coming and answered without hesitation. "First, regarding the tech itself: if we move forward with a partnership, I will share all of our proprietary encryption protocols with the military.
That way, you can encrypt your own programs using our logic, and even we won't be able to crack them.
As for physical security, we're already upgrading. This building and the adjacent office tower are equipped with state-of-the-art security systems. Our Security Department is staffed by retired vets and trained by industry pros.
To eliminate external threats, we've leased the surrounding buildings to create a closed campus. And since we're already dealing with sensitive tech, we're under the protection of the Tampa PD and federal oversight. I'm confident we can keep any potential crisis under control."
"Fortresses are usually breached from the inside," the colonel countered, pointing out the gap in his logic.
Nick nodded. "We've thought of that. Every employee goes through a rigorous screening process before they're hired, and we report all new staff to the Security Department for review.
Moving forward, we're establishing an internal Confidentiality Department to train every staff member on protocol. We'll also have security specialists assigned to every sensitive project to ensure there are zero leaks."
The colonel's expression finally softened. "The military is willing to provide support to help you refine those systems. Security isn't a suggestion; it's a requirement. I hope you treat it as such."