The Department of War’s Data Problem: Why Decision Dominance Must Move to the Edge

By Daniel Hilarski, Federal Web Contractor

Imagine a battlefield where the network goes dark.

Satellite links are jammed.
Fiber lines are cut.
RF silence is mandatory.

There is no cloud. No reachback. No second chances.

This is the tactical edge—the place where warfighters operate with seconds to decide and everything to lose. And it is where the modern data problem becomes impossible to ignore.

Too Much Data, Not Enough Decisions

The modern battlefield does not suffer from a lack of information. It suffers from too much of it.

Every drone, sensor mast, satellite feed, patrol, and platform generates a continuous flood of intelligence: full-motion video, SIGINT bursts, telemetry, targeting packets, cyber indicators, and battlefield reports. The volume now exceeds 22 terabytes per day—and rising.

In theory, this should be an overwhelming advantage. In practice, it has become an operational burden.

Analysts cannot manually process the volume. Commanders cannot integrate feeds fast enough to act. Decision cycles stretch while adversaries compress theirs. The OODA loop fractures at its most critical point—orientation—and the mission slows while the threat moves first.

This is not an intelligence gap.
It is a decision gap.

Why the Cloud Fails at the Tactical Edge

In clean, connected environments, data can be sent to centralized cloud platforms for processing. But the tactical edge is never clean.

It is contested.

Satellites are spoofed. RF is jammed. Fiber is cut. Units operate inside Denied, Disrupted, Intermittent, and Limited (DDIL) environments where bandwidth collapses and latency spikes. Cloud-dependent workflows fail—not because they are poorly designed, but because the environment makes them irrelevant.

Data that should create clarity instead creates fog.
Data that should accelerate decisions instead slows them.
Data that should empower the warfighter instead overwhelms them.

Until processing power moves to the edge, the data deluge will only grow.

Bringing Intelligence to Where the Fight Happens

Decision dominance is not achieved in distant data centers. It is achieved at the point of contact.

To keep the OODA loop alive, intelligence must be generated where data is created. AI must operate alongside the warfighter, delivering insights in milliseconds rather than minutes—without relying on constant connectivity.

This is the mission of Edge AI: bringing intelligence to the fight even when the network fails.

Instead of moving massive datasets back to the cloud, Edge AI processes information locally. Advanced AI models analyze sensor feeds in real time and deliver actionable insights immediately—no round trip required.

Stop moving data.
Start moving decisions.

Edge AI Built for the Fight

Across the battlespace, sensors pour out intelligence faster than humans can absorb it. Without local processing, the OODA loop stalls and the mission slows.

Paragon Micro changes that.

By bringing the muscle of Dell PowerEdge XR servers directly to the tactical edge, Paragon enables AI inference to run right beside the warfighter. High-performance processors, onboard GPUs, and cyber-resilient hardware power advanced AI models locally—without waiting for the cloud.

Wrapped around this compute layer is Dell PowerSwitch networking, creating a fast, low-latency tactical fabric that keeps sensors, radios, and systems connected even as the environment degrades.

The result is a complete Edge AI platform designed for contested conditions.

Mission-Ready Infrastructure at the Tactical Edge

Dell PowerEdge XR platforms are purpose-built for environments where traditional infrastructure fails. Key capabilities include:

• NVIDIA H100 and H200 GPU acceleration for real-time AI inference
• Ruggedized designs compliant with MIL-STD-810H for shock, vibration, and dust
• Short-depth, transit-case-ready form factors for vehicle and forward deployment
• Operational ranges from –5°C to 55°C

Paired with Dell Networking, these systems ensure data moves efficiently within the edge—maintaining situational awareness even when external connectivity disappears.

From Commercial Technology to Mission-Ready Solutions

Commercial off-the-shelf technology is powerful—but not mission-ready by default.

Paragon Micro bridges that gap. We design, kit, and integrate complete Edge AI solutions, combining Dell PowerEdge XR servers, Dell Networking, NVIDIA acceleration, and resilient power into ruggedized transit cases ready for deployment.

The result is intelligence that moves with the mission.

Decision Dominance When the Network Fails

The future of warfare will not be won by collecting more data. It will be won by acting on the right data faster.

That future will not be built in the cloud.

It will be built at the tactical edge—where networks fail, conditions degrade, and missions continue.

Paragon Micro and Dell Technologies deliver Edge AI that does not blink, does not stall, and does not wait.

Decision dominance starts at the edge.

Contact Paragon Micro to learn how Edge AI and Dell Networking can help you tighten the OODA loop and dominate the decision.