General Dynamics, Defense industry contractor for shipbuilding and marine systems, defense systems, land and amphibious combat systems and munitions, has completed their acquisition of Open Kernel Labs. OK Labs is a NICTA start-up company, and a provider of virtualization software for securing wireless communications, applications and content for mobile devices and automotive in-vehicle infotainment systems. While the deal amount is still undisclosed, this will be beneficial for General Dynamics both in terms of mobile virtualization and automotive virtualization.

“As part of General Dynamics, we will continue to deliver innovation and excellence in the areas of mobile and automotive virtualisation,” said Mr Subar, Co-Founder and CEO, OK Labs. “I am looking forward to leading this expert team as we meet the growing needs of military, government, and commercial customers.”

As OK Labs will be a part of Secure Mobility Solutions (C4 Systems) within General Dynamics Broadband, Secure Mobility will team to deliver commercial devices with Defense-grade security for public safety, civilian, military and commercial customers. This benefits in mobile virtualization. Next, General Dynamics will leverage OK Labs’ automotive virtualization solutions to fortify the market success of software virtualization, while meeting the needs of OK Labs customers, prospects, and partners.

“Government and corporate CIOs want the advantages of today’s commercial mobile devices without having to sacrifice the integrity and security of their networks,” said Chris Marzilli, president of General Dynamics C4 Systems. “OK Labs’ market-leading expertise in implementing security on commercial devices delivers ease of use and reduced cost to customers.”

OK Labs enables in-vehicle infotainment system designers to separate multimedia and infotainment applications from core automotive functions without compromising safety, security, or reliability, access to ultra-secure devices and secure automotive systems that provide comfortable interfaces and usability experiences will stimulate the growth and adoption of software virtualization across government, military, and commercial markets.

“Automotive virtualization–the act of using a thin client in a mobile device for a vehicle–isn’t something we hear much about in the DevOps and mobile sphere,” says Kyt Dotson, DevOpsANGLE editor. “However, vehicles are a major personal part of our lives in that they transport us from place to place and for the military and enterprise they are part of the lifeline of logistics. GPS, tracking, identification, and communication are all mobile aspects that could be integrated into a vehicle that also need to be secured from tampering and interception (especially in a military context.)

“While it’s unlikely the government will avail themselves of infotainment, the automotive industry would love that, but other concepts provided for in the same vein will spill over into general operations.”