New proving ground to occupy northern Camp Atterbury

The northern part of Camp Atterbury will be home to a proving and testing ground for a variety of civilian and military innovations including autonomous vehicles and other high-tech mobility developments.

Military officials made the announcement Friday morning along with local company PRŪV Mobility Ecosystem, that the base would be home to the new project which officials touted as a ground-breaking cooperation between the military and private sector.

John Fairbanks, CEO of PRŪV explains:

Initially the company has a 10-year, $940,000 lease for 55 acres on the north side of the base in land owned by the state. That will allow the company to build facilities as the project expands. Eventually the company has the option to use the whole 1,000 acres north of Atterbury

The project will also make extensive use of the network of streets in the area that used to be the Wakefield military hospital during World War II.

Indiana National Guard adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Dale Lyles said he sees great opportunities for cooperation between the military and private businesses. He expects the possibility of autonomous military vehicles and weapons to help save lives of soldiers in future conflicts, with the dangers of first contact with an enemy being absorbed by robots and Artificial Intelligence.

Lyles said that he recently returned from a conference, where higher-ups in the Army made that point on private/military collaborations clear:

Photo of John Fairbanks, CEO of PRŪV Mobility Ecosystem. White River Broadcasting