Modernization isn’t just a government initiative, it’s a movement.

It’s the recognition that speed, security, and trust can coexist when technology is designed with both user and mission in mind.

From Commercial Agility to Defense Trust, Modernization Meets Purpose.

Proving dual-use value in the toughest environments

For students, researchers, and dual-use founders, a dual-use mindset means building solutions that work for both commercial users and mission operators—in the field, in government offices, in hospitals, and at the Edge.

Harold Smith III has spent his career proving that idea true. As co-founder and CEO of Monkton, Inc., he’s guided the company from its beginnings in Tysons Corner to becoming a federal leader in secure mobility and dual-use modernization. In 2026, Monkton will celebrate its ten year anniversary with the same goal from the start: deliver secure, mobile, and compliant solutions that work wherever missions happen—online, offline, and everywhere in between.

Before Monkton, Harold built one of the Apple App Store’s earliest and most successful prescription-management apps—proving how intuitive design can turn intent into real-world health outcomes. The insight was simple: if mobile tech can help patients stay on track with medication, why couldn’t it help warfighters, clinicians, first responders, and public servants operate faster, safer, and more confidently?

A Decade of Commercial Insight, Proven in Mission Impact

Monkton’s ten year anniversary is a milestone that reflects both persistence and purpose. What started as a mission to streamline secure mobility for commercial use has grown into a commitment to modernize the hardest, most sensitive environments in government.

When Harold turned his attention to federal technology, he brought that same mindset to mission systems long overdue for change. Over the next decade, he helped develop the first fully authorized, cloud-connected mobile apps for the Department of Defense and advised programs across the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, and State Department.

Dual-Use Innovation Through SBIR & Mission Delivery

Monkton’s dual-use journey followed today’s modern path: commercial foundation, mission-critical results, and scale through SBIR…

2019: Phase I SBIR award
2020: Phase III SBIR (MATTER) during COVID to accelerate Edge modernization
2021–2023: Multiple SBIR Phase III awards expanding secure mobile + Zero Trust capabilities
2024+: Products built from SBIR work now powering cloud and ML missions across DoD and civilian agencies

Monkton didn’t just win contracts—it used SBIR to prove secure mobility, create repeatable architectures, and launch new commercial-grade capabilities into defense.

Secure Mobility, Clean Data, and Trusted AI

Today, Monkton’s patented Zero Trust framework and Cloud Native platforms such as Hypersonic and its CBEC architecture demonstrate what happens when commercial-speed engineering meets mission-grade security. Hypersonic automates evidence, compliance, and deployment pipelines—enabling rapid delivery without sacrificing trust. CBEC secures and cleans data at the source, ensuring the AI and ML models agencies deploy are built on accurate, verified, mission-grade data.

Harold and Monkton chose to focus on DoD because if you can solve secure mobile communications, data integrity, and compliance in classified environments, you can solve them anywhere—healthcare, climate and environmental systems, logistics, and critical public services.

Collaboration Over Competition

Monkton emphasizes collaboration over competition—a mindset reinforced during the panel. Harold believes there is no competition in national security—only partners trying to solve the same mission. Monkton works alongside DoD leaders, AWS, and commercial technologists to co-design architectures that scale securely. The guiding question remains constant: how do we make this work better for the operators who depend on it?

Balanced: Commercial Principles and Mission Impact with Dual-Use Success at the Edge

One of Monkton’s clearest proofs of dual-use value is Balanced, an iPad-based solution built for Air Force Special Operations Command to modernize how loadmasters calculate, verify, and record aircraft weight and balance. Before Balanced, crews relied on slow, legacy processes that introduced delays and risk in mission planning. Monkton applied commercial-grade simplicity to a mission-heavy workflow: a clean interface, automated calculations, real-time validation, and full functionality whether the device was online, offline, or operating in a denied environment.

Balanced moved from concept to mission-ready deployment in under six months, giving operators a secure, NIAP-validated mobile tool that accelerated decision-making and reduced error-prone manual steps. It generated compliant forms instantly, synchronized when connectivity allowed, and proved how commercial-speed development can thrive under defense-grade security demands. Balanced became a model for what dual-use really means: a solution shaped by commercial intuition, hardened for operational realities, and trusted at the Edge.

Monkon’s Lessons for Dual-use Builders:

LEARN! Dive into the mission and speak the language.
AI accelerates people, it does not replace them.
Pivoting is a strength, not a failure.
Leverage LinkedIn early and consistently... it’s a level playing field.
Tap into SBIR, university networks, and digital communities.
Master the delivery process. Outcomes come from repeatability, not one-offs.
Stay ready. Do the work before the opportunity arrives.
You build credibility in production not pitch decks.

Toward a Future of Trusted AI and Shared Impact

Looking ahead to 2026, Harold sees dual-use modernization evolving into a foundation for trustworthy AI and data-driven missions. Clean, structured, and secure data—captured through approaches like CBEC—will allow leaders to make faster, fairer, and more confident decisions, supported by repeatable delivery processes and a stay-ready posture that scales with mission needs.

Dual-use innovation is not about serving two separate markets; it’s about building one unified mission ecosystem.

The same technology that helps citizens live healthier lives can help protect the nation that supports them. That’s dual-use modernization—one solution, two missions.

Dual-use innovation isn’t a buzzword, it’s a responsibility.

The future belongs to builders who can bridge intent and execution—who stay ready, deliver consistently, and measure success in mission outcomes. Technology alone won’t transform missions… people will.

Learn more about Harold and Monkton at monkton.io.

Dual-Use Modernization: One Solution, Two Missions