Heidi Shyu
Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering
Heidi Shyu was born in 1953 in Taipei, Taiwan. She earned an undergraduate degree from the University of New Brunswick and a master’s from the University of Toronto. She received two engineering degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles.
She worked as an engineer in the defense contract aircraft industry. She served on the U.S. Air Force Scientific Advisory Board. She was confirmed as Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology during President Obama’s administration.
Shyu was nominated by President Joe Biden to be Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. She was confirmed by the Senate and assumed office in July 2021.
In the News…
Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Heidi Shyu announced $9 million in additional funding for the Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program. Five companies will receive the awards “to expand the domestic supply of ingredients and materials for U.S. supply chains by building bioproduction infrastructure.“
The Defense Department explained, “Through these agreements, companies will receive funding to produce business and technical plans that detail construction of domestic bioindustrial manufacturing production facilities under the Defense Industrial Base Consortium (DIBC) Other Transaction Agreement (OTA).“
Under Secretary Shyu said, “These awards represent exciting steps toward fulfilling President Biden’s vision of a robust American bioeconomy and vibrant industrial base.”
She added, “The bioindustrial manufacturing industry is primed and ready for investments that will ultimately boost national and economic security as well as strengthen our position at the forefront of the global bioeconomy.”
