So, you think Car Locator is Android’s biggest cash cow? Well, there are military contracts up for grabs that could dwarf LindyLabs’ paltry $13k-a-month earnings in comparison. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (referred to by my source collectively as “deathnerds”), is known for consistently making significant contributions to the state of technology and is suspected by the Tin Foil Hat Society of projecting voices into the heads of unwitting civilians, allowing the mutilation of Earth’s cattle by aliens in exchange for some pimpin’ interstellar rides, and for planning to diminish the planet’s population by 99.9% by way of poisoned tap water and designer disease so that the rich can live for eternity in a white paradise.

While I can’t confirm or deny any of these allegations, I can report that DARPA is actively seeking partnerships with programmers who can develop software that will assist them in carrying out various military operations. They happen to be focusing their quest in the iPhone and Android developer communities. The entire Request for Information can be found here, but I’ve taken the liberty of snatching out the chunk on the built-in userbase a qualifying contractor would enjoy:

DARPA’s objective is to identify apps suitable for widespread use by military personnel. The potential install base is a hundred thousand to a million or more end-users. Additionally, the DoD may require ownership and maintenance of required servers for the applications.

A pricing model that takes into consideration both the size of the potential installation base as well as the need for the server code should be determined. This could be accomplished using a “per-download” cost if appropriate, as well as by using enterprise or site-license options.

Get your foot in this door and you’ll never hear the phrase “government money” the same way again. Then again, you might complete the project, have your memory wiped, and end up tripping in a zero gravity experiment chamber with no name and weeds from another planet growing out of your ears. But fear not for your family: In their hearts and minds you will be long gone, having died an honorable death for your country in a training exercise.

Via The Register