Heidi Shyu (Chinese: ; born September 28, 1953) is a Taiwanese-born American engineer who had served as the

Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering The under secretary of defense for research and engineering, abbreviated USD (R&E), is a senior official of the United States Department of Defense. The USD (R&E) is charged with the development and oversight of technology strategy for the DoD. ...

in the

Biden administration Joe Biden's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 46th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Joe Biden, his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democr ...

. She previously served as the

United States Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology The Office of the United States Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology (ASA(ALT) pronounced ''A-salt'') is known as OASA(ALT). OASA(ALT) serves, when delegated, as the army Military Acquisition, acquisition exe ...

ASA(ALT) from 2012 to January 30, 2016. In 2019, Shyu was elected as a member of the

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American Nonprofit organization, nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. It is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), along with the National Academ ...

for the development of innovative radar/electrooptics/infrared systems in support of the US Army and Air Force.

Biography

Shyu's grandfather, Xu Kangliang, was born in

Zhejiang ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = ( Hangzhounese) ( Ningbonese) (Wenzhounese) , image_skyline = 玉甑峰全貌 - panoramio.jpg , image_caption = View of the Yandang Mountains , image_map = Zhejiang i ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. He was a warplane pilot who took part in many air battles during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

and later was promoted to the post of Deputy Commander of

Republic of China Air Force The Republic of China Air Force ( Chinese, 中華民國空軍), or the ROCAF; known colloquially as the Taiwanese Air Force ( Chinese, 臺灣空軍) by Western or mainland Chinese media, or commonly referred as the National Military Air Force ...

. Her father, Xu Naili was a historian born in

Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...

, China. Her entire family emigrated to

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

following the KMT defeat in the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led Nationalist government, government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Armed conflict continued intermitt ...

. Shyu received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

from the

University of New Brunswick The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is a public university with two primary campuses in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. It is the oldest English language, English-language university in Canada, and among the oldest public universiti ...

, a

Master of Science A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...

in mathematics from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

, and a

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

from the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

. She also received an

engineer's degree An engineer's degree is an advanced academic degree in engineering which is conferred in Europe, some countries of Asia and Latin America, North Africa and a few institutions in the United States. The degree may require a thesis but always require ...

from the

Career

She began her career as an

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

Hughes Aircraft The Hughes Aircraft Company was a major American aerospace company, aerospace and defense contractor founded on February 14, 1934 by Howard Hughes in Glendale, California, as a division of the Hughes Tool Company. The company produced the Hughes ...

. She later moved on to

Grumman The Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation, later Grumman Aerospace Corporation, was a 20th century American producer of military and civilian aircraft. Founded on December 6, 1929, by Leroy Grumman and his business partners, it merged in 19 ...

and

Litton Industries Litton Industries, Inc., was an American defense contractor that specialized in shipbuilding, aerospace, electronic components, and information technology. The company was founded in 1953 and was named after inventor Charles Litton Sr., who was ...

. She then spent a large part of her career at

Raytheon Raytheon is a business unit of RTX Corporation and is a major U.S. defense contractor and industrial corporation with manufacturing concentrations in weapons and military and commercial electronics. Founded in 1922, it merged in 2020 with Unite ...

. There she held the positions of Laboratory Manager for Electromagnetic Systems; Director of JSF Antenna Technologies; Director of JSF Integrated Radar/Electronic Warfare Sensors; Senior Director of Joint Strike Fighter; Senior Director of Unmanned Combat Vehicles; Vice President of Unmanned and Reconnaissance Systems; Vice President and Technical Director of Space and Airborne Systems; Corporate Vice President of Technology and Research; and finally Vice President of Technology Strategy for Raytheon Company's Space and Airborne Systems. She was a member of the

United States Air Force Scientific Advisory Board The United States Air Force Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) is a Federal Advisory Committee that provides independent advice on matters of science and technology relating to the Air Force mission, reporting directly to the Secretary of the Air ...

from 2000 to 2010, serving as its vice-chairman from 2003 to 2005 and as its chairman from 2005 to 2008.

Obama administration

President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

nominated her to be an Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology in the

US Defense Department The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, t ...

in February 2012. The

Senate Armed Services Committee The Committee on Armed Services, sometimes abbreviated SASC for Senate Armed Services Committee, is a committee of the United States Senate empowered with legislative oversight of the nation's military, including the Department of Defen ...

held hearings on Shyu's nomination on March 29, 2012. The committee favorably reported her nomination to the entire Senate on May 15, 2012. Shyu was confirmed by the entire Senate on September 22, 2012, via

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "by live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by respondin ...

. Shyu held the role until the January 30, 2016.

Biden administration

On April 27, 2021, President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

nominated Shyu to be the next

. Hearings on her nomination were held before the Senate's Armed Services Committee on May 25, 2021. The committee favorably reported her nomination to the Senate floor on June 10, 2021. Shyu was officially confirmed by the Senate on July 22, 2021, via voice vote. She started her assignment on July 25, 2021.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shyu, Heidi 1953 births Living people United States Assistant Secretaries of Defense United States Under Secretaries of Defense United States Army women civilians Scientists from Taipei University of New Brunswick alumni University of Toronto alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni American women engineers Hughes Aircraft Company Northrop Grumman people Raytheon Company people Taiwanese emigrants to the United States Taiwanese expatriates in Canada Obama administration personnel Biden administration personnel