Defense Industry

On April 29, 2026, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth told the House Armed Services Committee that the Pentagon will “shortly announce a sub-unified command of autonomous warfare.”  The announcement came as the Department of War (DoW) unveiled its fiscal year (FY) 2027 budget request, which proposes approximately $54 billion for the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group (DAWG)—a dramatic increase from the roughly $226 million the DAWG received previously.  When all DoW drone and counter-drone related budget lines in the FY 2027 budget request are aggregated, the total approaches $74 billion—an amount Pentagon officials have described as the largest investment in such technologies in U.S. history.  

Beyond the headline numbers, Secretary Hegseth’s reference to a “sub-unified command” is institutionally significant.  It raises fundamental questions about how the DoW intends to organize autonomous warfare inside the joint force and warrants a closer look at what a sub-unified command actually is.

Continue Reading The Pentagon’s New Sub-Unified Command for Autonomous Warfare:  What It Means and Where It Might Land

On April 20, 2026, one week after President Trump signed the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act (Public Law 119-83) into law, the Department of War (“DoW”) issued a press release announcing that it was “immediately advancing” a “redesigned and more focused initiative to accelerate the delivery of advanced capabilities to the warfighter.”  As we covered last month, the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act reauthorizes the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer (“SBIR/STTR”) programs through September 30, 2031, ending a nearly six-month lapse that froze new SBIR/STTR solicitations and awards across federal agencies.

The DoW’s announcement signals that the Department intends to be the first mover in implementing the reauthorized SBIR/STTR programs.  The announcement also introduces a new initiative, the Accelerated Research for Transition (“ART”) Program, that warrants close attention from the defense small business community.

Continue Reading SBIR/STTR Is Back and the Department of War Is Wasting No Time

On March 13, 2026, President Trump issued an Executive Order (EO) titled “Adjusting Certain Delegations Under the Defense Production Act.”  As we have covered in prior blog posts, the Defense Production Act (DPA) has traditionally been considered the primary federal means to manage and support defense production. …

Continue Reading “Adjusting Certain Delegations”:  New Executive Order Aims to Streamline and Clarify Delegated Authorities Under the Defense Production Act

On March 3, 2026, the Senate took a major step toward reauthorizing the Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Technology Transfer (“SBIR/STTR”) programs, by passing the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act (S. 3971).  Known collectively as “America’s Seed Fund,” the SBIR and STTR programs provide small businesses with early-stage…

Continue Reading Is Congress Finally Reauthorizing SBIR/STTR—and What’s Changing?

Introduction

On February 27, 2026, the Defense Industrial Base Consortium (DIBC) issued a new Request for Project Proposals (RPP) focused on Strategic and Critical Materials.  Phase 1 submissions are due March 20, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. (Eastern).  

This solicitation represents the second DIBC RPP targeting critical minerals since the issuance of Executive Order (EO) 14241, “Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production.”  The EO directed federal agencies to expand domestic access to critical minerals and reduce reliance on foreign supply chains. 

Continue Reading Defense Industrial Base Consortium Issues New Critical Minerals Request for Project Proposals

The past month has marked a series of announcements from the Department of War (the “Department”) emphasizing rapid deployment of artificial intelligence (“AI”) industry partnerships.  These announcements signal opportunities for not only the defense industrial base, but also nontraditional defense contractors focused on technology and data.

On January 9, 2026, the Department released two key memoranda: (1) Artificial Intelligence Strategy for the Department of War, setting out measurable pace-setting projects, barrier removal authorities, and mandated data access; and (2) Transforming the Defense Innovation Ecosystem to Accelerate Warfighting Advantage, which aims to unify the defense innovation ecosystem under the Under Secretary of War for Research & Engineering as Chief Technology Officer (“CTO”).  

Shortly after, on January 12, Secretary Hegseth delivered a speech, presenting an overhaul of the Department’s innovation and acquisition ecosystems.

The January 9 memoranda and Secretary Hegseth’s speech signal the Department’s intent to formalize a single, CTO-led innovation operating system designed to produce three outputs: next-generation technology, scalable products, and new ways of fighting—and to do it at “wartime speed,” with AI as the first major proving ground.

Continue Reading Pentagon Releases Artificial Intelligence Strategy

Among the most challenging areas of regulatory compliance for federal contractors are cost accounting and cost and pricing data disclosure requirements.  Indeed, many companies place guardrails on the nature and scale of their business relationships with the U.S. government precisely to avoid the application of these requirements.  In a move that seems consistent with the federal government’s push towards expanding the defense industrial base and working with more commercial companies, Congress recently released the final negotiated language of the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”).  The draft text, currently awaiting a full Senate vote, contains impactful changes to reduce the applicability of federal Cost Accounting Standards (“CAS”) and the Truthful Cost or Pricing Data Statute (formerly the Truth in Negotiations Act, commonly referred to as “TINA”). 

Continue Reading FY26 NDAA Aims to Raise the Dollar Thresholds for the Applicability of CAS and TINA

On November 7, 2025, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth used a speech at the National War College to unveil a Department of War (“DoW”) memorandum titled “Transforming the Defense Acquisition System into the Warfighting Acquisition System to Accelerate Fielding of Urgently Needed Capabilities to Our Warriors.”  This memorandum, referred to throughout as the “WAS Memo”—formally redesignates the Defense Acquisition System (“DAS”) as the Warfighting Acquisition System (“WAS”), places the acquisition enterprise on a “wartime footing,” and sets forth the governance, structural, and process reforms that will shape how DoW capabilities are acquired and fielded. 

This post is the second in a three-part series analyzing these reforms.  In our first post, we examined the WAS Memo’s new emphasis on commercial products and offerings as the preferred acquisition approach.  This post turns to the broader restructuring initiatives contained in the WAS Memo and its accompanying Acquisition Transformation Strategy.

Continue Reading From DAS to WAS:  Secretary Hegseth’s Acquisition Overhaul and What It Means for Industry

Massachusetts aims to be the “cornerstone of the defense industry,” with Governor Maura Healey announcing nearly $47 million in government funding for defense-related projects.  Last year, the Department of Defense ranked Massachusetts ninth out of the top ten states in total Defense spending in FY2023, and the state is aiming…

Continue Reading Massachusetts Seeks to Expand Defense Footprint with Nearly $47 Million in New Projects

On August 20, 2025, the Department of Defense (“DoD”) issued a sweeping memo that tears up and rebuilds the way the military decides what new weapons and systems it needs.  The Military Services appear to be wasting no time translating the memo into action.  Acquisition leaders at last week’s Association of the United States Army conference emphasized that “Transforming in Contact” will serve as the framework for redefining requirements and reprioritizing programs—demonstrating that reform is already underway.  For its part, the Air Force has begun reorganizing its A5/7 directorate to assume greater responsibility for requirements generation, while the Chief of Space Operations has publicly outlined the Space Force path to driving requirements and resourcing.  

This “requirements process” is the first step in acquisition—it defines the problem and tells the rest of the system what to buy, build, or develop.  Change the requirements process and you change the entire defense marketplace.  For decades, DoD has used a system called the Joint Capabilities Integration and Development System (“JCIDS”).  JCIDS was paperwork-heavy and checklist-driven:  the Military Services (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force) would write lengthy justifications for new programs, and those proposals would wind their way through layers of approval at the Joint Staff in the Pentagon.  Critics said JCIDS was too slow and too rigid for modern threats, especially as China and other adversaries innovate quickly.

The August 20 memo blows up that model.  In its place, DoD is putting forward a problem-focused approach that aims to:

  • Define the biggest operational challenges first(not just collect Military Service wish lists)
  • Tie priorities to moneyso “important” projects actually get funded
  • Bring industry into the process earlierthrough experiments, not just proposals
  • Cut out layers of low value review

Below we unpack the memo and offer five practical takeaways for industry.

Continue Reading JCIDS, Rewired:  What DoD’s New Requirements Memo Means