Acquisition
Image: Midjourney
Drones Aren’t Swarming Yet — But They Could
Emma Bates and S. Ryan Quick, War on the Rocks
Despite widespread misconceptions, true drone swarming — defined as resilient, collaborative, and autonomous problem-solving at machine speed without single points of failure — does not currently exist. The U.S. Department of Defense's focus on hardware and individual platform capabilities has neglected the essential distributed systems architecture required for this transformative strategic leap.
- Acquisition Call: Acquisition and research leaders must include precise language about distributed systems in solicitations for true swarming capabilities to avoid conflating them with network, application, or AI solutions.
- Underdeveloped Field: Acquisition must recognize that the field of research into cloud-independent, local distributed systems is shockingly underdeveloped due to a vague demand signal.
- Educate Policymakers: Policymakers need to be educated on the critical distinction between robotic maneuver en masse (which is centrally controlled and vulnerable) and true distributed swarming so they can send precise demand signals needed.
DOD IG Reports Inefficiencies in Handling of Continuing Resolutions for Acquisition Programs
Elodie Collins, Executive Gov
The DOD Office of the Inspector General (OIG) recently revealed that the Pentagon has not adequately communicated or effectively managed the impact of continuing resolutions (CRs) on its acquisition programs. This deficiency has led to significant program delays, increased administrative burdens, and cost inefficiencies, with the full scope of these negative effects on national security and the Defense Industrial Base remaining unknown.
Full Report: Audit of the Impact of Continuing Resolutions on DoD Acquisition Programs (Report No. DODIG-2025-132)
Breaking Barriers: Extending Software-Intensive Acquisition Pathways
Colleen Murphy, MITRE
This report from MITRE summarizes six critical recommendations for modernizing DOD software acquisition processes. These recommendations emerged from a recent workshop led by MITRE in collaboration with government, industry, and research experts.
- Flexible Funding: A primary recommendation is to enable software programs to operate with "colorless money," allowing them to execute with any type of funding in order to provide greater flexibility.
- Audit Standards: The workshop recommended updating the Government Accountability Office (GAO) Yellow Book to include a specific framework for software acquisition, as current auditing standards negatively impact software program evaluations. This was a previous Section 809 panel recommendation that has not yet been implemented.
- Cost Overhaul: Participants advised overhauling traditional cost estimation processes, which are designed for hardware and waterfall development, by replacing them with industry-informed strategies that leverage software development experts.
Innovation
Image: Ángel M. Felicísimo via Wikimedia Commons
Spain’s Huawei Deal Is a Wake-Up Call for U.S. Federal Procurement Reform
Daria Bahrami, War on the Rocks
Spain has awarded Chinese firm Huawei a sensitive intelligence collection contract, despite the fact that NATO allies classify Huawei as a "high-risk supplier." This deal highlights the failure of current U.S. restriction-based approaches and underscores the need for innovation-driven security standards to counter China's strategic control and exploitation of data managed by the country's private corporations.
- Escalating Threats: Under China's integrated system, a company like Huawei can become a conduit for the state to gain hidden access, collect sensitive information, and even disrupt critical systems for strategic advantage, posing significant national security risks to other nations.
- Global Leadership: By focusing on security capabilities and innovation through Policy-as-Code, the U.S. can establish global technological standards that allies will voluntarily adopt based on technical merit, rather than through diplomatic pressure or restrictions. This creates a "race to the top" in security.
Injecting Agility in Defense Innovation
NPS Public Affairs, Naval Postgraduate School
Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) faculty associate Alexis Thoeny, who just completed a three-month Service Chiefs Fellowship at DARPA, has returned to campus with a new vision for accelerating innovation across NPS, the US Navy, and DOD.
- NPS Connection: A key takeaway was NPS's potential to help DARPA gain quicker access to operational insights. Thoeny is developing a concept for a faster version of the Naval Research Program, designed to match DARPA's rapid tempo by funding short-turnaround research projects led by students or faculty with military experience.
- Student Impact: This concept, if implemented, would allow DARPA to sponsor projects within NPS programs, such as the new master's in innovation, providing students with hands-on experience with emerging technologies and real-world challenges. This practical knowledge would be invaluable when they return to the fleet.
SBIR Can Power the Next Generation of Defense Tech
Brian Miller, National Interest
The U.S. defense innovation ecosystem is significantly hindered by insufficient administrative funding for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, causing many promising startups to fail. A simple, no-cost solution involves raising the SBIR administrative cap, which would empower program managers to provide crucial support, attract private capital, and accelerate technology transition to military use.
- Manager Imbalance: While SBIR can grow "unicorns" like Anduril and Shield AI, program managers (PMs) are expected to act as venture capitalists but receive "community bank" resources. Their administrative cap is only 3% of the program budget, drastically lower than 15% for traditional acquisition management.
- Transformative Impact: Raising the cap would transform SBIR PMs into true portfolio managers, leveling the playing field for startups against major defense contractors. This promises higher Phase III transition rates and significant private investment, attracting roughly six dollars in private capital for every dollar of targeted SBIR support.
Defense & Strategy
Photo by Ukrinform/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Critical Weapons Development Lessons From Ukraine Are Not Being Learned By The West
Howard Altman, The War Zone
Ukraine's desperate fight against Russia has spurred an extraordinary, decentralized, and rapid defense technology innovation, especially in drones, offering critical lessons in agile development and procurement. According to defense investor Deborah Fairlamb, the West is currently failing to adopt these lessons, leaving it vulnerable to rapidly adapting adversaries.
- Rapid Iteration: Ukraine's defense technology development, particularly for drones, features an "extraordinary" speed of iteration for both hardware and software, with constant build-test-refine cycles done side-by-side with military units.
- Decentralized Production: The Ukrainian ecosystem employs a decentralized production system, allowing for mass manufacturing of low-cost drones by small workshops, often using 3D printing, enabling millions to be deployed. Dual-use tech also provides startups with revenue to survive the "valley of death" of military procurement.
- Agile Procurement: Ukraine completely revamped its Ministry of Defense (MoD) procurement cycle, reducing it to 3-4 months for battle-tested products. Additionally, individual units have been empowered with their own budgets to directly purchase from approved vendors, radically speeding up technology deployment to the front lines.
Industry
Chartered by the Navy's Military Sealift Command, heavy lift container ship Motor Vessel Schuyler Line Navigation Company Magothy is loaded at Naval Station Norfolk, Va., in support of Pacer Goose Sustainment 2021, an annual resupply mission to move a year’s worth of sustainment material to Thule Air Force Base in Greenland, 750 miles north of the Arctic Circle, June 29, 2020. (Navy photo by LaShawn Sykes.)
Breaking Barriers: Revitalizing National Security Supply Chains
Monique Attar , Jen Ayers , Nathan Mooney II, MITRE
The United States and its allies face unprecedented logistics and supply chain challenges that significantly threaten national security and military readiness against near-peer adversaries. This report from MITRE urges comprehensive action to overhaul and revitalize defense supply chains through integrated planning, digital demand forecasting, expanded strategic stockpiles, and deeper manufacturing partnerships with allies to restore operational readiness and ensure rapid response to future threats.
New rules on reporting foreign investment in defense contractors have some firms scrambling
Terry Gerton, Federal News Network
DOD has significantly tightened oversight on foreign investments in U.S. defense contractors through a newly revised SF-328 reporting form. This aims to properly vet companies performing critical national security functions and expands the scope of impacted firms, including many innovative tech companies involved in unclassified work, demanding greater disclosure and accurate documentation.
Congress & Government
Boeing
Congress Moves To Save Gutted F/A-XX 6th Generation Naval Fighter Program
Joseph Trevithick, The War Zone
Congress is working to restore funding for the Navy's F/A-XX next-generation fighter and the Air Force's E-7 Wedgetail radar plane, programs the Pentagon had sought to cut or scale back. These efforts highlight a significant disagreement between legislative and executive branches over crucial future combat capabilities and industrial base capacity.
Inside the congressional Foreign Arms Sales Task Force’s effort to spearhead reform
Brandi Vincent, Defense Scoop
A bipartisan Congressional task force is spearheading a major reform of the nation's foreign arms sales processes aiming to address pervasive bureaucratic hurdles and delivery delays that threaten U.S. competitiveness and allies' readiness. This initiative seeks to streamline procedures and incentivize domestic manufacturing to meet the surging global demand for American defense articles.
- Systemic Failures: The current U.S. foreign arms sales processes are plagued by bureaucratic and modernization issues. Allies often receive weapons that are obsolete by the time of delivery due to the rapidly changing battlefield, particularly with advancements in UAVs and autonomous weaponry.
- Growing Demand: Interest in buying U.S. weapons has grown substantially following conflicts in Ukraine (2022) and the Middle East (post-2023). U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) transfers alone surged by 45.7% to a record $117.9 billion in fiscal 2024.
Research
Photo by David Vives on Unsplash
Infiltration, interdiction, and other covert supply chain operations: A research agenda
ManMohan S. Sodhi, Samuel Roscoe, et al, International Journal of Operations & Production Management
Inspired by recent global incidents like the exploding pagers in Lebanon, this paper on covert supply chain operations highlights how existing supply chain literature has scarcely scrutinized these clandestine networks and the countermeasures used to disrupt them. The core contribution is a conceptual framework that categorizes operations and counter-operations as either overt or covert, illustrating how entities might infiltrate seemingly legitimate supply chains or employ interdiction strategies to disrupt them.
Call for Evidence - AUKUS
Rebecca Lucas, James Black, & Stuart Dee, RAND
RAND Europe's submission to the UK Parliament's Defence Committee underscores the continued strategic importance and growing urgency of the AUKUS trilateral security agreement. While acknowledging its prescience in navigating a shifting geopolitical landscape, the submission identifies significant financial, industrial, and policy challenges that must be addressed for the partnership, particularly its two pillars, to succeed and retain political and domestic support.
Revive: Getting Medical Supplies and Expertise Right in Distributed Maritime Operations
Seth Reini & Jonathan J. Haase, Joint Force Quarterly
This article introduces a crucial element to the U.S. Navy's contested logistics model, emphasizing the urgent need for agile medical support in future large-scale Indo-Pacific conflicts. It proposes using flexible supply vessels to deliver medical supplies and safely evacuate wounded personnel, highlighting that effective medical logistics are paramount for warfighter survival and morale.
More Effective and Efficient Modeling, Simulation, and Analysis Across the U.S. Space Force System Life Cycle
George Nacouzi, Emmi Yonekura, et al, RAND
This report highlights that the U.S. Space Force (USSF) urgently needs to enhance its use of modeling and simulation (M&S) across the space system life cycle to improve efficiency and modernize operations. By addressing gaps in workforce skills, collaboration, and M&S tools, the USSF can significantly boost its capabilities.
Events
Ground Vehicle Systems Engineering & Technology Symposium & Modernization Update (GVSETS)
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA), Michigan Chapter
12-14 August 2025
Novi, MI
MODSIM World 2025
National Training and Simulation Associations (NTSA)
18-20 August 2025
Norfolk, VA
Fed Supernova
Capital Factory
19-21 August 2025
Austin, TX
2025 Navy Summit
Potomac Officers Club
26 August 2025
McLean, VA
Intelligent Ships Symposium
American Society of Naval Engineers
26-28 August 2025
Philadelphia, PA
2025 Space Warfighter Forum: Peace Through Strength
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)
26-28 August 2025
Colorado Springs, CO
2025 Emerging Technologies for Defense
Emerging Technologies Institute
27-29 August 2025
Washington, DC
DefenseNews Conference: Deterring Threats from the Indo-Pacific
DefenseNews
Washington, DC or Virtual
3 September 2025
Creative Disruptors by the Lakes
Creative Defense Foundation
11-12 September 2025
Eagan, MN
2025 Undersea Warfare Fall Conference
National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)
15-17 September 2025
Groton, CT
Fleet Maintenance and Modernization Symposium (FMMS) 2025
American Society of Naval Engineers
23-25 September 2025
San Diego, CA
One more thing...
This souvenir postcard was produced to commemorate the Great White Fleet world tour of 1907-1909. The Great Naval Parade at San Francisco, 8 May 1908. (USNI Archives)
The Pride of the Navy: Fleet Week
Lieutenant Jack Tribolet, Naval History
Fleet Week was established to bridge the gap between US citizens and a service that typically operates far from the US. It has evolved into a multifaceted event that fosters civilian-military relations, promote community engagement, and aids naval recruiting.
- Historic Roots: Fleet Week emerged from victory celebrations after the 1899 Spanish-American War, which drew some two million spectators to New York, and from the visit of President Theodore Roosevelt's Great White Fleet, an armada of 42 warships, to San Francisco in 1908.
- Official Naming: The term "Fleet Week" was first used in 1935 during San Diego's California Pacific International Exposition, which featured a showcase 114 warships and over 400 warplanes intended to demonstrate the Navy's strength as a deterrent against rising global tensions.
- Public Engagement: During Fleet Week, the public can tour naval ships like aircraft carriers, destroyers, and submarines, gaining a realistic glimpse into sailors' daily lives and advanced technology. The event also features community activities such as concerts, parades, cook-offs, and sports competitions, alongside spectacular air shows.
- Disaster Readiness: Fleet Week increasingly offers practical opportunities for disaster response training and preparedness, facilitating joint exercises between naval personnel and local emergency response teams.
- Enduring Legacy: The Continental Navy itself was founded on October 13, 1775, nearly a full year before the U.S. Republic. As the U.S. Navy prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday in October 2025, Fleet Week will highlight the enduring connection between the Navy and the American public.
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