The Department of War has selected 14 projects for fiscal year 2026 as part of the initial round of the Accelerate the Procurement and Fielding of Innovative Technologies, or APFIT, program.
Emil Michael will deliver a keynote speech at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Defense R&D Summit on Jan. 29. Join him and other top leaders to gain exclusive insights into cutting-edge technologies and explore strategies that will advance innovation and strengthen national security. Save your spot today!
DOW said Monday the announcement brings APFIT’s total awards to more than $1 billion to small businesses and nontraditional defense contractors across the U.S.
“Crossing the billion-dollar threshold underscores APFIT’s commitment to America’s small business innovators and we are proud to accelerate the delivery of these critical capabilities to our warfighters,” said Emil Michael, under secretary of war for research and engineering.
The program’s average FY 2026 award now exceeds $30 million per project, with its highest single award reaching $49.7 million, which is just under APFIT’s statutory cap of $50 million.
Table of Contents
What Defense Projects Received APFIT Funding in the Initial FY 2026 Round?
The selected projects for the initial APFIT round are:
- Augmented Maneuver Vehicle for Satellites, U.S. Space Force
- Autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicle for Ground Based Air Defense, U.S. Marine Corps
- Deployable, Attritable Optical Systems, Space Force
- Domestic High Performance UAS Batteries, U.S. Navy
- Gremlin Low-Cost Munition, Marine Corps
- High Frequency Intercept Direction Finding and Exploitation, U.S. Army
- Kraken 18 Communications Pod, Navy
- Miniaturized Gyroscope for Resilient Navigation, Marine Corps
- Mobile Smart Manufacturing for Airframe Spares, Air Force
- Real-Time Command and Control at the Tactical Edge, Army
- Small Uncrewed Maritime Vessels, Navy and Marine Corps
- Tactical High-Bandwidth, Low-Latency, high-capacity data network, Marine Corps
- Trolling Uncrewed Navigation Assistant Seeker, Marine Corps
- Whaleshark Autonomous Low-Profile Vessel, Marine Corps
What Is the APFIT Program?
Launched in FY 2022, the APFIT program provides procurement funding for nontraditional performers and small businesses with innovative projects that are ready to transition into operational use.
The OUSW R&E uses a competitive selection process based on warfighter impact, sustainment support and broader applicability. Funded projects span a wide range of capabilities, from undersea sensors to satellite manufacturing and launch.
In June, the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering, or OUSW R&E, announced that five companies will receive awards ranging from $30 million to $42 million under the APFIT program. The companies were among the 18 projects selected to receive FY 2025 APFIT funding.
To date, the AFIT program has awarded over $1.4 billion to over 75 companies.
Related Articles
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the National Institute of Standards and Technology have published an initial draft of an interagency report that aims to address cyberthreats targeting identity tokens and assertions. CISA said Monday that the draft report, titled “Protecting Tokens and Assertions from Forgery, Theft and Misuse,” is open for public comments through Jan. 30. The report adheres to the cybersecurity directive issued by the White House in June. This EO—focused on sustaining national cyber defenses—updates and amends previous guidelines found in Executive Orders 13694 and 14144. Understand the threats American systems are facing amid increasing global
The Department of War will add xAI for Government to GenAI.mil, its bespoke platform that brings generative artificial intelligence capabilities to all civilians, contractors and military personnel under DOW. The department said Monday that it entered into an agreement with xAI for the company’s suite of frontier‑grade capabilities, which are based on the Grok family of models. DOW expects initial deployment in early 2026. The Potomac Officers Club will host a panel on artificial intelligence at the 2026 Defense R&D Summit on Jan. 29. Leaders from across the Pentagon and industry are gathering at the event to discuss the key
The Department of Health and Human Services has released a proposed rule aimed at streamlining federal health IT certification requirements, strengthening patient protections against information blocking and laying new groundwork for artificial intelligence-enabled data exchange across the healthcare system. HHS said Monday that the Health Data, Technology, and Interoperability: ASTP/ONC Deregulatory Actions to Unleash Prosperity proposed rule, known as HTI-5, advances the administration’s deregulation and AI leadership agenda. The proposal was released through the assistant secretary for technology policy and Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. Federal healthcare agencies are navigating large-scale modernization efforts while balancing interoperability,