- DIU has launched Farseer, a quantum sensing and timing initiative that could pour up to $200 million into advanced ISR capabilities over the next year
- Farseer is organized around four areas: magnetometers, gravimeters, portable clocks and supporting components
- DIU wants commercial prototypes ready for testing within three to nine months and a path to transition in two to three years
The Department of War’s Defense Innovation Unit has launched Farseer, a multiphase quantum sensing and timing initiative expected to invest up to $200 million within the next year to accelerate advanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, or ISR, capabilities for the joint force.
The initiative supports President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14411, “Ushering In the Next Frontier of Quantum Innovation,” and is intended to move mature quantum technologies from commercial and laboratory settings into operational military demonstrations, DOW said Tuesday.
How Will Farseer Support Military ISR Missions?
Farseer is designed to address limitations in classical ISR sensors and precision timing systems, particularly the long-standing trade-off among sensitivity, size, weight and power.
The project will focus on quantum-enabled sensors and clocks that could support tactical intelligence systems, multidomain collection, electronic protection, precision targeting, and air and missile defense missions in contested environments.
Kyle Norman, DIU quantum sensing team lead, said the DOW must accelerate quantum sensing deployment and commercialization to maintain battlespace awareness, decision speed and operational dominance.
What Technologies Is DIU Seeking?
Farseer is organized around four primary lines of effort: magnetometers, gravimeters, portable clocks and component technologies that can improve quantum sensing and timing systems.
DIU is seeking commercial capabilities capable of reaching sensitivity and size, weight and power targets beyond current systems. Proposed technologies must have mature prototypes sufficient for initial testing at a U.S. government facility within three to nine months after award, and a clear path to transition within two to three years.
The solicitation also emphasizes open systems architecture, ruggedness for military environments and compatibility with government-owned or open ISR standards.
How Could Commercial Quantum Technologies Be Used?
The department plans to leverage dual-use commercial advancements from sectors such as mineral exploration, oil and gas surveying, medical imaging, and advanced manufacturing.
For magnetometers, DIU is interested in systems capable of detecting signals above 100 Hz. For gravimeters, the initiative seeks scalar absolute gravimeters and gravity gradiometers suitable for static, maritime and airborne contexts. Portable clock submissions may focus on manufacturing scale-up or integration into new and legacy platforms for positioning, navigation, timing, resilient communications and coherent sensor networks.
Component technology proposals may include chip-scale lasers, micro-optics, photonic integrated circuits, cryogenics, vapor cells and other technologies that can reduce size, weight and power or improve manufacturability.
How Does This Fit Into DOW’s Quantum Strategy?
The Farseer launch coincides with the DOW’s release of a post-quantum cryptography strategy intended to protect communications, data, and command and control systems from future quantum computing threats.
That strategy, announced by DOW Chief Information Officer Kirsten Davies, a 2026 Wash100 Award winner, calls for the department to transition high-impact systems to quantum-resistant cryptography by 2030 and complete broader migration across the force by 2031.
“Empowering the warfighter is the relentless objective that drives every program,” Davies said. “To deliver on Secretary Hegseth’s vision of the most lethal and dominant military force in the world, our networks must be impenetrable.”
