Adm. Daryl Caudle, the U.S. Navy’s chief of naval operations, outlined a new strategic vision for the service, emphasizing adaptability, industrial revitalization and a full-spectrum Hedge Strategy to address a more complex global security environment.
Register now for the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Navy Summit on Aug. 27 to join senior Navy, defense and industry leaders as they discuss emerging technologies and modernization priorities shaping the future of naval operations.
Table of Contents
What Challenge Is the Navy Facing?
Speaking Tuesday at the APEX Defense forum, Caudle said the Navy is operating in an era defined by great power competition, asymmetric threats and rapid technological change. He pointed to years of underinvestment in shipyards, munitions production and infrastructure as factors that have strained the U.S. industrial base, at a time when adversaries are advancing their capabilities at speed.
What Are the Navy Fighting Instructions?
In response, Caudle said he will soon release the U.S. Navy Fighting Instructions, a new strategic framework to guide future investments, force design, strategic priorities and policy decisions. The guidance will be built around three priorities—foundry, fleet and fight—and is intended to ensure the Navy can operate effectively across the full spectrum of conflict. Guided by these priorities, the Fighting Instructions aim to strengthen homeland defense, sustain global deterrence and safeguard national prosperity.
What Is the Hedge Strategy?
At the core of the Fighting Instructions is a Hedge Strategy that combines advanced, high-end platforms with scalable, cost-effective capabilities. Designed to operate within fiscal, industrial and operational limits, the approach acknowledges those constraints while maintaining a lethal, flexible and resilient fleet.
Rather than shaping the force around a single contingency, the Hedge Strategy seeks to preserve the Navy’s ability to respond across a range of conflict scenarios. It relies on modular force packages, including tailored forces and tailored offsets, that integrate manned, unmanned, autonomous and logistical systems to support operations across both high- and lower-probability scenarios.
What Comes Next?
Caudle said the strategy will be implemented through initiatives such as tailored force development, readiness reforms and updated deterrence concepts, all designed to give commanders adaptable options across theaters.
Related Articles
NASA has appointed Kevin Murphy, the agency’s chief data science officer, as acting chief artificial intelligence officer, or CAIO, and acting chief data officer, or CDO. NASA’s leadership moves signal how seriously the federal government is positioning itself around AI. As agencies strengthen AI and data leadership, industry and government leaders will gather to discuss what’s next for policy, innovation and mission delivery. Register now to join the conversation at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Artificial Intelligence Summit on March 18. Murphy announced his new roles in a LinkedIn post. His appointment comes after David Salvagnini announced plans to step
The Department of Commerce’s CHIPS Program Office and USA Rare Earth have signed a non-binding letter of intent to provide the company with up to $1.6 billion in funding to strengthen the domestic semiconductor ecosystem by expanding the production of rare earth elements and magnets. The National Institute of Standards and Technology said Monday the agreement includes up to $277 million in direct funding and a senior secured loan of up to $1.3 billion under the CHIPS and Science Act to advance rare earth mining, processing and magnet manufacturing capabilities in the U.S. How Will the Commerce CHIPS Program Support
NASA has brought online Athena, a new supercomputer designed to expand the agency’s high-end computing resources for mission-critical research across space exploration, aeronautics and scientific discovery. The space agency said Tuesday that the system, now available to users following a beta testing period, has more computing power than other NASA supercomputers. Athena also offers improvements in energy efficiency, lowering operational costs. What Is Athena Designed to Support? NASA said Athena will help scientists and engineers address complex challenges by enabling advanced simulations, large-scale data analysis and artificial intelligence model development. Supercomputing systems are used across the agency to support efforts