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Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering

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Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering

News & Events

Senior Officials Announced for the War Department’s Six Critical Technology Areas

OUSW(R&E) has appointed six accountable senior officials to oversee the tangible sprints within the War Department’s six critical technology areas.

SecWar-Hegseth-announced-DoW-AI-Acceleration-Strategy

Release of the War Department's AI Acceleration Strategy

This strategy is built on three pillars: warfighting, intelligence, and enterprise operations. It will be executed through seven key "Pace-Setting Projects" designed to rapidly advance capabilities.

SecWar-Hegseth-and-USDRE-Emil-Michael-visit-DARPA

DoW's Innovation Ecosystem

Secretary Pete Hegseth announced an overhaul of the War Department’s innovation ecosystem, which will now be led by Emil Michael, the Under Secretary of Research and Engineering and the Department’s CTO.

R&E Strengthens Measures to Protect DoW Funded Research

R&E announces the publication of the Fundamental Research Security Initiatives and Implementation memorandum. This memorandum establishes new actions to protect DoW funded research from malign foreign influence, intellectual property theft, and other forms of exploitation that threaten the security and economic interests of the United States.

GENAI.MIL

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced the launch of GenAI.mil, the War Department's new AI platform. This initiative is designed to create an “AI-first” enterprise by embedding generative AI into daily operations for all 3 million DoW personnel.

Hon Emil Michael

New CTA Announcement

Under Secretary of War for Research & Engineering Emil Michael officially released 6 new Critical Technology Areas (CTAs) to guide Department-wide technology priorities: Applied Artificial Intelligence (AAI), Biomanufacturing (BIO), Contested Logistics Technology (LOG), Quantum and Battlefield Information Dominance (Q-BID), Scaled Directed Energy (SCADE), and Scaled Hypersonics (SHY).

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and USD(R&E) Emil Michael toured our "drone petting zoo" in the Pentagon courtyard today to see American-made prototypes that have been rapidly developed in 12-24 months. Mr. Alex Lovett of R&E's Mission Capabilities Office showcased low-cost, high-performance UAS platforms, including the XQ-58 Valkyrie, LUCAS, and Vanilla, highlighting their unique launch methods, payload versatility, and long-endurance capabilities.

Unleashing U.S. Drone Dominance

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and USW(R&E) Emil Michael toured our "drone petting zoo" in the Pentagon courtyard on July 16th, 2025, to see American-made prototypes that have been rapidly developed in 12-24 months.

APFIT Program Breaks Records

The Littoral Explosive Ordinance and Neutralization (LEON) Amphibious Unmanned Ground Vehicle, an FY25 APFIT project, exits the water after clearing surf-zone mines in an exercise.

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Hon. Emil Michael met with new Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Director Stephen Winchell yesterday to discuss the exciting innovation breakthroughs of the future.

DARPA Connection

The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, Hon. Emil Michael, met with new Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Director Stephen Winchell on June 10th, 2025 to discuss the exciting innovation breakthroughs of the future.

Download PNT E-Week Poster

National Engineers Week: February 22-28, 2026

2026 Theme: Transform Your Future

Pentagon Engineers Week Table

Date:  Tuesday, February 24, 2026

Time:  1100 - 1300

Location:  Pentagon Second Floor, Apex 9/10

Each year, DiscoverE promotes a national Engineers Week to celebrate engineering as a profession and to encourage young people to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

The DoW Washington Headquarters Services (WHS), Facilities Services Directorate and the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering take this opportunity to recognize the importance of engineering to the Department’s mission. Engineers contribute countless innovations to improve technical systems and ensure the development of superior capability for U.S. warfighters.

For more information, see the WHS Engineers Week Website or send an email to WHS or Systems Engineering and Architecture (SE&A):

WHS WHS.EngineersWeek@mail.mil

SE&A osd-sea@mail.mil

For more information on National Engineers Week, see DiscoverE

Engineers Week Poster

Updates from Across the R&E Enterprise

DOD Launches Centers of Excellence at Historically Black Colleges and Universities

October 22, 2021

October 22, 2021 The Department of Defense (DoD), through the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD(R&E)), is pleased to announce awards totaling $15 million for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to establish Centers of Excellence (COEs) in Biotechnology and Materials Science. A merit competition conducted by the OUSD(R&E)’s…

FY 2022 SMART Scholar SEED Grant Program Awardees

October 21, 2021

October 21, 2021 The Department of Defense (DoD) Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) program recently announced awards to 21 SMART PhD scholars as part of its competitive SMART Scholar SEED Grant program for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022. The SMART Scholar SEED Grant Program awards research grants worth up to $100,000 per year for…

Ms. Heidi Shyu Delivers Keynote at Women in Technology Event

October 20, 2021

October 20, 2021 On Friday, October 15, 2021, the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD(R&E)), Heidi Shyu, delivered keynote remarks at the Laboratory for Physical Sciences 3rd Bi-Annual Women in Technology: Building Tomorrow Together. Founded in 1956 in partnership with the University of Maryland, LPS has evolved into a model of basic…

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The Pentagon

Office of the Under Secretary of War,
Research and Engineering (OUSW(R&E))
3030 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-3030