The Tactical Technology Office (TTO) of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is soliciting executive summaries, proposal abstracts, and proposals for applied research, advanced technology development, platform demonstrations, or systems studies that aim to transform the future of warfighting across four domains: Air, Ground, Maritime, and Space.
Current warfighting systems are largely based on Concepts of Operations involving large, expensive, legacy platforms. These platforms are costly and time-consuming to develop. Although they provide unmatched capability, the significant investment they represent means that they must stay in service for decades, much longer than the evolution of the threat environment. In a dynamic high-end competition, these platforms are difficult to update with new technologies or modify in light of responsive threats. Moreover, these high-value systems are increasingly targeted by adversaries, and require significant investment for self-protection at the expense of force application. In addition, exquisite systems designed for high-end adversaries may be unaffordable in sufficient number for defending the homeland and an expensive overmatch for stabilization efforts. TTO seeks to identify, develop, and demonstrate systems that break the warfighter’s dependence on these increasingly outdated or vulnerable platforms, through approaches such as disaggregation, increased refresh opportunities, life cycle cost savings, leveraging of commercial technology, and similar approaches that provide the above benefits while retaining or increasing operational utility across a broader spectrum of strategic needs. TTO also seeks to develop technologies to inflict doubt on our adversaries, to create strategic delays and create space and time for a U.S. response. In order to transform the battlespace, TTO seeks to reimagine the order of battle via a prism of disaggregation, diversification, dispersion, disruption and doubt.
TTO will seek innovative ways to develop, demonstrate, and employ breakthrough technologies to generate surprise and leap-ahead military capability while adhering to the DARPA Imperatives: defend the homeland against existential threats, deter and prevail against high end adversary, and effectively prosecute stabilization efforts. TTO currently has a strong portfolio supporting the deter and prevail against high end adversary imperative and will continue system demonstrations in this area. Specific emphasis will be placed on effectively prosecuting stabilization efforts. TTO will continue to work novel approaches and demonstrations supporting ground, air, space and maritime domains. To defend the homeland against existential threats, TTO will investigate novel ways to counter known and emerging threats. As such, TTO is explicitly not interested in approaches or technologies that offer incremental or evolutionary advancements beyond state-of-the-art. To see what DARPA/TTO is already investing in, please visit us online at https://www.darpa.mil/.
Closing Date and Time: 4 PM Eastern Time on 11 June 2021
1. Air Systems
2. Ground Systems
3. Maritime Systems
4. Space Systems
All responsible sources capable of satisfying the Government's needs may submit a proposal that shall be considered by DARPA, such as all United States Enterprises to include:
- Industrial/commercial concerns including small businesses
- Accredited degree granting colleges and universities
- Non-profit and not-for-profit organizations
Multiple awards are anticipated. The amount of resources made available under this BAA will depend on the quality of the proposals received and the availability of funds. Initial awards are anticipated to be for less than $1 million and less than 18 months duration, although options that follow the base effort may also be proposed.