Overview
- A draft Navy plan reviewed by USNI News creates a Robotics and Autonomous Systems Portfolio Acquisition Executive to consolidate development and purchasing for up to 60 programs under a single leader reporting to the service’s acquisition chief.
- The new Navy portfolio’s initial priorities include running the Modular Attack Surface Craft competition and taking acquisition responsibility for the Defense Autonomous Warfare Group, efforts backed by $3.6 billion in recent supplemental funding.
- The PAE RAS portfolio is scoped at roughly $19 billion over five years and excludes the MQ-4 Triton, MQ-9A Reaper and MQ-25A programs, according to the draft plan and officials.
- The Army has identified six Portfolio Acquisition Executives aligned to capability areas, embedded senior contracting officials for faster awards, and set initial operating capability for January 2026 with dual reporting to T2COM and ASA(ALT).
- Pentagon-wide reforms emphasize modular open systems architectures and a narrowed list of six critical technology areas, while a now-effective CMMC final rule begins a phased rollout that industry leaders say could strain assessment capacity and controlled unclassified information flows.