Army Agile Innovation and Development-Applied Research

Army Agile Innovation and Development-Applied Research is a Program Element (PE 0602002A) within the Army's Research, Development, Test & Evaluation (RDT&E) budget, specifically under Budget Activity 2: Applied Research. The overarching goal of this program is to assess, seed, and mature innovative research solutions that support future force modernization and technological superiority. The program leverages partnerships with academia, industry, and internal Army research organizations to foster breakthrough technologies, including hardware, software, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning. The program is managed through the Army's Innovation Oversight Board, which prioritizes projects based on their potential to fill capability gaps and transition into Army Science and Technology (S&T) projects for rapid delivery to soldiers.

DC4: Army Applied Innovation is a key project within this program element, focusing on the Army Innovation Plan's applied research component. Its objective is to accelerate the development and integration of multi-disciplinary innovative technologies that address challenging Warfighter problems. The project supports ideation and system-level integration of emerging technologies, emphasizing transformational solutions for the Army of 2040. The Army Innovation Oversight Board approves projects based on strategic priorities, ensuring alignment with the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering's focus areas and the Army Modernization Strategy. Execution is coordinated by the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology, Army S&T Executing Commands, and the Army Research Laboratory (ARL).

Within DC4, the University Innovation Hub initiative aims to leverage the academic innovation ecosystem to capture and mature disruptive technologies. This effort engages academic institutions, university spin-out programs, international partners, Historically Black Colleges and Universities/Minority Institutions (HBCU/MI), designated Army research centers, and University Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs). The goal is to transition university-led research with breakthrough or dual-use potential into Army S&T programs or acquisition pipelines, focusing on areas such as weapon systems, materials, human-machine interfaces, vehicles, communications, logistics, and soldier lethality. Funding for this initiative was increased in FY 2026 to further mature research with high operational relevance and support Army Transformation.

DC6: Science & Analysis for Autonomous Systems & Counter-Autonomy is another major project under this program element. Its mission is to investigate and develop capabilities for assessing autonomous systems-of-systems and their impact on future threat environments, particularly within the Multi-Domain Operations (MDO) concept. The project supports cross-cutting S&T, analysis, and modeling and simulation (M&S) efforts, focusing on the development, validation, and application of analytical tools and methodologies to evaluate technology readiness, system vulnerabilities, and mission effectiveness. Work is conducted by the Army Research Laboratory (ARL) and the Data and Analysis Center (DAC).

A significant component of DC6 is the Threat and Operations Based Intelligent Autonomy Science (TOBIAS) effort. TOBIAS develops and implements digital models to assess the vulnerability and lethality of U.S. and adversary autonomous systems, including their software-based behavioral capabilities and human interfacing. FY 2026 objectives include investigating digital models of unmanned ground and aerial vehicles, designing representations of teams of unmanned systems for combat simulations, and simulating their vulnerability and lethality characteristics across ballistic, electronic warfare, and cyber threat vectors. The research aims to validate resiliency and performance metrics, and to contrast advanced science capabilities against baseline cases in operational scenarios.

Another focus within DC6 is the development of Vulnerability and Lethality Analysis Tools for Early Science and Technology. This task investigates, develops, and validates analytical techniques to extend experimental results, ensure early consideration of vulnerabilities, and improve technology readiness assessments. FY 2026 plans include integrating novel methodologies into constructive combat simulations, validating initial analyses of autonomous systems for performance characteristics in kinetic, electromagnetic, and cyber domains, and exploring additional autonomous algorithms for feasibility in simulation environments. These efforts are intended to reduce developmental risk and provide robust validation in realistic mission contexts.