Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC)

The Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) program, as outlined in Program Element (PE) 0605801KA, serves as a cornerstone for the Department of Defense's (DoD) research, development, and innovation ecosystem. DTIC's primary goal is to capture, curate, and disseminate scientific and technical information (STI) generated by DoD research activities. This enables researchers and decision makers to leverage prior knowledge, avoid duplication, and accelerate technical maturity. By maintaining a comprehensive knowledge base of nearly 5 million records, DTIC supports the rapid advancement of new capabilities for warfighters and strengthens the U.S. position in near-peer competition.

DTIC's objectives for FY 2026 emphasize continued modernization and innovation, particularly through the integration of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and cloud computing. The program is focused on enhancing search and discovery tools, automating document processing, and improving data quality and categorization. These efforts are designed to increase the relevance and accessibility of research results, facilitate collaboration across DoD's research and engineering (R&E) enterprise, and provide predictive analytics to identify promising areas for investment and development.

DTIC is working closely with partners such as the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), the R&E Joint Reserve Directorate (JRD), and the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Officer (CDAO) to ensure secure and effective adoption of emerging technologies.

The Content activity within DTIC focuses on acquiring, curating, and enriching approximately 80,000 new records annually. This includes tagging records for alignment with Critical Technology Areas (CTA) and Communities of Interest (CoI), refining electronic document submission pipelines, and expanding open science initiatives. DTIC is also undertaking large-scale digitization efforts, including converting hundreds of thousands of microfilm documents, and implementing AI/ML-enabled automation to streamline processes such as scanning for Personally Identifiable Information (PII), generating summaries, and extracting metadata.

The Discovery activity aims to provide secure, efficient, and user-friendly search and analysis interfaces within a government cloud environment. DTIC is consolidating tools to simplify user experience, federating with external collections to add context, and leveraging SaaS analytics to enhance data visualization and trend analysis. The program is prioritizing resources for information analysis and pre-processing, enabling users to quickly access key insights and situational awareness of ongoing research activities across DoD.

The Information Analysis Centers (IACs) line item supports three specialized centers that provide technical analysis, research, and data support to a wide range of DoD customers, including Combatant Commands, Defense Agencies, and Military Services. The IACs are managed by DTIC's Program Management Office (PMO), which oversees the IAC Multiple Award Contract (MAC). These centers leverage subject matter expertise from industry, academia, and government to address complex challenges in areas such as cyber security, defense systems, and homeland defense.

The IACs perform customer-funded research and analysis, supporting hundreds of organizations and contributing thousands of research artifacts to the DTIC repository annually. For FY 2026, the IACs will continue to provide research and analysis services through the IAC MAC, increase efficiency in awarding R&D task orders, and expand usage among new users and technology areas. The program is also implementing AI/ML to improve process efficiencies in contract management, deliverable tracking, and performance analysis, with the goal of reducing overall costs and contractor support requirements. These efforts align with DoD's overarching research goals and support the rapid delivery of technology to the warfighter.

DTIC's mission operations also include supporting collaboration among researchers, warfighters, industry, academia, federal agencies, and allied partners; protecting information; developing and managing DoD's Science Technology Information Policy (STIP); and maintaining compliance with laws and regulations. The program's ongoing modernization activities are informed by Congressional and R&E community priorities, focusing on readiness, availability, and the adoption of transformational technologies to enhance collection, distribution, analysis, and research data sets. Through these initiatives, DTIC aims to provide decisionmakers and warfighters with timely insight into the S&T research landscape, enabling faster discovery and implementation of innovative solutions.