A poster at the Pentagon, Dec. 12, 2025, lets employees know that a new artificial intelligence tool is available to use at the War Department, and that employees are highly encouraged to use it. (Credit: C. Todd Lopez, DOW)
A U.S. Air Force pilot enters data in a C-130J Super Hercules aircraft in the Central Command area of responsibility, March 3, 2026. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Secretary of the Navy, the Honorable John C. Phelan, stands during the national anthem at the commissioning ceremony of the Navy’s newest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Harvey C. Barnum Jr. (DDG 124) in Norfolk, Virginia, April 11, 2026. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Oliver McCain Vieira)
NAVAL BASE SAN DIEGO (Feb. 5, 2024) The first four Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Crafts (GARCs) are delivered to Unmanned Surface Vessel Squadron 3 (USVRON 3). (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Kelby Sanders)
An FPV drone assembly during the Operator Drone Basic Course at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, Jan. 21, 2026. In the course’s foundational week, students with zero prior experience build drones from the frame up—including carbon fiber arms, flight controllers, ESCs, wiring, and hardware—learning troubleshooting and repair to enhance precision strike, reconnaissance, and counter-UAS capabilities while minimizing risk to operators on future battlefields. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jacob Bradford)
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (R) speaks alongside US CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper (L) during a press briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on April 16, 2026. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)
U.S. Army Maj. Steven McPherson, a joint doctrine team chief with the National Guard Bureau, looks at the interface of the Maven Smart System in Arlington, Virginia Feb. 20. McPherson was in a class to learn the MSS and its capability to process vast amounts of data from weather to troop locations. (U.S. Army Photo by Master Sgt. Whitney Hughes)
U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Michael Aguilar, members of Joint Interagency Task Force 401 and the Federal Aviation Administration, and key leaders from White Sands Missile Range, N.M., support a high-energy laser test using the AMP-HEL system March 7, 2026. (Courtesy Photo)
Department of War Chief Information Officer Kirsten Davies appears at a Senate Committee on Armed Services subcommittee hearing on cybersecurity on Capitol Hill on March 24, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Rendering of Northrop Grumman’s GAS-T design that will leverage an ESPAStar-D satellite platform to add fuel and extend the life of in-orbit assets. (Northrop Grumman image)
An Electronic Advanced Ground Launcher System (EAGLS) counter-UAS fires an Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) Hydra 70 rocket during an Exercise Sky Shield live-fire event in Kuwait, Dec. 4, 2025. (U.S. Army photo by Joseph Kumzak)
Stephen Feinberg, U.S. President Donald Trump’s nominee to be Deputy Secretary of Defense, testifies during his Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on February 25, 2025 in Washington, DC.(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)