Trump administration announces ‘War Force’ effort
The Pentagon and Office of Personnel Management announced a recruiting effort Tuesday that officials are calling “War Force.”
The initiative doesn’t seek to hire trigger-pullers but rather AI experts and other software engineers that could “embed down to the unit level across the department” to support operational needs and “ensure a more lethal United States military,” according to an OPM press release.
Per a job posting on the government-run USAJOBS website, personnel hired for the “forward deployed engineer” roles could make up to nearly $200,000 in annual salary if they come to work for the Pentagon for a two-year stint.
The department seeks experts in designing, building, integrating and maintaining capabilities like frontier AI, machine learning, automation and data systems.
“Through War Force, OPM will recruit top engineering talent from across the country and connect qualified candidates with high-impact technical roles at the Department of War,” officials wrote in the press release, using the Trump administration’s preferred name for the Department of Defense.
The new hiring effort is in line with the Trump administration’s broader Tech Force program, which is intended to bring more tech specialists into federal government service.
“War Force is a call to action for patriotic forward-deployed engineers who want to serve their country and the warfighter,” Pentagon CTO Emil Michael said in a statement. “Executing the key tenets of the War Department’s AI Acceleration Strategy and modernizing our enterprise demand the nation’s best talent to ensure American military technological dominance for generations to come.”
OPM will be looking to hire “hundreds” of software engineers for the Pentagon via the War Force effort, according to the press release.
The application deadline is July 17. To be eligible for the roles, applicants must be U.S. citizens and capable of obtaining and maintaining a Secret or Top Secret clearance.
