Jon Harper

Jon Harper is Editor-in-Chief of DefenseScoop. He leads an award-winning team of journalists in providing breaking news and in-depth analysis on military technology and the ways in which it is shaping how the Defense Department operates and modernizes. You can also follow him on X: @Jon_Harper_

Articles by Author

Hanwha K9MH (Image courtesy of Hanwha Defense USA)

Hanwha captures Army contract for mobile tactical cannons and expects to deliver first prototype this fall

Weapons

U.S. Army Green Berets assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), survey the terrain during military mountaineering training as part of Exercise Diesel 26 at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, Feb. 24, 2026. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Rhianna Ballenger)

SOCOM planning to test new mission autonomy software for unmanned systems program

AI

During the first Continuous Operational Learning and Test (COLT) mission at Camp Beauregard, LA, a Soldier from Sioux Company (Multi-Purpose Company), 3rd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, leveraged the Soldier Borne Mission Command Surrogate (SBMC-S) system to communicate with fellow Soldiers. (U.S. Army photo by Zach Montanaro, PEO Soldier Public Affairs)

Anduril redesigns tech for Army’s Soldier Borne Mission Command program

Tech

(Getty Images)

DIA’s artificial intelligence chief envisions ‘agent-to-agents’ interactions that support military operations

AI

The DF-17 hypersonic medium range conventional ballistic missile model was exhibited at the Hangzhou Innovation Research Institute of Beihang University in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China on May 10, 2026. (Photo credit: CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

MDA pursuing mobile radar to detect and track hypersonic missiles, other advanced threats

Tech

While developing Odyssey, NPS computer science student U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Kyle Hicks turned to AI to write most of the code powering the application. Hicks’ Odyssey exemplifies the broader applications of AI in the U.S. Department of War, supporting the day-to-day work of service members across the force, from writing awards to managing projects to analyzing data. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communications Specialist Seaman Katherine Eldridge)

Marine Corps tees up hackathon featuring GenAI.mil

AI

A plane flies over The Pentagon (front) with the US Capitol (C, background) in Washington, DC, on January 11, 2024. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP via Getty Images)

Navy considers relocating robotic and autonomous systems staff amid broader portfolio restructuring

Tech

U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY (Jan. 26, 2026) A mine-resistant ambush protected (MRAP) vehicle equipped with a mobile-low, slow, small-unmanned aircraft integrated defeat system (M-LIDS) launcher fires a counter-unmanned aerial system at a fixed wing target during a training exercise in Bahrain. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Iain Page)

Army seeks next-gen missile that could shoot down small drones for less than $150K a pop

Tech

Department of War Chief Information Officer Kirsten Davies delivers remarks at a CIO town hall at the Mark Center, Alexandria Va., Feb. 10, 2026. (DoD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Alexander Kubitza)

Pentagon CIO issues department-wide directive on IT category management

IT