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

US President Donald Trump leaves after announcing the US Navy’s new Golden Fleet initiative, unveiling a new class of warships, at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on December 22, 2025. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP via Getty Images)

Trump’s 2027 budget request includes more than $65B for Navy shipbuilding

Tech

A U.S. Navy Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft (GARC) maneuvers in the Atlantic Ocean during UNITAS 2025, the 66th iteration of the world’s longest-running multinational maritime exercise. (Official U.S. Navy photo)

Navy looking to emulate signals on maritime drones to train systems for Pacific Fleet

Tech

(Getty Images)

Pentagon preparing for drone swarm ‘crucible’

AI

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Robert Baldwin and Staff Sgt. Jacob Olsen, combat engineers with the 744th Engineer Company assigned to Joint Task Force-Southern Border, drive a M1301 Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) during driver’s training near Del Rio, Texas, Jan. 14, 2026. The ISV can rapidly move up to nine soldiers and their equipment across rough terrain, enhancing mobility over different landscapes. (Dept. of War Courtesy Photo)

Army looking to add mobile C2 capabilities onto Infantry Squad Vehicles

Tech

Concept interior of a data center (Getty Images)

Army picks companies to build commercial data centers at Fort Bliss, Dugway Proving Ground

IT

A soldier assigned to 1st Cavalry Division uses a drone on the Hunter/Killer lane during the U.S. Army Best Drone Warfighter Competition on Feb. 18, 2026, in Huntsville, Alabama. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Michelle Lessard-Terry)

Army launches drone marketplace developed in partnership with Amazon

Weapons

Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll and Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Randy A. George join “Fox and Friends” to discuss the new Department of Defense memorandum on Army transformation and acquisition reform, at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., May 1, 2025. (DoD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Alexander Kubitza)

Army buys Red Dragon long-range attack drones

Weapons

A quadcopter drone hovers in an indoor training area on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Jan 28, 2026. Many small, commercially availabe drones come equipped with high-definition camers and can be programmed to automatically transmit data to adversaries. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Theodore Gowdy)

DOD threatens ‘severe consequences’ for drone operators flying in restricted airspace

Tech

Terry Kalka, director of the director of the DOD-Defense Industrial Base Collaborative Information Sharing Environment, speaks at the Elastic Public Sector Summit presented by FedScoop, March 19, 2026. (Photo courtesy of Scoop News Group)

DOD Cyber Crime Center official warns industry about AI-boosted cyberattack ‘kill chain’

AI