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_

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From left to right: Jon Harper, editor-in-chief of DefenseScoop; Brent Ingraham, assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology; Robert Mantz, senior official for the contested logistics technologies Critical Technology Area at the Defense Department; and Shannon Judd, global director for global defense partners and mission system integrators at AWS, participate in a panel at GDIT’s Emerge: Battlespace of the Future conference, June 2, 2026. (Photo by Isaac Latimer with EPNAC)

Pentagon looks to AI, other tech to help tackle contested logistics challenges

AI

ATLANTIC OCEAN (Dec, 6, 2024) – A Mission Specialist Defender Mark IV remotely-operated vehicle (ROV) transits the Atlantic Ocean submerged during the Australia, United Kingdom and U.S. (AUKUS) Pillar II Subsea and Seabed Warfare Event Two/Integrated Battle Problem 25.1. During the event, U.S. Navy, Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy personnel launched, tested and provided demonstrations for several unmanned underwater vehicles, to include the Mission Specialist Defender Mark IV remotely-operated vehicle (ROV) and the IVER4 900 autonomous-underwater vehicle. The AUKUS Advanced Capabilities line of effort – known as Pillar II – is a seminal strategic partnership and technology accelerator for the three AUKUS nations to harness and uplift innovation enterprises and industrial bases, remove barriers to cooperation, and deliver advanced capabilities for AUKUS warfighters. (Image produced utilizing a screen capture from video.) (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Justin E. Yarborough)

AUKUS allies launch new undersea drone project

Emerging Tech

A Soldier with 2nd Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group, 1st Special Forces Regiment, Mississippi Army National Guard, checks communications while conducting boat infiltration training during Southern Strike 2024 (SSTK), at NASA Stennis Space Center, Mississippi, April 17, 2024. SSTK is a large-scale, joint multinational combat exercise that allows soldiers across the United States and our international partners access to exceptional training. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Benjamin Tomlinson)

SOCOM seeks autonomous warfare proving ground

Tech

Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Daryl Caudle testifies in a budget hearing for the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense to discuss the Navy’s fiscal year 2027 budget and strategic posture in Washington, D.C., May 12, 2026. (U.S. Navy photo by Senior Chief Mass Communication Specialist Elliott Fabrizio).

Navy comes ‘full circle’ on nuclear power for next-generation battleship

Emerging Tech

U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the 2nd Platoon, 2d Cavalry Regiment, operate a new drone detection and jamming system during a validation exercise at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, April 15, 2026. The validation exercise assessed the system’s ability to identify, jam, and counter unmanned aerial systems. Results will help determine the equipment’s readiness for integration during exercise Fly Trap 5.0 in May 2026. (U.S. Army Reserve photo by Sgt. Joseph Honce)

Army flexes additive manufacturing capabilities during Flytrap counter-drone exercise

Tech

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Seth Clayton, a finance technician with Headquarters and Service Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, works at his computer at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Jan. 21, 2026. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Brady V. Hathaway)

Marine Corps mandates ‘Basic AI’ training course for all troops

AI

SCO Director Jay Dryer. (DOD photo)

Director of Pentagon’s secretive Strategic Capabilities Office lays out focus areas

Emerging Tech

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)

DOD planning to address compute ‘bottleneck’ that could hinder AI proliferation

AI

(Getty Images)

Amid concerns sparked by Mythos, the Pentagon’s cyber policy chief sees ‘huge opportunity’ with frontier AI models

AI