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

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth hosts a drone demonstration at the Pentagon, July 10, 2025. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Lance Cpl. Isaac Llanez Delgado)

Hegseth directive on ‘unleashing U.S. military drone dominance’ includes deadlines for major overhauls

Tech

Defense Threat Reduction Agency test personnel prepare to carefully offload the 30,000-pound massive ordnance penetrator, or MOP, for a static test at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. (DTRA photo)

Battle damage assessment from Iran strikes could lead to improvements in MOP bomb technology

Weapons

U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Daniel Torres and Staff Sgt. Maxwell Carlson place an Unmanned Underwater Vehicle on level ground during a UUV Recovery rehearsal for exercise Kaiju Rain on Kin Blue, Okinawa, Japan, April 17, 2025. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Kira Ducato)

U.S. military is on the hunt for killer UUVs

Weapons

A U.S. Marine Corps XQ-58A Valkyrie, highly autonomous, tactical unmanned air vehicle, soars overhead during its second test flight at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Feb. 23, 2023. The XQ-58A Valkyrie test flight and the data collected inform future requirements for the Marine Corps. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. John McRell)

Marine Corps requests more funding for collaborative combat aircraft development

Weapons

An aerial view of the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., May 15, 2023. (DoD photo by U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. John Wright)

Trump taps former AWS exec for senior role in Pentagon’s research and engineering directorate

Tech

(June 26, 2025) An E/A-18G Growler, attached to Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 139, launches from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) during flight operations in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. (Official U.S. Navy photo)

US military gets new combatant commanders for Centcom, Eucom

Tech

U.S. Soldiers from various units across Europe launch a Switchblade 600 during Loitering Munitions Training at the Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, Nov. 5, 2024. This was the first time U.S. Soldiers launched Switchblade 600s, a loitering munition system, in Europe. (U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Cody Nelson)

Army’s fiscal 2026 budget proposal aims to equip infantry brigades with more kamikaze drones

Weapons

A rendering of what someone using the new Project Overmatch capability known as Maven would look like. A unified tactical display that provides insight on vessels across the world, the Maven program overlays real-time ship readiness and sustainment data right at the user’s fingertips by utilizing artificial intelligence. It was created by Project Overmatch and Palantir in collaboration. (Image found on DVIDS as stock photo courtesy of Palantir)

Navy CTO unveils list of priority areas for tech investment

Emerging Tech

(Aug. 3, 2022) Vice Adm. Brad Cooper signs a guest book at the Egyptian Navy headquarters in Alexandria, Egypt. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Terry Vongsouthi)

Centcom leader highlights need for more tech that can target underground sites

Weapons