Mikayla Easley

Mikayla Easley reports on the Pentagon’s acquisition and use of emerging technologies. Prior to joining DefenseScoop, she covered national security and the defense industry for National Defense Magazine. She received a BA in Russian language and literature from the University of Michigan and a MA in journalism from the University of Missouri. You can follow her on Twitter @MikaylaEasley

Articles by Author

U.S. Air Force Airmen assigned to the 62nd Aircraft Maintenance Unit and the 310th Fighter Squadron participate in the annual weapons load competition, Feb. 7, 2025, at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona. The load competition featured the loading of an AIM-120 AMRAAM, an AIM-9X Sidewinder missile, and a GBU-12 with a time standard of 20 minutes. Exercises like the weapons load competition advance training by producing command focused Airmen able to meet warfighting requirements. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Katelynn Jackson)

Air Force puts out call to industry for new counter-air missiles

Weapons

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

Pentagon begins enforcing CMMC compliance, but readiness gaps remain

IT

Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink, left, swears in Gen. Ken Wilsbach as the new Chief of Staff of the Air Force at the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia, Nov. 3, 2025. Mrs. Cindy Wilsbach joined her husband during the ceremony. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Stuart Bright)

Gen. Wilsbach sworn in as Air Force chief, pledges to advance modernization and readiness

Emerging Tech

Satellite rendering (Millennium Space Systems)

Report: Space Force must accelerate work to field capabilities for dynamic space ops

Space

A YFQ-44 Collaborative Combat Aircraft takes off during flight testing at a California test location. (Courtesy photo)

Anduril conducts first flight test of Air Force CCA drone prototype

Emerging Tech

U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Richard Correll testifies during his confirmation hearing to be commander of the United States Strategic Command before the Senate Armed Services Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on October 30, 2025 in Washington, DC. U.S. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

US Strategic Command nominee acknowledges shortfalls in electronic warfare operations, training

Tech

The application Google Gemini can be seen on the display of an iPhone. (Photo by Silas Stein/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Lockheed Martin integrating Google’s generative AI tools into workflow ops

AI

The U.S. Capitol, pictured near the Pentagon building in Arlington, Virginia, on December 14, 2024. (Photo by Tom Brenner for The Washington Post via Getty Images) The U.S. Capitol, pictured near the Pentagon building in Arlington, Virginia, on December 14, 2024. (Photo by Tom Brenner for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Nominee for key Pentagon R&E post vows to accelerate prototyping, experimentation

Emerging Tech

Visualization of thruster nozzle flow predicted by the Northrop Grumman–Luminary Physics AI Model, powered by NVIDIA PhysicsNeMo (Credit: Luminary Cloud)

Northrop Grumman inks deal with tech startup for accelerated, AI-enabled spacecraft design

AI