Defense Sciences Office (DSO) Office-wide BAA
DARPA's Defense Sciences Office seeks proposals for groundbreaking science, devices, or systems to advance national security, excluding projects that offer only incremental improvements.
Funder: DARPA - Defense Sciences Office
Due Dates: June 2, 2026 (Full proposals, abstracts, and executive summaries; rolling submissions until deadline)
Funding Amounts: No explicit minimum/maximum; typical awards range up to $2M for accelerated option; multiple awards expected; duration and funding based on project scope.
Summary: Supports innovative basic or applied research enabling revolutionary advances in science, devices, or systems for national security applications.
Key Information: All responsible sources (US and non-US) may apply; FFRDCs/UARCs/National Labs are not eligible.
Description
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) seeks proposals for innovative research that could lead to revolutionary advances in science, devices, or systems relevant to national security. This office-wide Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) is open to a wide range of basic and applied research ideas, especially those not currently covered by ongoing DSO programs or other published solicitations. The BAA explicitly excludes research that would result only in incremental or evolutionary improvements to existing technologies.
Proposed research should be bold and transformative, addressing significant challenges in areas such as materials, manufacturing, sensing, computation, and complex systems. Proposals may address one or more of the following technical thrust areas:
- Materials, Manufacturing, and Structures
- Sensing, Measuring, and Affecting
- Math, Computation, and Processing
- Complex, Dynamic, and Intelligent Systems
Researchers are encouraged to review ongoing DSO programs and engage with DSO program managers to ensure their ideas are novel and align with current agency interests.
