Pentagon Streamlines Critical Emerging Technology Priorities to Six Key Areas
November 17, 2025 — The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has announced a significant reduction in its list of critical emerging technology focus areas, trimming the number from 14 to just six categories. The streamlined list aims to sharpen the Pentagon’s efforts on technologies that promise the greatest impact and most rapid battlefield advantage, according to Emil Michael, Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering.
In a Monday statement shared via LinkedIn, Michael explained that the previous broad list diluted focus and hindered the ability to prioritize urgent warfighter needs. "Fourteen priorities, in truth, means no priorities at all," he said.
The New Six Critical Technology Areas
The revised list now centers on:
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Applied Artificial Intelligence (AAI): Encompassing trusted AI, autonomy, human-machine interfaces, and advanced computing/software, this category seeks to transform decision-making processes and enhance operational efficiency. The approach aligns closely with earlier AI initiatives, aiming to accelerate the integration of AI capabilities in defense systems.
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Biomanufacturing: This area focuses on leveraging living systems to increase supply chain resilience and eliminate vulnerabilities, potentially revolutionizing how logistical support is maintained in conflict zones.
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Contested Logistics Technologies (LOG): Designed to improve the DoD’s ability to operate and resupply in austere and hostile environments, this priority addresses challenges posed by denied or degraded logistics networks.
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Quantum and Battlefield Information Dominance (Q-BID): Integrating quantum technologies with advanced sensing and communications, this focus seeks to ensure warfighters retain freedom of movement and operational superiority, even in contested or compromised environments.
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Scaled Directed Energy (SCADE): Concentrating on directed energy weapon systems, this area aims to accelerate research and development for novel advanced weapons that offer new tactical options.
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Scaled Hypersonics (SHY): Focused on hypersonic weapons technology, efforts here strive to bring faster, more agile strike capabilities into the warfighter’s toolbox.
Strategic Implications and Focus
Michael emphasized that these areas were chosen because they represent “priorities that will deliver the greatest impact, the fastest results and the most decisive advantage on the battlefield.” He underscored a shift towards “actionable, tangible solutions” designed to deliver benefits in the near term rather than decades into the future.
While some topics from the previous 14-category list, such as future generation wireless technology, integrated network systems, and space technology, were not singled out as standalone priorities, they may be integrated into the broader categories such as Q-BID. This approach reflects a consolidation of overlapping and related technologies to streamline investment and development efforts.
Michael had previously indicated his intent to revise the list to better reflect rapid development cycles and immediate warfighter needs, noting that an overly expansive roster of priorities had hampered the Pentagon’s ability to swiftly field new capabilities.
Context and Future Outlook
The Department of Defense’s critical technology area list serves as a guide for R&D investment and strategic focus on emerging capabilities essential for maintaining military dominance. The trimming of this list signals a recalibration aimed at efficiency and impact amidst evolving global threats.
Research groups like those at the Air Force Research Laboratory continue to pioneer advancements, from the quantum bit (qubit) level through integration of diverse quantum systems, supporting these strategic priorities.
With this refined focus, the Pentagon seeks to ensure that U.S. warfighters “never face a fair fight,” maintaining a decisive technological edge in 21st-century combat environments.
About the Author: Mikayla Easley covers Pentagon acquisition and emerging technology. She holds a BA in Russian from the University of Michigan and an MA in journalism from the University of Missouri.
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