About our work

Forward Defense explores the nexus of public-private partnerships critical to the success of US defense. Through our Commission on Software Defined Warfare and our Arsenals of Democracy event series, FD brings together the institutional bodies that create strategies and policies with the defense and technology companies that build advanced capabilities for defense and deterrence.

Commission on Software Defined Warfare

This Atlantic Council’s Commission on Software Defined Warfare contends that, in order to overcome adversarial challenges in a modern software-driven security environment, the US Department of Defense must modernize its archaic platform-centric approach to capability development. Following the success of the Council’s 2022-2023 Commission on Defense Innovation Adoption, this Atlantic Council Commission is considering how the US Defense Department and its allies ought to approach software-defined warfare. Co-chaired by 27th US Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper, Former Acting Deputy Secretary of Defense Christine Fox, and President of Purdue University Mung Chiang, and comprised of a distinguished group of Commissioners, the Commission will develop a framework to enhance US and allied forces through emergent digital capabilities.

Commission on Software-Defined Warfare

An Atlantic Council commission on improving DoD production and integration of state-of-the-art software solutions

Commission on Defense Innovation Adoption

The Atlantic Council’s landmark Commission on Defense Innovation Adoption contends that now is the time to reform the defense innovation ecosystem. Co-chaired by 27th US Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper and 23rd US Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James, and comprised of a distinguished group of Commissioners, the Commission developed recommendations to better enable the Department of Defense to rapidly absorb technological advancements from the leading edge of the innovative commercial sector.

Commission on Defense Innovation Adoption

An Atlantic Council commission on improving DoD engagement with new companies and innovators

Arsenals of Democracy

The Arsenals of Democracy, including the Captains of Industry Series, the Stewards of Industrial Policy Series, and the Corporate Strategy Forum is the Atlantic Council’s longstanding event series on the trends and issues confronting the US and allied defense-industrial base. The series aims to convene key policymakers, executives, and strategists to solve major challenges at the interface of geostrategic imperatives, public policies, and defense markets.

Latest analysis

Defense innovation, industry, & acquisition

Issue Brief Jun 11, 2024

Friend-sourcing military procurement: Technology acquisition as security cooperation

By James Hasik

Jim Hasik reviews the nine cases of US “friend-sourcing” of major military systems and finds they brought good quality, speed, and economy.
Afghanistan Defense Industry
Defense innovation, industry, & acquisition

Report Jan 16, 2024

Atlantic Council Commission on Defense Innovation Adoption: Final report

By Whitney M. McNamara, Peter Modigliani, Matthew MacGregor, and Eric Lofgren*

The DoD must accelerate defense innovation adoption from the leading edge of the private sector. This report has ten recommendations to do so and features eight vignettes that explore how these actions may play out in practice.
Artificial Intelligence Defense Policy
Defense innovation, industry, & acquisition

Report Oct 4, 2023

The sixth domain: The role of the private sector in warfare

By Franklin D. Kramer

The private sector is the “sixth domain” of modern warfare, argues Frank Kramer, and the government should act to protect it.
Artificial Intelligence Cybersecurity
Defense innovation, industry, & acquisition

Issue Brief Nov 3, 2022

Power projection: Accelerating the electrification of US military ground vehicles

By Reed Blakemore, Tate Nurkin

Reed Blakemore and Tate Nurkin highlight advantages and propose next steps of the electrification of US military ground vehicles in this Global Energy Center and Forward Defense issue brief.
Climate Change & Climate Action Defense Industry
Defense innovation, industry, & acquisition

Issue Brief Oct 7, 2021

Una squadra vincente: The US-Italian defense-industrial partnership

By Mauro Gilli and James Hasik

The United States needs to more closely integrate its own defense-industrial base with those of its allies, including Italy. This issue brief focuses on the US-Italian defense-industrial partnership to enable policymakers to better understand this relationship, leverage it more comprehensively to meet key strategic objectives, and secure the supply chains necessary to ensure US national security.
Defense Industry Defense Policy
Defense innovation, industry, & acquisition

Issue Brief Jul 28, 2021

The security of defense trade with allies: Enhancing contact, contracts, and control in supply chains

By James Hasik

The COVID-19 pandemic and a wave of “Buy American” policies have cast doubt on the ability of foreign suppliers to provide crucial defense goods and services to the US Department of Defense in times of crisis or conflict. Forward Defense Nonresident Senior Fellow James Hasik recommends the expansion of security of supply agreements (among other measures) to fully leverage the defense-industrial bases of US allies and partners and best support US security priorities.
Defense Industry Defense Policy
Defense innovation, industry, & acquisition

Report Nov 30, 2020

The Five Revolutions: Examining defense innovation in the Indo-Pacific region

By Tate Nurkin

The Indo-Pacific region has become a center of gravity for innovation in defense technologies and emerging military capabilities. This report explores major drivers of modernization and advances a new framework to capture defense technology and investment efforts in the region.
China Defense Industry
Defense innovation, industry, & acquisition

Report Apr 23, 2019

Leveraging the National Technology Industrial Base to address great-power competition

By William Greenwalt

The purpose of this report by William Greenwalt is to promote urgent deliberations over what a modern National Technology and Industrial Base should look like, and to encourage Congress and the administration to adopt measures that will enable access to defense-industrial resources that are more responsive to the needs of the National Defense Strategy.
Defense Industry Defense Technologies

Content

Report

Oct 9, 2025

The imperative for hypersonic strike weapons and counterhypersonic defenses

By Michael E. White

A new report based on dozens of discussions with defense policymakers and industry representatives takes stock of how the United States military should handle the challenge posed by missiles capable of flying more than five times the speed of sound.

Defense Industry Defense Technologies

New Atlanticist

Sep 19, 2025

Three things to note in the UK’s new Defence Industrial Strategy

By Deborah Cheverton

“Defence is an Engine for Growth,” according to an important new British military strategy published on September 8.

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Issue Brief

Aug 19, 2025

A vision for US hypersonic weapons

By Edward Brady and Michael E. White

Hypersonic weapons, if fielded in sufficient numbers to defeat critical targets necessary to degrade adversary capabilities, will enable effective use of traditional weapon systems and allow for future battlefield dominance. A layered defeat construct must be deployed to defend against ballistic and hypersonic missiles targeting US assets.

China Defense Industry

Strategic Insights Memo

Aug 14, 2025

A marketplace for mission-ready AI: Accelerating capability delivery to the Pentagon

By Jack Long, Bharat C. Patel, and Jags Kandasamy

The Department of Defense’s traditional AI procurement often delivers models that quickly become outdated. This memo proposes creating a performance-driven AI model marketplace—where vendors train models on a shared “data lake” and are paid only for real-world usage—ensuring faster delivery, continuous innovation, and mission-ready capabilities at scale.

Artificial Intelligence Defense Industry

New Atlanticist

Jul 25, 2025

SAIC CEO Toni Townes-Whitley on the ‘ecosystem of capabilities’ needed to win today’s wars

By Katherine Golden

The United States needs to “leverage all that this country creates in the war fight,” Townes-Whitley said at an Atlantic Council Front Page event.

Conflict Defense Industry
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Events

Register for upcoming events

Public Event Wed, October 29, 2025 • 4:00 pm ET

Supply chain resilience for aerospace and defense
Defense Industry Defense Policy Economy & Business Trade and tariffs

Watch past events

Public Event Thu, July 24, 2025 • 4:15 pm ET

SAIC CEO Toni Townes-Whitley on mission integration in the defense ecosystem

AN #ACFRONTPAGE EVENT—SAIC CEO Toni Townes-Whitley discusses the role of mission integrators in today’s defense industrial base and the future of the US defense ecosystem.

Defense Industry Defense Policy Defense Technologies Security & Defense
Online Event Thu, May 1, 2025 • 10:00 am ET

Strengthening US shipbuilding: Congress’s role in maritime revitalization
Defense Industry Defense Policy Defense Technologies Maritime Security
Public Event Thu, March 27, 2025 • 2:00 pm ET

Software-defined warfare: A blueprint for sustaining a competitive military edge
Artificial Intelligence Defense Industry Defense Policy Defense Technologies
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Meet our experts

Advisory Council member

Arnold Punaro

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Fellow

Deborah Cheverton

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Afghanistan Defense Industry

Fellow

Scott Cooper

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Afghanistan Civil Society

Fellow

Robert Bassett Cross MC

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Fellow

Steven Grundman

Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Fellow

Magnus Nordenman

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Fellow

Tate Nurkin

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Indo-Pacific Security Initiative

China Defense Industry

Fellow

Irina Plaks

Nonresident Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Fellow

Stephen Rodriguez

Senior Advisor

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Policy Defense Technologies

Fellow

Linda Lourie

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Artificial Intelligence Australia

Staff

Maeve Cuddy

Assistant Director

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Staff

Abigail Rudolph

Program Assistant

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Staff

Curtis Lee

Program Assistant

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Korean

Staff

Alexander Young

Project Assistant

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Europe & Eurasia

In the news

In the News

Jul 29, 2025

Torres moderates FIU Gordon Institute space panel

By Atlantic Council

On May 28, Forward Defense nonresident senior fellow Guido Torres moderated a FIU Gordon Institute space panel, which explored emerging security challenges in the space domain.

China Defense Policy

In the News

Jul 22, 2025

Stephen Rodriguez in War on the Rocks on the defense industrial paradigm

On July 22, Stephen Rodriguez, senior advisor at Forward Defense, published a piece in War on the Rocks entitled “Titans, Trailblazers, and Translators: Forging a Unified Defense Industrial Paradigm”. Rodriguez, working at the intersection of the defense industrial base and technologies, identifies a growing tension between the two. To address this challenge to enduring national […]

Defense Industry Defense Technologies

In the News

Jun 4, 2025

Stephen Rodriguez Joins AI+Expo Panel on Government Procurement Reform

On June 3, Stephen Rodriguez, Senior Advisor at Forward Defense and Director of the Commission on Software-Defined Warfare, joined a panel at the AI+Expo to discuss “Reindustrializing America via Government Procurement Reform.” He was joined by Eric Lofgren, Staff Member, U.S. House Armed Services Committee; Scott Friedman, Vice President of Government Affairs at Altana Technologies; […]

Artificial Intelligence Defense Industry

In the News

Jun 2, 2025

Murray in Sky News on UK’s Strategic Defence Review

By Atlantic Council

On June 2, Rob Murray, non-resident senior fellow at Forward Defense and the Transatlantic Security Initiative, appeared on Sky News to offer his insights on the UK’s Strategic Defence Review. Murray emphasized the importance of re-drawing financial architectures and increasing credit flow into supply chains to effectively finance the Review’s ambitious armament procurement goals.

Defense Industry Defense Policy

In the News

May 27, 2025

Soofer’s report, “Strengthening Deterrence with SLCM-N,” quoted in Asia Times article

By Atlantic Council

On May 13, Forward Defense senior fellow Robert Soofer was quoted in an Asia Times article titled, “US Navy wants sea-launched nuke missiles to hold China at bay.” The article cites his Atlantic Council issue brief, co-authored with John Harvey, “Strengthening Deterrence with SLCM-N.” The article references their argument that SLCM-N capabilities address “a US […]

China Defense Policy
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Forward Defense leads the Atlantic Council’s US and global defense programming, developing actionable recommendations for the United States and its allies and partners to compete, innovate, and navigate the rapidly evolving character of warfare. Through its work on US defense policy and force design, the military applications of advanced technology, space security, strategic deterrence, and defense industrial revitalization, it informs the strategies, policies, and capabilities that the United States will need to deter, and, if necessary, prevail in major-power conflict.

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