🧠 U.S. Army awards Salesforce $5.6B contract for modernization push

📬 In Today’s Defense Brief

⚓ Integer Technologies pitches autonomy upgrades for future naval fleets

🛡️ Four NATO nations select Rafael’s Trophy active protection system

🚢 Navy shipbuilding, industrial base set to get $27B in FY26 funding

🧠 U.S. Army awards Salesforce $5.6B contract for modernization push

🛰️ Space Force eyes rolling awards for RG-XX “neighborhood watch” satellites

🎱 Plus 10 other news stories you may like

📰 Full Breakdown

⚓ Integer Technologies pitches autonomy upgrades for future naval fleets — Read More

• Integer Technologies is positioning its autonomy stack as a modular upgrade for manned and unmanned naval platforms, focusing on perception, navigation, and mission execution in GPS-denied and cluttered maritime environments. The company argues its software-first approach allows legacy fleets to gain autonomy benefits without wholesale platform redesigns, lowering adoption barriers for navies under budget and schedule pressure.

• The firm highlights applications ranging from autonomous surface vessels and logistics craft to sensor pickets and distributed maritime operations concepts. By emphasizing scalable autonomy levels, Integer says commanders can retain human oversight while offloading routine navigation and collision avoidance tasks to machines, freeing crews to focus on tactical decision-making.

• NextGen Defense notes that Integer’s pitch aligns with broader naval trends toward hybrid fleets, where crewed ships, USVs, and UUVs operate as a networked force. The company frames autonomy as a fleet multiplier, designed to extend reach, persistence, and survivability in increasingly contested littoral and open-ocean environments.

🛡️ Four NATO nations select Rafael’s Trophy active protection system — Read More

• Four NATO members have chosen Rafael’s Trophy active protection system (APS) to defend armored vehicles against anti-tank guided missiles and RPGs, marking another significant expansion of the Israeli-developed system within the alliance. Breaking Defense reports the decision reflects growing concern over top-attack and tandem-warhead threats seen in Ukraine and elsewhere.

• Trophy uses radar sensors to detect incoming threats and fires countermeasures to intercept them before impact. The system has been combat-proven on Israeli Merkava tanks and is already fielded on U.S. Army Abrams variants, helping normalize APS as a baseline survivability requirement rather than a niche add-on.

• Officials cited interoperability and shared logistics as key factors, as more NATO forces adopt common protection suites. The move also signals a shift toward prioritizing vehicle survivability upgrades over the procurement of entirely new platforms amid constrained defense budgets and accelerated rearmament timelines.

🚢 Navy shipbuilding, industrial base set to get $27B in FY26 funding — Read More

• The U.S. Navy’s FY26 budget proposal includes roughly $27 billion for shipbuilding and related industrial-base investments, underscoring efforts to stabilize production lines and address capacity shortfalls. Defense One reports the funding targets both new construction and supplier-level bottlenecks that have slowed deliveries across multiple programs.

• Funding priorities include submarines, surface combatants, and sustainment work intended to keep existing hulls operational longer. Navy leaders argue that without sustained investment in yards, workforce training, and second- and third-tier suppliers, headline ship counts will remain aspirational.

• The budget also reflects lessons from recent delays, emphasizing predictability over spending spikes. Officials frame the approach as essential to competing with China’s scale in shipbuilding while ensuring U.S. yards can deliver on time and at cost in a stressed industrial environment.

🧠 U.S. Army awards Salesforce $5.6B contract for modernization push — Read More

• The U.S. Army awarded Salesforce a potential $5.6 billion contract to support enterprise IT modernization, data integration, and readiness initiatives across the Department of the Army. The deal centers on cloud-based platforms intended to unify data, improve workflows, and accelerate decision-making at scale.

• Salesforce said the contract will support operational readiness, logistics, personnel management, and command-level visibility, leveraging commercial software rather than bespoke government systems. Army officials have increasingly emphasized adopting proven commercial tech to move faster and reduce long-term sustainment costs.

• The award reflects a broader DoD push toward digital transformation as a warfighting enabler rather than just a back-office function. Leaders argue that data accessibility and automation are now central to readiness, force generation, and the ability to adapt quickly in crisis or conflict.

🛰️ Space Force eyes rolling awards for RG-XX “neighborhood watch” satellites — Read More

• The Space Force is considering a rolling award strategy for its RG-XX “neighborhood watch” satellites, designed to monitor activity in geosynchronous orbit and enhance space domain awareness. Breaking Defense reports the approach would allow faster fielding and incremental capability insertion rather than a single, monolithic contract.

• RG-XX aims to provide persistent monitoring of high-value orbital regions, helping detect maneuvers, anomalies, or hostile actions against U.S. and allied space assets. Officials describe the program as part of a shift toward resilience through numbers and rapid refresh cycles.

• By spreading awards over time, the Space Force hopes to keep multiple vendors engaged and adapt to evolving threats and technologies. The strategy reflects lessons learned from proliferated LEO programs and the growing need for responsive space acquisition models.

🌏 Other Important News

✈️ Air

• Brits shortlist seven firms for Apache drone wingmen — Read More

• Hanwha, MDA partner with Telesat on space capabilities — Read More

🌊 Sea

• Netherlands unveils 3D-printed uncrewed surface vessel — Read More

• Norway explores new mine-clearing concept — Read More

🛡️ Land

• Leonardo pitches simulators with “virtual warzones” — Read More

• Singapore unveils next-gen infantry fighting vehicle — Read More

• Turkey fields new counter-drone system — Read More

🧠 Strategy

• Sweden eyes Franco-British nuclear weapons cooperation — Read More

• New Pentagon strategy calls for mobilization of U.S. defense industry — Read More

• U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly’s lawyers say Pentagon is violating his constitutional rights — Read More

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