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Got a great idea for a space weapon?

Do you have a winning idea for a space defense solution and want to get your company working with the U.S. government? The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is looking for your input -- and possibly a business contract under the agency's Bringing Classified Innovation to Defense and Government Systems (BRIDGES) initiative. DARPA is seeking "innovative concepts from small businesses and nontraditional defense contractors in the technical domain of space superiority."

"Tremendous innovation is happening in the commercial space industry, yet long procurement timelines and a relatively small number of cleared companies can limit adoption of those new innovations in defense and government space initiatives," said Air Force Maj. Michael "Orbit" Nayak, program manager in DARPA's Strategic Technology Office. "This means that potentially revolutionary concepts for space-based national security technology go untapped. We're looking to flip that script so that innovators who can provide the best ideas for the many unanswered questions and unique potential of the space domain have a seat at the table. We want to find solutions we didn't even know we needed to establish and maintain superiority in space."

What is the program?
According to DARPA, "The BRIDGES effort aims to connect innovation from small companies that traditionally do not work with the U.S. government with classified Department of Defense research and development efforts. The goal is to connect innovators directly to the challenging problems that exist in the classified realm and to help develop solutions to those problems. BRIDGES aims to provide companies that demonstrate they can provide innovation and value to the DOD the means to obtain a facility clearance and interact directly with DOD customers at classified levels."

Currently, there are two Top Areas listed for the BRIDGES program:

• Topic Area 1: Next Generation Antennas
• Topic Area 2: Space Superiority

"If your company is working on cutting-edge antenna designs for commercial applications and you've never considered or known how to apply your expertise to help solve Defense Department challenges, we want to hear from you," said Greg Kuperman, program manager in DARPA's Strategic Technology Office. "In the defense space, we're at least 10 years behind state of the art in antennas."

Companies can submit a four-page or shorter proposal for review. Awards made in response to this topic area will include an invitation to join the BRIDGES consortium and being sponsored for a facility clearance.

DARPA says it will conduct an initial round of evaluation on proposals received by 5 p.m. Eastern time on Oct. 1, 2023, and will continue to accept and evaluate proposals on a rolling basis until the final deadline of 5 p.m. Eastern time on March 15, 2024.

The BRIDGES information page lists additional useful information for interested parties, including explanations of requirements for security clearances (addressed in FAQs), tips for small businesses just getting started with government contracts, and the latest updates to the proposal system (Amendments).

Are there other opportunities?
BRIDGES is only one of several efforts DARPA is conducting to reach out to a broader audience of developers for help in meeting growing technical challenges in the fast-evolving defense space. DARPA's Rapid Experimental Missionized Autonomy (REMA) program is one example. It aims "to enable a drone to autonomously continue its predefined mission when connection to the operator is lost. ... REMA tasks performers with building a subsystem that allows autonomous operation of a variety of commercially available small drones without being tied to a specific drone design. The program also seeks to create mission-specific autonomy software through rapid, monthly spirals of development."

Good luck.

Source: DARPA

Published September 2023

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