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Fiscal Receipts

Defense Innovation Unit Fielding

OSDRDT&EPartial Reconciliation0608776D8Z
What it is
Defense Innovation Unit Fielding — a research & development program run by OSD.
What changed
No FY25→26 comparison — trajectory data incomplete for this line.
Who gets it
No award linkage at high confidence.

Budget Figures

FY24 Actuals
$572.1M
FY25 Total
FY26 Request
$281.4M
FY25→26 Change
Budget Trajectory
FY24: $572.1MFY26: $281.4MFY24FY26
FY24
$572.1M
FY26
$281.4M

FY2026 award data is a partial year — USASpending awards are reported on a rolling basis and the fiscal year does not close until September 30. why →

Program dossier

Every sentence below carries its citation — warehouse figures open the citation panel, news claims link the cached source.

Research dossiers exist for 50 of 326 programs — the top-50 programs by FY2026 request, ranked by dollar value. why →

What it is

  • The Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding program is run by the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and funded through the Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Defense-Wide account.
  • Budget analysts classify this program element as a congressional-add portfolio spanning counter-small unmanned aircraft systems, AI ISR drones, autonomous logistics, 5G, and digital engineering, with no single dominant category.
  • The program funds a Congressional add for Counter-Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (CsUAS), a mission focused on defeating small enemy drones.
  • It also funds a Congressional add for AI ISR Drones — drones using artificial intelligence for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.
  • Another component funds a Congressional add for Autonomous VTOL Air Logistics — self-flying vertical takeoff and landing aircraft for moving supplies.
  • A Next Gen 5G effort is funded as a Congressional add within the program.
  • The program supports Long Endurance USVs (uncrewed surface vessels) for Multi-domain Awareness as a Congressional add.
  • It funds AUKUS Coalition Warfare, referring to the Australia–United Kingdom–United States security partnership.
  • A Digital Engineering effort is funded as a Congressional add.

Why it matters

  • In fiscal year 2024, the program recorded actual spending of about $572.1 million (572,131 in USD thousands), showing its recent scale.
  • The fiscal year 2026 total request is about $281.4 million (281,413 in USD thousands), roughly half of the 2024 actual level.
  • That 2026 total is split into a discretionary request of about $48.4 million (48,413 in USD thousands)...
  • ...and a much larger reconciliation request of $233 million (233,000 in USD thousands), showing most planned 2026 money flows through a reconciliation vehicle rather than the normal discretionary budget.
  • Within prior-year funding, the largest single project was Support to COCOMs (combatant commands) at about $207.2 million, indicating a major share went to directly supporting operational commands.
  • The DIU and Service Non-traditional Innovation Fielding Enterprise project accounted for about $119.1 million in prior-year funding, the second-largest component.

Key players

  • The Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) is the organization responsible for the program.
  • Long Endurance USVs for Multi-domain Awareness received about $44.1 million in prior-year funding.
  • The CsUAS project received about $43.5 million in prior-year funding.
  • A dedicated DIU Fielding project received about $37.8 million in prior-year funding and about $37 million in the budget year.
  • The Next Gen 5G project received about $33.1 million in prior-year funding.
  • Support to COCOMs is requested at about $18 million in the budget year, down sharply from its prior-year level.
  • No lobbying filings, contract awards, or feed events were included in this program's bundle.

Recent developments

  • A June 2026 Defense News report describes Taiwan positioning to sell homegrown drones to the U.S. military to help it avoid the China-dominated drone supply chain, noting DJI makes at least 70% of the world's commercial drones and that U.S. legislators in 2025 proposed expanding domestic drone production to 1 million units per year.defensenews.com· retrieved 2026-06-13

Budget Line Items(workbook-cited)

Exhibit R-1

AccountOrgTypeAmount
Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Defense-WideOSDFY24 Actuals$572.1M
Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Defense-WideOSDFY26 Disc. Request$48.4M
Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Defense-WideOSDFY26 Reconciliation$233.0M
Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Defense-WideOSDFY26 Total$281.4M

Budget Details(R-2/P-40 facts)

ProjectAll Prior YearsFY24 ActualsFY25 TotalFY26 BaseFY26 Request
497: AI Development Tools$0$6.97M$0$0$0
Program Element$0$572.1M$0$55.0M$55.0M
612: 5G Interference with Military Radars$0$8.71M$0$0$0
614: Next Gen 5G$0$33.1M$0$0$0
611: Modeling and Simulation for Autonomy$0$4.27M$0$0$0
496: DIU Fielding$0$37.8M$0$37.0M$37.0M
608: Long Endurance USVs for Multi-domain Awareness$0$44.1M$0$0$0
613: Support to COCOMs$0$207.2M$0$18.0M$18.0M
606: DIU and Service Non-traditional Innovation Fielding Enterprise$0$119.1M$0$0$0
605: Digital Engineering$0$11.3M$0$0$0
604: CsUAS$0$43.5M$0$0$0
603: Autonomous VTOL Air Logistics$0$20.0M$0$0$0
508: Autonomous Amphibious Response Vehicle$0$4.35M$0$0$0
509: Automated Cyber Security Testing$0$1.74M$0$0$0
507: AUKUS Coalition Warfare$0$12.8M$0$0$0
499: AI ISR Drones$0$8.71M$0$0$0
498: AI ISR Data Analysis$0$8.53M$0$0$0

Program Narratives

MissionAutomated Cyber Security Testing

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Automated Cyber Security Testing.

Mission5G Interference with Military Radars

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for 5G Interference with Military Radars.

MissionSupport to COCOMs

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Support to COCOMs.

MissionNext Gen 5G

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Next Gen 5G.

MissionDIU Fielding

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MissionModeling and Simulation for Autonomy

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Modeling and Simulation for Autonomy.

MissionLong Endurance USVs for Multi-domain Awareness

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Long Endurance USVs for Multi-domain awareness,

MissionDIU and Service Non-traditional Innovation Fielding Enterprise

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for DIU and Service Non-traditional Innovation Fielding Enterprise.

MissionDigital Engineering

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Digital Engineering.

MissionCsUAS

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Counter-Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (CsUAS).

MissionAutonomous VTOL Air Logistics

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Autonomous VTOL Air Logistics.

MissionAutonomous Amphibious Response Vehicle

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Autonomous Amphibious Response Vehicle.

MissionAUKUS Coalition Warfare

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding funding for AUKUS Coalition Warfare.

MissionAI ISR Drones

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Artificial Intelligence Drones.

MissionAI ISR Data Analysis

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Artificial Intelligence ISR Data Analysis.

MissionAI Development Tools

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Artificial Intelligence development tools.

MissionDefense Innovation Unit Fielding

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Accomplishments & Planned Programs (16)

Modeling and Simulation for Autonomy

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Modeling and Simulation for Autonomy.

5G Interference with Military Radars

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for 5G Interference with Military Radars.

Support to COCOMs

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Support to COCOMs.

Next Gen 5G

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Next Gen 5G.

DIU Fielding

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Long Endurance USVs for Multi-domain Awareness

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Long Endurance USVs for Multi-domain awareness,

DIU and Service Non-traditional Innovation Fielding Enterprise

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for DIU and Service Non-traditional Innovation Fielding Enterprise.

Digital Engineering

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Digital Engineering.

CsUAS

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Counter-Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (CsUAS).

Autonomous VTOL Air Logistics

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Autonomous VTOL Air Logistics.

Automated Cyber Security Testing

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Automated Cyber Security Testing.

Autonomous Amphibious Response Vehicle

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Autonomous Amphibious Response Vehicle.

AUKUS Coalition Warfare

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding funding for AUKUS Coalition Warfare.

AI ISR Drones

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Artificial Intelligence Drones.

AI ISR Data Analysis

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Artificial Intelligence ISR Data Analysis.

AI Development Tools

Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) Fielding Congressional add for Artificial Intelligence development tools.

No follow-the-dollar view — this program's awards haven't been crosswalked at high confidence (flows cover 17 of 326 programs). why →

Primary Sources