Grants & Funding

The Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Program seeks proposals addressing research areas (as described in the ONR Science and Technology Department section of ONR's website at https://www.onr.navy.mil) which are of interest to ONR Program Officers will be considered. Contact information for each division (a subgroup of an S&T Department) is also listed within the S&T section of the website.

Under the authority of 10 U.S.C. § 4144, in alignment with Section 223 of the FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), funding in the FY 2026 defense appropriations, and, Presidential Executive Order 14332, Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking, the DoW announces this funding opportunity for the acquisition of equipment/instrumentation at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs). The program is executed under policy and guidance of the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering (OUSW(R&E)) and is…

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is soliciting innovative proposals in the following technical area: physics and nonlinear control of inertial measurement units (IMUs) appropriate for tactical and unmanned missions. The Precision Inertial Navigation & Positioning On an Integrated Tesseract (PINPOINT) program will challenge the research community to overcome the decade-long performance plateau of micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) IMUs by exploring revolutionary sensor architectures that operate in highly nonlinear regimes. DARPA is soliciting proposals for the…

PLEASE NOTE: No submissions through Grants.gov will be accepted. All submissions must follow SAM.gov instructions. For full opportunity announcement reference the SAM.gov link.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Biological Technologies Office (BTO) is soliciting proposals that leverage biological properties and processes to revolutionize our ability to protect the nation’s warfighters. Specifically excluded is research that primarily results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice.

Scope: Smart and multifunctional textiles allow various components and devices to be integrated into uniforms and soldier systems. This extends their range of functions, which can include environmental and physiological monitoring of the soldier, localisation, communication, protective functions (e.g. concealing a soldier's visual, radar and electromagnetic signatures from enemy sensors and surveillance technologies, fire protection and neutralisation of hazardous chemicals). Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has highlighted the critical operational need for protection of dismounted…

Scope: The proposals must address innovative defence products, solutions and technologies, including those that can improve readiness, deployability, reliability, safety and sustainability of forces in defence tasks and missions, for example in terms of operations, equipment, infrastructure, energy solutions, surveillance systems or digital solutions. Proposals must address disruptive knowledge, products and technologies in any area of defence interest( [1] ) from TRL 4 and above( [1] ). In addition, to best complement R&D efforts that already target civil applications and encourage the…

Scope: In order to increase situational awareness and operational superiority, improved detection, tracking and identification capabilities over large areas with increased range and minimum latency are required. High-frequency (HF) over-the-horizon (OTH) systems therefore need to be improved, while an EU concept for a cognitive and scalable network of HF OTH sensors could be further explored. The objective of this topic is to follow up and complement previous activities in the field of OTH, in particular the development of technologies for an EU OTH radar network concept providing deep…

Scope: This topic aims to follow up and complement previous activities for the development of an endo-atmospheric interceptor by maturing key technologies required to successfully counter hypersonic and ballistic threats up to TRL 6. It should build on specific concept designs and advance the required technologies by developing dedicated demonstrators, e.g. for airframe, propulsion, platform separation, lethality, threat tracking and acquisition. This topic contributes to the STEP objectives as defined in the STEP Regulation in the target investment area of defence technologies. Management…

Scope: The aim of this topic is to follow up and complement previous activities in the field of the next generation self-protection systems in order to increase the survivability of fixed wing and rotary wing, combat or non-combat aircraft in hostile environments. This topic is aimed at modular integration with both fixed and rotary wing aircraft, providing protection against direct and indirect threats based on open architecture and international standards, while protecting sensitive data and ensuring compatibility with other platforms. Key features include automatic coordination of…

Scope: The objective of this topic is to assess the feasibility of creating an AI framework for defence applications as a springboard for developing future tactical intelligence concepts by providing military simulation capabilities, historical data sets, a rich scenario and benchmark database, access to doctrinal models and output from previously developed AI services. This would also enable a common simulation framework for war games/combat simulations with the potential to similarly facilitate improved learning support in mission planning and execution, including through AI-enabled…

Scope: The objective of this topic is to follow up and complement previous activities in the field of smart technologies for next generation fighter systems. It aims to explore future architectures and develop key technologies, including with proofs of concept, demonstrations and prototypes, for the next generation of military integrated modular avionics for use on a variety of military aerial platforms, both manned and unmanned aircraft, in the context of a defence air cloud. This topic contributes to the STEP objectives as defined in the STEP Regulation in the target investment area of…

Scope: Taking into consideration the ongoing activities in this area funded by the EU, EU Member States and EDF associated countries, the general objective of this topic is to support the developments necessary for the integration and qualification of Public Regulated Service (PRS) receivers into existing military operational platforms as well as the enhancement of navigation warfare (NAVWAR) capabilities. In particular, this topic will focus on the development of Galileo PRS receiver technology and the NAVWAR information management system, taking into account the need to also support guided…

Scope: Air-to-air refuelling enhances military operations by enabling long-range missions. Refuelling currently requires manual coordination between tanker operators and receiving pilots, which is complex and labour-intensive. Automated air-to-air refuelling solutions are expected to reduce workload and increase safety for both crews, while also being essential for future unmanned aerial systems. The objective of this topic is to explore the development of sensor systems, in particular hardware and sensor fusion, to enable accurate relative navigation between tanker, receiver and refuelling…

Scope: Proposals must demonstrate their disruptive impact on defence applications in order to accelerate the creation and deployment of novel solutions for armed forces and support the uptake of new civilian innovations in the defence sector. Proposals must focus on enhancing operational readiness and effectiveness, improving strategic decision-making and addressing emerging threats through cutting-edge technologies or products. Solutions must embrace disruption to enable armed forces to gain a technological edge and adapt to rapidly evolving security challenges, ultimately ensuring radical…

Scope: The increasing complexity of military operations requires more advanced electronic warfare (EW) systems capable of dealing with multiple threats and operating in electromagnetic congested scenarios. Current solutions are partially effective and require the complex integration of different sensors and frequency bands. As a result, there is a growing need for automated EW systems that can rapidly identify and respond to threats, especially given the limited availability of qualified personnel. To meet this challenge, this topic aims to further develop and integrate technologies to…

Scope: Current military decontamination processes are manual and time-consuming, while automation could improve efficiency, safety and control. Clearance decontamination, which ensures that equipment is safe for transport and disposal, is a challenging process that may require advanced technologies. A new approach to CBRN decontamination is needed that is simple, safe, reliable and uses minimal water. New technologies such as catalysts and UV radiation are being considered to neutralise agents without damaging equipment. Decontamination is also critical in the management of biological…

Scope: This topic aims to develop a prototype of a semi-autonomous remote management system, integrated with adaptive hardware that continuously learns and improves its ability to identify and dispose of potential objects. The primary objective is to detect and dispose of ammunition waste and residues from military training areas and battlefields. This will significantly reduce the risk factor associated with human involvement, ultimately contributing to a cleaner environment and in line with the ‘green military’ concept. The performance of the system to be developed is expected to improve…

Scope: The aim of this topic is to follow up and complement previous activities already supported by the EDF in the field of medium-size semi-autonomous surface vessels, with a view to developing a universal fast-moving platform for the specific conditions of the littoral environment, providing enhanced coastal defence capabilities based on different mission modules, but also adaptable to other future naval warfare missions. In particular, this topic aims to review concepts and designs developed and implemented following the EDF call topic EDF-2022-DA-NAVAL-MSAS, while enabling new design,…

Scope: Reducing administrative barriers remains a challenge for the rapid movement of armed forces across the borders of EU Member States and EDF associated countries, especially in a constantly deteriorating geopolitical environment. The digitisation of the military mobility permit and clearance landscape is therefore crucial for rapid and efficient deployments. Against this background, this topic aims to follow up and complement activities in this area with the objective of developing a resilient system, including with a mobile application, capable of operating under adverse conditions when…

Scope: The proposals must demonstrate their disruptive impact on defence applications and address innovative technologies and solutions for defence, including those that can improve the readiness, deployability, reliability, safety and sustainability of forces in defence tasks and missions, for example in terms of operations, equipment, infrastructure, energy solutions, surveillance systems or digital solutions. Proposals must address disruptive knowledge, products and technologies in any area of defence interest (8 ) reaching at least TRL 4 (9 ).In addition, to best complement R&D efforts…

Scope: The high speed and significant manoeuvrability of hypersonic vehicles, particularly hypersonic glide vehicles, create difficult conditions for target detection and tracking, which are exacerbated by changes in radar cross section characteristics. Radar waveforms and signal processing become essential to counter the effects induced by hypersonic threat dynamics. In addition, the last decade has seen a global increase in the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for battlefield intelligence gathering and reconnaissance. Anti-UAV radars therefore need to be developed to detect, identify…

Scope: An unmanned aerial vehicle used as unmanned loyal wingman/unmanned combat aerial vehicle requires specific performance for a variety of mission profiles to meet storage, deployment and operational requirements. In particular, an engine that provides optimum thrust and electrical power capabilities is required to meet these performance requirements. Against this background, the aim of this topic is to investigate a new turbofan engine in the range of approximately 25-35 kN that meets all feasible military requirements and is capable of operating on kerosene, hydrogen (H2) and…

Scope: This topic aims to follow up and complement previous activities in the field of high- performance energy systems, with a particular focus on unexplored technologies such as hydrogen (conversion, storage and logistics). New use cases for stationary military applications will therefore be identified and defined, while innovative building blocks and functional modules will be developed and evaluated. The demonstrators’ power and energy targets and other key performance indicators, including life cycle considerations, are expected to be improved, while the operability and connectivity to…