QUICK HITS
HASC Help Wanted: The HASC Democrats are seeking resumes for Professional Staff Member and Oversight Counsel candidates.
Is SAM glitching on your profile? It could cost you a set-aside. Do a 10-minute double-check, just in case.
AI safety push: Tech policy coalition urges Congress to establish national AI safety standards.
New Congress, new anti-corruption probes for the DIB: Cha-cha-cha-changes, they are a-coming…
DEFENSE & AEROSPACE
National defense stockpile gets $2B: DLA bets on domestic suppliers.
DLA put $2B toward the national defense stockpile in FY26, buying strategic and critical materials from high-purity aluminum to vanadium pentoxide. Most of the critical mineral contracts were targeted demand signals meant to jumpstart domestic production.
Army’s $50B MAPS contract: new protests target small business teaming.
The Army’s $50B MAPS vehicle just can’t catch a break. After GAO told the Army to let small businesses bid as teams, two companies filed new protests arguing the reopened RFP limits teaming to small business set-aside awards only. A third is challenging the CMMC terms after DOD paused its rollout.
Navy’s trainer is now the biggest test of the DOD’s acquisition reform efforts.
The Navy’s competition to replace its aging T-45 jet trainers has effectively narrowed to one major bidder, Textron Aviation Defense and Leonardo, after three competitors withdrew. With the award now pushed to late FY27, the program is becoming a key test of whether Pentagon acquisition reforms can deliver faster, more accountable decisions without sacrificing oversight.
ICYMI:
Defense Contract Awards
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Defense Job Openings
FUNNY
INTEL COMMUNITY
DOS cut nearly 400 contracts: IG flags costly missed steps.
Canceling contracts is harder than it looks. The DOS reviewed nearly 5,600 contracts worth about $65B and terminated almost 400 worth roughly $360M, but its IG found $8M still not deobligated, faulty termination notices in 25 of 30 sampled contracts, and unreturned government laptops and phones.
DOJ forms AI task force.
DOJ has launched a new Super Intelligence Task Force to combat AI misuse by foreign adversaries, criminal organizations, and fraudsters. The task force will coordinate AI-related civil and criminal enforcement, establish prosecution guidance, and work with the White House's broader Super Intelligence Force.
ICYMI:
CISA warns of cyber threats to refrigeration systems.
Was Nvidia's CEO honeypotted?
CIA stonewalls the White House as the probe into the black budget heats up.
AST SpaceMobile to build 20-ton rocket to deploy BlueBird satellites into LEO using Miranda Engines from Firefly Aerospace.
Intermap names a geospatial intelligence specialist as a board member.
OpenAI names former AWS, Oracle executives to its government team.
ODNI is looking for a Budget Justification Chief.
GET SEEN
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CIVILIAN
NASA’s $10B Moon base framework: 8 companies cleared to compete.
NASA’s Moon base just got a bigger delivery budget. Eight companies, including SpaceX, Blue Origin, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, can now compete for up to $10B in lunar delivery task orders over 10 years under a new CLPS framework. That’s a ceiling, not cash in hand. Blue Origin also landed a $94M rover deal.
VA and DOD are now live on the national health data sharing superhighway.
VA and DOD are now connected to the national Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA), enabling secure EHR sharing across military, VA, and civilian healthcare providers. Nearly 25,000 organizations participate in the network, which has facilitated the exchange of more than 2 billion health records since launching in December 2023.
Senators question TREAS’s continued reliance on ID.me.
Two senators are questioning Treasury and the IRS over their continued reliance on ID.me for identity verification, citing privacy and cybersecurity concerns despite the availability of the government-run Login.gov alternative. The lawmakers want to know why the IRS hasn't followed through on its 2022 pledge to move away from ID.me and have requested answers by Nov. 9.
ICYMI:
FAA retires decades-old floppy disks from air traffic control.
HUD launches nationwide Accountability Dashboard platform.
After broad workforce cuts, TREAS unit looks to add new IT talent.
DOGE leader lays out an AI-powered future for federal services.
Civilian Contract Awards
ORNL teams up with IBM, AMD to launch quantum error correction platform.
Solidus Labs secured a $24M CFTC Automated Digital Asset Market Surveillance System contract.
Akima Data Management Wins $13M DOI BIA Cybersecurity Monitoring and Incident Response deal.
Astrion bagged a $10M NRC Cybersecurity Inspection deal.
APTNEXUS won a $4M TREAS Cybersecurity Compliance contract.
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Civilian Job Openings
M&A CORNER
Ondas to acquire Stemme.
Ondas wants more eyes in the sky, and it’s moving to buy the factory to get them. The company signed a definitive agreement to acquire Stemme, the maker of its ULTRA ISR airframe, in an all-cash deal. The goal: produce 10 ULTRA aircraft per month by 2028, including in the U.S., for military, allied and dual-use missions.
Shield to acquire Echodyne.
Shield announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Echodyne Corp. in a transaction valued at $5.3B. Echodyne radars are built into hundreds of counter-drone and security systems used by defense, government and commercial customers in more than 40 countries. Shield is raising $2.5B to support the transaction.
Delphinus Engineering to acquire Professional Analysis.
Delphinus Engineering, a provider of maintenance, modernization and industrial services for the USN and maritime defense community, announced its combination with Professional Analysis, LLC (PAI). Delphinus is a portfolio company of Bluestone Investment Partners. PAI manages military logistics and sustainment activities for the DOD.
SHOWER THOUGHTS 🚿
Data centers? NIMBY!! Of the 45 ballot measures on data centers this past election, only one town said YES. Can you guess where it is? SOURCE↗︎
Fake CAPTCHA scam. If it asks for keyboard shortcuts, stop. SOURCE↗︎
Can robots help you park at Walt Disney World? Robots looking like a character from CARS were one cool tech showcased at Disney Accelerator’s 2026 Demo Day. SOURCE↗︎
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