Army Applications Laboratory DevX Autonomy Open Call

The Army Applications Laboratory DevX Autonomy program is a continuously open solicitation seeking advanced technology solutions related to autonomy and unmanned systems for the U.S. Army. The solicitation W911NF-26-S-0040 runs from December 30, 2025 through August 31, 2026, with monthly submission cutoffs evaluated on a rolling basis. Instead of traditional written proposals, vendors submit a 6-minute video pitch describing their solution, capabilities, and readiness. Subject-matter experts assess submissions against published criteria, and approved solutions become immediately available in a repository for government-wide award consideration. The program accepts submissions in seven categories: Platforms (ground, sea, and air autonomous systems), Payloads (sensors and communications), Mission-Enabling Solutions (human-system integration and mission planning), Lethal Capabilities, Sustainment Solutions (maintenance for autonomous systems), Subcomponents (motors, sensors, controllers), and Disruptive Innovations (transformative autonomy technologies). Strong solutions can move directly into contracting pathways without further competition.

DevX Autonomy is an open-call solicitation from the U.S. Army Applications Laboratory seeking autonomous and unmanned system solutions, with AI-based perception, navigation, and multi-agent coordination for ground, air, and maritime platforms squarely in scope. The structure is what distinguishes it from a conventional BAA: rather than a single deadline, the call runs continuously from 30 December 2025 through 31 August 2026 with monthly collection periods closing at 12:00 noon Eastern on the final day of each month, and AAL commits to returning results within 30 days of each period closing. That 30-day turnaround is the real selling point for small teams, who can iterate submissions across months rather than waiting a year for a single decision. Seven submission categories are accepted: autonomous platforms across air, ground and sea; payloads covering sensors, communications and effectors; mission-enabling solutions such as human-system integration and mission planning; lethal capabilities; sustainment solutions including maintenance for autonomous fleets; subcomponents such as motors, sensors and controllers; and a deliberately open disruptive-innovation category for transformative autonomy technologies that do not fit the other six. Eligibility is unusually broad for a defense solicitation - large and small U.S. companies, traditional and nontraditional defense contractors, universities, nonprofits, research institutions, individual developers, and even foreign entities where export-control compliance permits. For embodied-AI startups without prior defense contracting history, this is one of the more accessible on-ramps into Army autonomy programs. Note that the current open period closes 31 August 2026; teams should confirm whether a successor call has been issued before building a submission.

The FY2026 Department of Defense Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program supports basic research in science and engineering at U.S. institutions of higher education, with emphasis on multidisciplinary research where more than one traditional discipline interacts. The Army, Navy, and Air Force basic research offices are seeking applications across 22 topic areas including artificial intelligence and autonomy, information sensing and processing, and systems manipulation. MURI grants typically provide $1.25 million to $1.5 million per year for three years with option to extend two additional years. Approximately $170 million in total funding is available annually across all topics. The program is administered through the Office of Naval Research (ONR), Army Research Office (ARO), and Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR).

The NSF Convergence Accelerator is a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) that funds multidisciplinary teams working to solve national-scale societal challenges through convergence research and innovation. Launched in 2019 under NSF's Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships, the program operates in two phases: Phase 1 awards are up to $750,000, with successful teams advancing to larger Phase 2 awards. Eligible applicants include institutions of higher education and nonprofit or for-profit organizations. Track I and Track K focus on specific high-priority topics announced each funding cycle. The next deadline is June 15, 2026. Proposals must comply with updated NSF research security policies effective July 2025.

The AI3 Action Institute is a federal effort to build dedicated AI capacity within Native communities rather than fund a single applied AI project. The awardee establishes and operates an AI resource hub for Native communities, providing technology information, facilitating information sharing and technology deployment across tribal and Native-serving organizations, and conducting stakeholder engagement and coalition building across industry, government and academic sectors. Notably, allowable costs cover short-to-medium-term staff costs including the Institute's director as well as facility setup - a recognition that the binding constraint in this space is institutional infrastructure and staffing, not project ideas. The financial structure is the detail that most shapes strategy: with a $2,500,000 floor, a $3,500,000 ceiling and $3,500,000 in total expected program funding across a three-year period, this is effectively a single-award competition, so applicants should assume they are competing for the entire program rather than for a slot in a cohort. Eligibility is restricted to Native-serving entities - federally recognized Indian tribes, incorporated non-federally or state-recognized tribes, consortia of Indian tribes, Native community-based organizations, Urban Indian Organizations, Alaska Native villages and entities, Native Hawaiian serving agencies, Native Pacific Islander serving agencies, and tribal colleges and universities. That eligibility list is broader than many ACF opportunities, extending to Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander serving agencies as well as tribal entities. Applicants should expect the strongest proposals to combine an existing convening role in Native technology or education with a realistic plan for standing up durable staff capacity within the grant period, since a hub that dissolves when funding ends would not serve the program's purpose. The deadline is August 27, 2026, and applications are submitted through Grants.gov under opportunity number 362270.