Defense Innovation Fund (DIF)

Defense Innovation Fund (DIF) is sponsored by Naval Postgraduate School Foundation & Alumni Association. Supports early-stage R&D projects at the Naval Postgraduate School.

Naval Postgraduate School Foundation & Alumni Association: Research Support Research Support People Support Ways To Give + Learn about the Foundation’s critical programs in support of the Naval Postgraduate School, the Department of Defense and our allies. Learn about the Foundation’s support of NPS priorities, programs, people and facilities.

Learn about the critical research that the Foundation funds in support of NPS, our Nation and our allies. Learn how the NPS Foundation supports NPS students and alumni and their families. Learn how you can support the NPS community through donations, membership and more.

Invest in the people, technology and ideas of the Naval Postgraduate School. By funding innovative national security research through our Defense Innovation Fund and Seed Program, the NPSFoundation creates opportunities for NPS and the DOD to develop capabilities before they are needed.

These programs allow private funding to propel innovation and technology quickly and directly in the Department of Defense and strengthen our national security. The Foundation facilitates connections between NPS students and faculty, industry, and academic partners to strengthen the innovation ecosystem and turn ideas into impactful solutions.

Industry Partnership Support Started in 2016, the Defense Innovation Fund (DIF) supports early-stage research and development projects at NPS that focus on improving national security, increasing warfighting capabilities, and addressing military inefficiencies.

DIF moves projects from concept to completion by providing the initial capital necessary to develop these research projects to the point where federal spending becomes available to fully implement the initiatives. Several projects have already reached this goal and are making immediate improvements in the Department of Defense.

Without the support of donors through the Defense Innovation Fund, these projects may never have been developed. If you want to make a tangible difference in our nation’s security, this is the way to do it. By helping to fund early-stage projects, ideas from some of our nation’s brightest military members are transformed into national improvements in the Department of Defense.

In February 2022, the NPS Foundation invested $625,000 in defense research projects and NPS facility enhancement to support national security, including: $200,000 to support upgrading the current Mach 4 wind tunnel in the NPS Gas Dynamics Laboratory to allow for testing at true hypersonic speeds of Mach 5+ and $175,000 to support research for inverting the command and control (C2) pyramid for large-scale unmanned aerial system (UAS) experimentation and education among other projects.

Five of the projects that received funding began as Seed projects in July 2021, receiving $10,000 each for initial research development. Our Seed Program uses a venture capital model to support early-stage research projects that originate from boots-on-the-ground experiences unique to service members. When we add private funding to these students’ unique perspectives, intelligence, and work ethics, big things happen.

First, we identify seed projects to fund. If the initial research is promising, these seeds can advance to become "seedlings" and receive additional funding. Many of these projects go on to create tangible improvements in the Department of Defense, directly impacting our national security.

Supported by the Defense Innovation Fund, the program allows NPS students to partner with professors to turn ideas into action by pitching their plans to a panel to advance through all three phases: Open call for research proposals Selected projects receive $10,000 each to develop a detailed plan Selected projects receive additional funding to complete research 2022 Seed Projects Include: Pseudo Random Number Generator Sonobuoy Launched UAV Solar Edition More About Our 2022 Seed Projects 2021 Seed Projects Include: Athena "A Naval Education Enterprise Collaborative Research Tool" Identification of Adversarial Submersibles using Thermal Signatures An Electric Dynamometer Turbine Test Facility Preliminary Design of a Hypersonics Continuous Flow Wind Tunnel with Mach 5+ Capability Inverting the C2 Pyramid for Large Scale UAS Experimentation and Education An Improved Decimation-based Secure Pseudorandom Number Generator A Low-cost Design for Extending the Endurance, Range and Capability of the Sonobuoy-Tube Launched UAV (SL-UAV) Monterey Bay: A “Geophysical Laboratory” for Improving Coastal Environment Prediction Automating Detection of Ice for the US National/Naval Ice Center using AI Applied to Satellite Data More About Our 2021 Seed Projects 2020 Seed Projects Include: Using Data-Limited Mesh Networks to Create a Realistic, Distributed LVC Training Environment at the Small-Unit Level AI, Human and Teams: Allocation of Decision Task in Complex Situations Establishment of World-Ocean Acoustic and Thermohaline Parameter Database Creating a U.S. Navy Practical Experimentation Guide 3D Printing Superhydrophobic Ceramic Surfaces Synthesis of Nanostructured High Entropy Alloys via Cryogenic Mechanical Alloying Evidence of Media Effects Theory in Cyberspace Impact of Technology and Automation on Occupations in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps More About Our 2020 Seed Projects 2019 Seed Projects Include: Cybersecurity Exercises for All: Content Development and Usability Improvements for Labtainers The NPS Data Center for the Global Temperature-Salinity Profile Program The Strategic Value of the Defense Industrial Base World Peace and/or a Piece of the World: Media's Supporting Role in China's Foreign Affairs Aspirations Additive Manufacturing of Metal Foams Using Activated Precursors Portable Dynamic Transmission Electron Microscopy Using Pyroelectrics The NPS Cabled Acoustic Observatory DTN-IP Fusion Communication Architecture for Survivable Tactical Mesh Networks Naval Postgraduate School Emerging Technology Center Neutralizing China's Power in Africa Porting the CyberCIEGE Video Game for Broader Use Adapting Commercial Technologies to Modernize Tactical Communications More About Our 2019 Seed Projects 2018 Seed Projects Include: Directed Energy Weapons Performance Autonomous Sub-Munition Delivery Systems Subsurface Mine Drift Identification for Planning Ship Maneuvers Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technology in Naval Systems Enhanced Thermal Performance of Living Spaces The Monterey Cyber Institute Cross-Disciplinary Learning Security Testing and Analysis of Cyber-Physical Systems Technology for Improved Research, Teaching, and Learning at NPS NPS Partnership with Stanford University in Spacecraft Robotics Improved Energy Efficiency in Warhead Target Strikes Tactical Communication Without Satellite Equipment Diverting and Tracking Cyber Attacks Brain-Computer Interfaces and Biocommunication Case Studies for Leadership Transformation Humanitarian/Disaster Relief Mission Metrics Analytics Platform for Large-Scale Defense Data Case Studies on Defense Acquisition Sea, Land, and Air Military Research Facility More About Our 2018 Seed Projects Military personnel face extreme physical and mental demands that require the capacity to overcome the negative physical and psychological effects of operating in challenging field environments.

There is a critical need to invest in research that can enhance our force's physical fitness and mental performance—promoting resilience and aiding in mission success. The Human Enhancement Research Group at NPS will ensure the streamlined transfer of military-specific cognitive and physiological research to military training and operations.

The HERG will result in injury prevention, reduced effects of post-traumatic stress disorder and lower suicide rates among active-duty service members and veterans. The Human Enhancement Research Group continues to be a major priority for the Naval Postgraduate School and the Naval Postgraduate School Foundation. Because of your support, $1.

2 million has been raised to fund the infrastructure of the Operational Readiness Research Center. This is just the beginning of our investment in critical human performance and enhancement research that will place NPS at the epicenter of human enhancement research for the Department of Defense.

Your donation to the Human Enhancement Research Group at NPS funds physical and cognitive human performance research that will lead to injury prevention, reduced effects of post-traumatic stress disorder and lower suicide rates among active-duty service members and veterans while improving force capability and efficiency.

Invest in the People, Technologies, & Ideas of the Naval Postgraduate School 283 Cottage Way, Monterey, CA 93943 Mailing Address: PO BOX 2316, MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA 93942-2316 | Tax ID # 23-7098729 Naval Postgraduate School Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, national nonprofit charitable organization. NPSF is a non-federal entity. It is not part of the Department of Defense or any of its components and has no governmental status.

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