On Nov. 17, Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering Emil Michael announced a trimmed-down list of six Critical Technology Areas (CTAs) as priorities for R&D and demonstration. Eight areas were dropped or incorporated within the new list.
In a published statement, the six CTAs are designed to address the most pressing challenges facing the modern battlefield, and include:
1. Applied Artificial Intelligence (AAI)
2. Biomanufacturing (BIO)
3. Contested Logistics Technologies (LOG)
4. Quantum and Battlefield Information Dominance (Q-BID),
5. Scaled Directed Energy (SCADE)
6. Scaled Hypersonics (SHY)
“These six Critical Technology Areas are not just priorities; they are imperatives,” Michael said.