Exclusive on Atlantic Council Commission on Software-Defined Warfare final report published in Axios

On March 26, Colin Demarest, future of defense reporter at Axios, published an exclusive article on the Pentagon’s software-hardware balance and featured Forward Defense‘s Commision on Software-Defined Warfare report. The article, “Exclusive: The Pentagon’s software-hardware tug of war,” highlights the commission’s conclusions on the era of “software-defined warfare” and the urgent need for the US military to enhance its software capabilities to compete with China.

The piece examines key findings from the report, which was the product of eighteen months of work and over seventy interviews. According to the article, the commission concluded that the US military is still anchored to an acquisition system “ill-suited to the rapid tempo of modern technological innovation,” putting the country “at significant risk.” The report emphasizes the Department of Defense’s lack of “sufficient software expertise” and recommends establishing a software cadre by recruiting dozens of specialists to be deployed across various defense departments.

Forward Defense, housed within the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, generates ideas and connects stakeholders in the defense ecosystem to promote an enduring military advantage for the United States, its allies, and partners. Our work identifies the defense strategies, capabilities, and resources the United States needs to deter and, if necessary, prevail in future conflict.

Forward Defense’s Commission on Software-Defined Warfare aims to digitally transform the armed forces for success in future battlefields. Comprised of a distinguished group of subject-matter and industry commissioners, the Commission has developed a framework to enhance US and allied forces through emergent digital capabilities.