Defense Sciences Office (DSO) Office-wide BAA – DARPA
Below is a brief summary. Please check the full solicitation before applying (link in resources section).
Executive Summary:
DARPA’s Defense Sciences Office (DSO) is soliciting proposals under its Office-wide Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) to fund revolutionary basic or applied research that enables breakthrough advances in science, devices, or systems for national security applications. Proposals are accepted on a rolling basis through June 2, 2026, and may be submitted as executive summaries, abstracts, or full proposals. This BAA is designed to capture novel, high-risk, high-reward ideas not already addressed by existing DARPA programs.
How much funding would I receive?
DARPA anticipates making multiple awards, but no fixed award size or funding range is specified in the BAA. Award amounts, duration, and structure are determined based on the proposed technical scope, cost realism, and selected award instrument. An accelerated award option is available for select proposals not exceeding $2,000,000, with awards made within approximately 30 days of selection.
What could I use the funding for?
Funding may be used to pursue innovative basic or applied research concepts that enable revolutionary (not evolutionary) advances aligned with DARPA’s mission. Proposals may address, but are not limited to, the following DSO technical thrust areas:
Materials, Manufacturing, and Structures - Breaking the tension between performance and efficiency for critical parts, production processes, energetics, superconductors, and propulsion
Sensing, Measuring, and Affecting - Developing and leveraging new science to overcome existing barriers limiting the performance and/or practicality of sensing, measurement, and control, to achieve orders of-magnitude improvement in operational capabilities.
Math, Computation, and Processing - Enabling quantum, reimagining classical, and developing entirely new forms of computing for enhanced efficiency and new capabilities. Solutions may range from new approaches to hardware (implementation) to representation and computation.
Complex, Dynamic, and Intelligent Systems - Creating new scientific capabilities for classes of systems that evolve and adapt and for which traditional reductionist, data-driven, and statistical methods fail. Systems of interest include, but are not limited to, foundations of intelligence, human-AI ecosystems, homeostatic mechanisms, and global systems.
Proposals focused primarily on incremental improvements or manufacturing scale-up are explicitly excluded.
Are there any additional benefits I would receive?
Beyond direct funding, selection under a DARPA DSO BAA provides substantial indirect value:
DARPA Validation and Credibility: Being selected signals strong technical merit and alignment with DARPA’s mission to create or prevent technological surprise.
Increased Visibility: Awardees gain visibility within the national security R&D ecosystem and among DARPA program managers.
Access to DARPA Engagement Pathways: Participation can lead to future invitations to targeted DARPA programs, Disruption Opportunities (DOs), or Advanced Research Concepts (ARCs).
Nondilutive De-Risking: Advancing frontier technology with nondilutive capital can materially improve company valuation and future exit outcomes.
What is the timeline to apply and when would I receive funding?
Review Process: Rolling through June 2, 2026
Accelerated Award Option: Awards made within ~30 days of selection for qualifying proposals
Where does this funding come from?
Funding is provided by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) within the U.S. Department of Defense, through the Defense Sciences Office (DSO).
Who is eligible to apply?
U.S. and non-U.S. organizations may apply
Small businesses, startups, universities, and large firms are eligible
FFRDCs, UARCs, and Government Entities (including National Labs) are not eligible
Non-U.S. participants must comply with export control, security, and nondisclosure requirements
What companies and projects are likely to win?
DARPA evaluates proposals based on the following criteria:
Scientific and technical merit of a novel, feasible, and well-reasoned approach
Relevance and contribution to DARPA’s mission and national security impact
Clear articulation of technical risk and credible mitigation strategies
Strong alignment between scope, cost, and schedule realism
Ability to enable revolutionary—not incremental—advances
Are there any restrictions I should know about?
Incremental or evolutionary improvements are not of interest
Manufacturing scale-up is explicitly excluded
Some projects may involve Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) and require compliance with NIST SP 800-171
Projects involving human subjects or animal research must follow DARPA approval procedures
DARPA retains discretion to determine whether work is fundamental or non-fundamental research
How long will it take me to prepare an application?
For a first-time applicant, preparing a competitive submission under this BAA will likely take 120–160 hours in total.
How can BW&CO help?
Our team specializes in complex federal R&D proposals and can:
Triple your likelihood of success through proven strategy and insider-aligned proposal development
Reduce your time spent on the proposal by 50–80%, letting your team focus on technology and operations
Ensure you are targeting the best opportunity for your project and positioning your company for long-term growth under Federal & State R&D Initiatives.
How much would BW&CO Charge?
Our full service support is available for a flat fee of $5,000 for the Abstract Submission.
Fractional support is $300 per hour, with most DARPA proposal projects requiring 80–100 hours of expert support from strategy through submission of full proposal.
For startups, we offer a discounted rate of $250 per hour to make top-tier grant consulting more accessible while maintaining the same level of strategic guidance and proposal quality.