SUBCHAPTER I-GENERAL
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2021-
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Establishment of Innovators Information Repository in the Department of Defense
"(a)
"(b)
"(c)
"(1) be coordinated across the Department of Defense enterprise to focus on small business innovators that are small, independent United States businesses, including those participating in the Small Business Innovation Research program or the Small Business Technology Transfer program;
"(2) include appropriate information about each participant, including a description of-
"(A) the need or requirement applicable to the participant;
"(B) the participant's technology with appropriate technical detail and appropriate protections of proprietary information or data;
"(C) any prior business of the participant with the Department; and
"(D) whether the participant's technology was incorporated into a program of record; and
"(3) incorporate the appropriate classification due to compilation of information.
"(d)
National Security Innovation Activities
"(a)
"(b)
"(1) Informing and encouraging private investment in specific hardware technologies of interest to future defense technology needs with unique national security applications.
"(2) Funding research and technology development in hardware-intensive capabilities that private industry has not sufficiently supported to meet rapidly emerging defense and national security needs.
"(3) Contributing to the development of policies, policy implementation, and actions to deter strategic acquisition of industrial and technical capabilities in the private sector by foreign entities that could potentially exclude companies from participating in the Department of Defense technology and industrial base.
"(4) Identifying promising emerging technology in industry and academia for the Department of Defense for potential support or research and development cooperation.
"(c)
"(1)
"(2)
"(d)
"(e)
"(1)
"(A) the implementation and prioritization of activities established under subsection (a); and
"(B) determining how such activities may be used to support the overall technology strategy of the Department of Defense.
"(2)
"(A) is established pursuant to a provision of Federal law other than this section; and
"(B) has responsibilities relevant to the activities established under subsection (a), as determined by the Under Secretary.
"(f)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) A description of the additional authorities needed to carry out the activities set forth in subsection (b).
"(B) Plans for transfers under subsection (c), including plans for private fund-matching and investment mechanisms, oversight, treatment of rights relating to technical data developed, and relevant dates and goals of such transfers.
"(C) Plans for attracting the participation of the commercial technology industry and academia and how those plans fit into the current Department of Defense research and engineering enterprise.
"(g)
"(1) Section 1711 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 (
"(2) Section 1599g of title 10 of the United States Code, relating to public-private talent exchanges.
"(3) Section 2368 of such title [now 10 U.S.C. 4124], relating to Centers for Science, Technology, and Engineering Partnerships.
"(4) Section 2374a of such title [now 10 U.S.C. 4025], relating to prizes for advanced technology achievements.
"(5) Section 2474 of such title, relating to Centers of Industrial and Technical Excellence.
"(6) Section 2521 of such title [now 10 U.S.C. 4841, 4842], relating to the Manufacturing Technology Program.
"(7) Subchapter VI of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, relating to assignments to and from States.
"(8) Chapter 47 of such title, relating to personnel research programs and demonstration projects.
"(9) Section 12 of the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 3710a) and section 6305 of title 31, United States Code, relating to cooperative research and development agreements.
"(10) Such other authorities as the Under Secretary considers appropriate.
"(h)
Joint Artificial Intelligence Research, Development, and Transition Activities
"(a)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) acquisition and development of mature artificial intelligence technologies in support of defense missions;
"(B) applying artificial intelligence and machine learning solutions to operational problems by directly delivering artificial intelligence capabilities to the Armed Forces and other organizations and elements of the Department of Defense;
"(C) accelerating the development, testing, and fielding of new artificial intelligence and artificial intelligence-enabling capabilities; and
"(D) coordinating and deconflicting activities involving artificial intelligence and artificial intelligence-enabled capabilities within the Department.
"(b)
"(c)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering;
"(B) the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment;
"(C) one or more officials in each military department;
"(D) officials of appropriate Defense Agencies; and
"(E) such other officials as the Secretary of Defense determines appropriate.
"(d)
"(1)
"(A) A strategic roadmap for the identification and coordination of the development and fielding of artificial intelligence technologies and key enabling capabilities.
"(B) The continuous evaluation and adaptation of relevant artificial intelligence capabilities developed both inside the Department and in other organizations for military missions and business operations.
"(2)
"(A) use the flexibility of regulations, personnel, acquisition, partnerships with industry and academia, or other relevant policies of the Department to accelerate the acquisition and fielding of artificial intelligence capabilities;
"(B) ensure engagement with defense and private industries, research universities, and unaffiliated, nonprofit research institutions;
"(C) provide technical advice and support to entities in the Department and the military departments to optimize the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies to meet Department missions;
"(D) support the development of requirements for artificial intelligence capabilities that address the highest priority capability gaps of the Department and technical feasibility;
"(E) develop and support capabilities for technical analysis and assessment of threat capabilities based on artificial intelligence;
"(F) ensure that the Department has appropriate workforce and capabilities at laboratories, test ranges, and within the organic defense industrial base to support the artificial intelligence capabilities and requirements of the Department;
"(G) develop classification guidance for all artificial intelligence related activities of the Department;
"(H) develop standard data formats for the Department that-
"(i) aid in defining the relative maturity of datasets; and
"(ii) inform best practices for cost and schedule computation, data collection strategies aligned to mission outcomes, and dataset maintenance practices;
"(I) establish data and model usage agreements and collaborative partnership agreements for artificial intelligence product development with each organization and element of the Department, including each of the Armed Forces;
"(J) work with appropriate officials to develop appropriate ethical, legal, and other policies for the Department governing the development and use of artificial intelligence enabled systems and technologies in operational situations; and
"(K) ensure-
"(i) that artificial intelligence programs of each military department and of the Defense Agencies are consistent with the priorities identified under this section;
"(ii) appropriate coordination of artificial intelligence activities of the Department with interagency, industry, and international efforts relating to artificial intelligence, including relevant participation in standards setting bodies; and
"(iii) that appropriate entities in the Department are reviewing all open source publications from both the United States and outside the United States that contribute to, affect, or advance-
"(I) artificial intelligence research and development; or
"(II) the understanding of the Secretary concerning the investments by adversaries of the United States in artificial intelligence and the development by such adversaries of capabilities relating to artificial intelligence.
"(3)
"(A)
"(B)
"(i) Joint Staff J–6.
"(ii) The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment.
"(iii) The Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Evaluation.
"(iv) The Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security.
"(v) The Under Secretary of Defense for Policy.
"(vi) The Director of Cost Analysis and Program Evaluation.
"(vii) The Chief Information Officer of the Department.
"(viii) The Director of Administration and Management.
"(ix) The service acquisition executives of each of the military departments.
"(C)
"(D)
"(E)
"(i) To streamline the organizational structure of the Department as such structure relates to the development, implementation, and oversight of artificial intelligence.
"(ii) To improve coordination on artificial intelligence governance with the defense industry sector.
"(iii) To issue and oversee guidance on ethical requirements and protections for the use of artificial intelligence supported by Department funding and the reduction or mitigation of instances of unintended bias in artificial intelligence algorithms.
"(iv) To identify, monitor, and periodically update appropriate recommendations for the operational use of artificial intelligence.
"(v) To review, to the extent the head of the Council considers necessary, artificial intelligence program funding, to ensure that any investment by the Department in an artificial intelligence tool, system, or algorithm adheres to each applicable policy of the Department relating to artificial intelligence.
"(vi) To provide periodic status updates on the efforts of the Department to develop and implement artificial intelligence into existing Department programs and processes.
"(vii) To issue guidance on access and distribution restrictions relating to data, models, tool sets, or testing or validation infrastructure.
"(viii) To implement and oversee an educational program on data and artificial intelligence, for the purpose of familiarizing personnel Department-wide on the applications of artificial intelligence within the respective operations of such personnel.
"(ix) To implement and oversee a scorecard to assess data decrees of the Department.
"(x) Such other duties as the Council determines appropriate.
"(F)
"(e)
"(f)
"(g)
"(1) Any artificial system that performs tasks under varying and unpredictable circumstances without significant human oversight, or that can learn from experience and improve performance when exposed to data sets.
"(2) An artificial system developed in computer software, physical hardware, or other context that solves tasks requiring human-like perception, cognition, planning, learning, communication, or physical action.
"(3) An artificial system designed to think or act like a human, including cognitive architectures and neural networks.
"(4) A set of techniques, including machine learning, that is designed to approximate a cognitive task.
"(5) An artificial system designed to act rationally, including an intelligent software agent or embodied robot that achieves goals using perception, planning, reasoning, learning, communicating, decision making, and acting."
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Support for National Security Innovation and Entrepreneurial Education
"(a)
"(1)
"(2)
"(A) Materials to recruit participants, including veterans, for programs described in paragraph (1).
"(B) Model curriculum for such programs.
"(C) Training materials for such programs.
"(D) Best practices for the conduct of such programs.
"(E) Experimental learning opportunities for program participants to interact with operational forces and better understand national security challenges.
"(F) Exchanges and partnerships with Department of Defense science and technology activities.
"(G) Activities consistent with the Proof of Concept Commercialization Pilot Program established under section 1603 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (
"(b)
"(c)
"(1) develop and maintain metrics to assess national security innovation and entrepreneurial education activities to ensure standards for programs supported under subsection (b) are consistent and being met; and
"(2) ensure that any recipient of an award under the Small Business Technology Transfer program, the Small Business Innovation Research program, and science and technology programs of the Department of Defense has the option to participate in training under a national security innovation and entrepreneurial education program supported under subsection (b).
"(d)
"(e)
"(1) Hack the Army.
"(2) Hack the Air Force.
"(3) Hack the Pentagon.
"(4) The Army Digital Service.
"(5) The Defense Digital Service.
"(6) The Air Force Digital Service.
"(7) Challenge and prize competitions of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
"(8) The Defense Science Study Group.
"(9) The Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR).
"(10) The Small Business Technology Transfer Program (STTR).
"(11) War colleges of the military departments.
"(12) Hacking for Defense.
"(13) The National Security Science and Engineering Faculty Fellowship (NSSEFF) program.
"(14) The Science, Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) scholarship program.
"(15) The young faculty award program of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
"(16) The National Security Technology Accelerator.
"(17) The I-Corps Program.
"(18) The Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Programs of the Department of Energy."
Hypersonics Development
"(a)
"(b)
"(1)
"(2)
"(c)
"(1) Expedite testing, evaluation, and acquisition of hypersonic technologies to meet the stated needs of the warfighter, including flight testing, ground-based-testing, and underwater launch testing.
"(2) Ensure prototyping demonstration programs on hypersonic systems integrate advanced technologies to speed the maturation and deployment of future hypersonic systems.
"(3) Ensure that any demonstration program on hypersonic systems is carried out only if determined to be consistent with the roadmap for the relevant critical technology area supportive of the National Defense Strategy, as developed by the senior official with responsibility for such area under section 217 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 [
"(4) Develop strategies and roadmaps for hypersonic technologies to enable the transition of such technologies to future operational capabilities for the warfighter.
"(5) Develop and implement a strategy for enhancing the current and future hypersonics workforce.
"(6) Coordinate with relevant stakeholders and agencies to support the technological advantage of the United States in developing hypersonic systems."
Research and Development of Defense Biomedical Countermeasures
"(a)
"(b)
"(2) The Secretary, through regular, structured, and close consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall ensure that the activities of the Department of Defense in carrying out the program are coordinated with, complement, and do not unnecessarily duplicate activities of the Department of Health and Human Services or the Department of Homeland Security.
"(c)
"(A) section 1903 of title 41, United States Code; and
"(B) sections 2371 and 2371b of title 10, United States Code [now 10 U.S.C. 4021 and 4022].
"(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) and the provisions of law referred to in such paragraph, each of the following provisions shall apply to the procurements described in this subsection to the same extent that such provisions would apply to such procurements in the absence of paragraph (1):
"(A) Chapter 37 of title 40, United States Code (relating to contract work hours and safety standards).
"(B) Section 8703(a) of title 41, United States Code.
"(C) Section 2313 of title 10, United States Code [see 10 U.S.C. 3841] (relating to the examination of contractor records).
"(3) The Secretary shall institute appropriate internal controls for use of the authority under paragraph (1), including requirements for documenting the justification for each use of such authority.
"(d)
"(2) The Secretary shall use existing construction authorities provided by subchapter I of chapter 169 of title 10, United States Code, to the maximum extent possible.
"(3)(A) If the Secretary determines that use of authorities in paragraph (2) would prevent the Department from meeting a specific facility requirement for the program, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees [Committees on Armed Services and Appropriations of Senate and House of Representatives] advance notification, which shall include the following:
"(i) Certification by the Secretary that use of existing construction authorities would prevent the Department from meeting the specific facility requirement.
"(ii) A detailed explanation of the reasons why existing authorities cannot be used.
"(iii) A justification of the facility requirement.
"(iv) Construction project data and estimated cost.
"(v) Identification of the source or sources of the funds proposed to be expended.
"(B) The facility project may be carried out only after the end of the 21-day period beginning on the date the notification is received by the congressional defense committees.
"(4) If the Secretary determines: (A) that the facility is vital to national security or to the protection of health, safety, or the quality of the environment; and (B) the requirement for the facility is so urgent that the advance notification in paragraph (3) and the subsequent 21-day deferral of the facility project would threaten the life, health, or safety of personnel, or would otherwise jeopardize national security, the Secretary may obligate funds for the facility and notify the congressional defense committees within seven days after the date on which appropriated funds are obligated with the information required in paragraph (3).
"(5) Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the Secretary to acquire, construct, lease, or improve a facility having general utility beyond the specific purposes of the program.
"(6) In this subsection, the term 'facility' has the meaning given the term in section 2801(c) of title 10, United States Code.
"(e)
"(2) The authority provided by such section 1091 may not be used for a personal services contract unless the contracting officer for the contract ensures that-
"(A) the services to be procured are urgent or unique; and
"(B) it would not be practicable for the Department of Defense to obtain such services by other measures.
"(f)
"(2) The Secretary may use the authority under paragraph (1) only upon a determination by the Secretary that use of such authority is necessary to accelerate the research and development under the program.
"(3) The Secretary shall institute appropriate internal controls for each use of the authority under paragraph (1)."
Defense Nanotechnology Research and Development Program
"(a)
"(b)
"(1) To ensure United States global superiority in nanotechnology necessary for meeting national security requirements.
"(2) To coordinate all nanoscale research and development within the Department of Defense, and to provide for interagency cooperation and collaboration on nanoscale research and development between the Department of Defense and other departments and agencies of the United States that are involved in the National Nanotechnology Initiative and with the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office under section 3 of the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act (15 U.S.C. 7502).
"(3) To develop and manage a portfolio of nanotechnology research and development initiatives that is stable, consistent, and balanced across scientific disciplines.
"(4) To accelerate the transition and deployment of technologies and concepts derived from nanoscale research and development into the Armed Forces, and to establish policies, procedures, and standards for measuring the success of such efforts.
"(5) To collect, synthesize, and disseminate critical information on nanoscale research and development.
"(c)
"(1) prescribe a set of long-term challenges and a set of specific technical goals for the program;
"(2) develop a coordinated and integrated research and investment plan for meeting the long-term challenges and achieving the specific technical goals that builds upon investments by the Department and other departments and agencies participating in the National Nanotechnology Initiative in nanotechnology research and development;
"(3) develop memoranda of agreement, joint funding agreements, and other cooperative arrangements necessary for meeting the long-term challenges and achieving the specific technical goals; and
"(4) oversee Department of Defense participation in interagency coordination of the program with other departments and agencies participating in the National Nanotechnology Initiative.
"(d)
"(1) is integrated with the strategic plan for the National Nanotechnology Initiative and the strategic plans of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, the military departments, and the Defense Agencies; and
"(2) includes a clear strategy for transitioning the research into products needed by the Department.
"(e)
Program To Increase Business Innovation in Defense Acquisition Programs
"(a)
"(b)
"(c)
"(1) Procedures through which commercial private sector entities, including small-business concerns, may submit proposals recommending cost-saving and innovative ideas to acquisition program managers.
"(2) A review process designed to make recommendations on the merit and viability of the proposals submitted under paragraph (1) at appropriate times during the acquisition cycle.
"(3) Measures to limit potential disruptions to existing contracts and programs from proposals accepted and incorporated into acquisition programs of the Department of Defense.
"(4) Measures to ensure that research and development efforts of small-business concerns are considered as early as possible in a program's acquisition planning process to accommodate potential technology insertion without disruption to existing contracts and programs.
"(e)