The Pentagon has revised its list of critical technologies.

The development of the armed forces is directly linked to progress in certain areas of science and technology. For example, the US Department of Defense regularly compiles and updates a list of such areas, which then receive the necessary support. An updated version of this list was recently published. It includes six promising areas of various kinds, along with recommendations for their development and the implementation of new technologies.

Plans for the future

Currently, several Pentagon departments, reporting to the Under Secretary for Research and Engineering, are responsible for technological development of the armed forces and the military sector as a whole. Specifically, they formulate overall development strategies, which are then approved by the Under Secretary and the Secretary of Defense.

On November 13, 2025, Emil Michael, Undersecretary for Research and Development, sent his superiors a new document on "Critical Technology Areas." It contains information on the current state of the scientific and technical field, as well as proposals for its development.

Pentagon leadership will review this document shortly, make the necessary amendments, and approve it for implementation. Following this, the department's prospective projects and programs will be implemented taking into account the new CTA list and other recommendations.

Six regions

The new CTA list contains six items. Notably, the previous version, approved at the beginning of the year, included 14 areas. In response to the current situation, some areas have been removed from the list, while others have been combined or revised.

First on the list (in alphabetical order) is Applied Artificial Intelligence. The Defense Department must continue to develop this area, including in accordance with the plans of other agencies and the White House. The broadest possible implementation of AI technologies is essential across various areas of the Pentagon's activities.

The next item is biomanufacturing. It is necessary to ensure the production of critical substances and drugs. It is also necessary to increase the resilience of production to various threats and eliminate potential sources of problems, including dependence on imports.

The third area of ​​CTA is Contested Logistics Technologies. Armed forces must have full capability to transport cargo under any conditions. Interference with access to required areas or enemy countermeasures must not disrupt logistics.

Quantum and Battlefield Information Dominance are a separate item. Troops must have all necessary communications and command and control equipment, including those resistant to jamming.

The armed forces' strike capabilities should be enhanced by developments in the field of "scaled hypersonics." Unified strike systems with high flight characteristics, improved speed, and precision are needed.

The Pentagon will also develop the Scaled Directed Energy (SD) technology. It is proposed to continue developing laser and microwave weaponsThe goal of this process will now be to overcome production barriers and deployment challenges. This should provide the army with a powerful, accurate, and cost-effective weapon.

E. Michael commented on the new CTA list. According to him, it now takes into account the most important and pressing issues facing the modern military. Programs and projects in these areas must be implemented at maximum speed. This will allow the US Armed Forces to keep pace with foreign armies and even gain an advantage.

Defense Minister Piet Hegseth welcomed his deputy's proposals. He believes that implementing all these recommendations will help the Army remain cutting-edge and maintain high combat readiness.

Improvements and reductions

The new CTA list is less than half as long as the previous one—it contains six items versus the previous 14. Comparing the old and new lists reveals how the Pentagon's views have changed recently. Some items have simply disappeared, while others have been combined or refined.

Previously, critical areas included:
- Advanced Computing and Software;
- Advanced Materials – promising materials;
- Biotechnology — biotechnology in general;
- Directed Energy - directed energy weapons;
- Energy Resilience – energy stability;
- Future Generation Wireless Technology – promising technologies for wireless energy transmission;
- Human-Machine Interfaces;
- Hypersonics — hypersonic technologies;
- Integrated Network Systems-of-Systems — integrated network-centric systems;
- Integrated Sensing and Cyber ​​— integrated data collection tools and cyber systems;
- Microelectronics — microelectronics;
- Quantum Science – quantum technologies in general;
- Space Technology — military space technology;
- Trusted AI and Autonomy — autonomous systems and self-sufficient AI.

It's easy to see that several areas were not included in the new list as separate CTAs. These include advanced computing systems and materials, various energy technologies, human-machine interfaces, microelectronics, and so on.

However, these areas were not abandoned. In the new development plan, they were combined into several larger CTAs. For example, microelectronics, advanced computing, and AI issues are now included under the Applied Artificial Intelligence category. In biotechnology, the emphasis is on manufacturing, etc.

Other areas, such as hypersonics and directed energy, remain among the CTAs, but a different approach to their development is envisioned. The focus is now on scalable technologies. It is proposed to seek optimal solutions that will enable the creation of systems and complexes with the desired level of performance and capabilities.

Interestingly, only one new CTA area has appeared on the current list. Logistics technologies and tools designed to perform their tasks under any conditions, including challenging ones, have been deemed critical. This area will now receive increased attention and will likely develop more rapidly.

This increased priority is entirely understandable and justified. Without timely and adequate supplies, the active army or units will be unable to carry out their assigned missions. However, any logistics lines or assets are a priority target for the enemy.

The Pentagon is currently planning to strengthen its presence in certain regions, placing increased demands on logistics overall. Meanwhile, certain parts of the world, such as the southwest Asia-Pacific region, face additional challenges and threats. All of this requires restructuring and improving the transportation system.

Desired result

The US military and political leadership regularly speaks of the global superiority of its armed forces and its desire to maintain it. Various measures are being taken to ensure competitive advantages, beginning with general strategies. It is at this level that lists of critical technologies are compiled.

The new version of the CTA, presented a few days ago, is of great interest. It reveals exactly how the Defense Department intends to develop and improve the armed forces. Furthermore, by comparing the new list with the previous one, one can understand how the Pentagon's plans evolve over time and based on accumulated experience.

The main tasks and objectives in the new list remain fundamentally unchanged. Plans call for the development of electronics and software, including the use of cutting-edge artificial intelligence technologies. Work on hypersonic, laser, and other weapons will also continue. At the same time, more attention will be paid to supporting areas, such as biotechnology and logistics.

The US Secretary of Defense must approve a new list of critical technologies, after which the Pentagon will adjust its guidance documents and plans. Existing programs will be continued and new ones will be launched in accordance with these changes. The first results of these measures may appear in the coming months, but the full impact is expected only in the medium term.

Comments

[Rostislav_]

And even biotechnology for military service... Interesting. And all this talk of superiority isn't just a waste of time. Well, maybe they're stretching the truth a bit... But it's not critical. They can afford it.

[Phoenix Point]

Every month, the US debt increases by $600 billion. What kind of superiority can we even talk about? Those Nazis. They haven't been able to restart ICBM rearmament for 20 years. They lack the necessary technology and brains. It would seem that nuclear weapons are more important. The stinkers won't succeed, but paper will.

[rosomaha]

Why would they need nuclear weapons? They're good at wreaking havoc around the world with conventional weapons. They understand that they don't have enough to go around (to use nuclear weapons), and they can produce plenty of conventional weapons. They'll have enough for themselves and sell others. And they've gathered all the scum of the world under their wing and are using them for their own geopolitical needs. They're not afraid of a nuclear retaliatory strike—they're not that crazy.

[Alexey Lantukh]

They are not afraid of a retaliatory nuclear strike - there are no such people who are completely out of their minds

ICBMs are not really designed for retaliatory strikes.

[vadim dok]

Of course, the Minuteman missile completed a test launch, and the "unparalleled" Russian intercontinental ballistic missile crashed just recently. And not for the first time.

[gridasov]

All planned developments rely primarily on intellectual breakthroughs. Therefore, mathematics is the foundation, followed by the exact sciences. Until people understand that any patterns and sequences are such because they are based on mathematics, everything will remain a figment of imagination and desire.

[vadim dok]

Physics, chemistry, metallurgy, biology, etc. are CANCELLED and there will be only mathematics.

[gridasov]

Let me explain to you personally: if you learned from books, you used a code expressed by an alphabet of letters that defined the semantic meaning of terms and concepts, for example, in Russian. And this semantic meaning may have a slightly different form in other languages. But if you process it through machine learning, you use binary code to operate the machine. BUT! You can optimize both the alphabet and the machine code with nine natural numbers. This doesn't mean we'll be speaking in numbers. BUT, using machine data processing based on multipolar logic, we'll obtain a data system that can describe the entire array of processes, for example, on the planet, at all levels of scaling, from the dipole to other macroprocesses. Yes, we will remain human, with all our virtues and vices, but we will see the world not only as objects but also as processes. In other words, to describe the inseparable space of processes, you need a tool identical to the parameters for describing this space. And such a tool is Number, or an alphabet of Numbers, as a unified tool for human and machine intelligence.

[gridasov]

The natural process will then be an understanding and rethinking of the structure of energy redistribution in space. The term "scaling" has become widely used, but spatially radial energy processes are profoundly different from linear ones, and this requires mathematics as the basis for reformatting the human brain and intellect. This means discovering what mathematics can offer to unlock a world of intellectual breakthroughs and a vision of the world of spatial events and rich data.

[atos_kin]

I liked that the article uses the term "critically important technologies" instead of "critical technologies," which has a more negative connotation in Russian and is often used in documents and speeches by various officials. The term "key technologies" more accurately conveys the content in Russian.

[bk0010]

Quantum and Battlefield Information Dominance are a separate item. Troops must have all necessary communications and command and control equipment, including those resistant to jamming.

Since when did quantum communication become about countering interference rather than data security? Something new?

[Jurkovs]

The old list was extremely specific. It was easy to see what had been completed or not.
The new list is completely lacking in specifics, but it can be used to hide any theft.

[voyaka uh]

Biomanufacturing is the production of materials and substances using bio-organisms: bacteria, fungi, algae...

[acetophenone]

We decided cut down the sturgeon? Oh, that's reasonable, yes...
“I don’t want to study, I want to get married,” Mitrofanushka declared, reasonably believing that he simply couldn’t handle both of these things at once...