Abstract digital image

Breaking Barriers in Defense Acquisition

May 7-8, 2025
MITRE McLean

In-Person Registration (Days 1 & 2)

Virtual Registration (Day 1)    

A summit for forward-thinking acquisition experts and leaders in defense and technology.

Convened by and for Acquisition Leaders

Join senior defense and acquisition officials, industry experts, private capital funders, tech innovators, agile defense suppliers, congressional thought leaders, policymakers, think tanks, and media representatives.

Together, we will craft a roadmap for a transformative acquisition ecosystem—built for speed, innovation, and warfighter effectiveness.

About the Summit

The event offers the opportunity for government and industry stakeholders to spearhead recommendations for capability-driven acquisition pathways, software-intensive systems for increased lethality, acceleration of autonomous solutions, scaling commercial innovation, and fostering a thriving Allied industrial base. Objectives include:

  • Invest in capabilities for priority threat scenarios to improve mission performance
  • Leverage Mission Engineering to increase mission success
  • Lower barriers to entry for industry—and engage continuously to evolve solutions
  • Expedite transitioning proposed solutions to working prototypes
  • Leverage experimentation results to drive rapid deployment to operational environments
  • Empower an integrated government-industry team to align development efforts
  • Accelerate fielding of commercial solutions
  • Address U.S. supply-chain and manufacturing challenges to ensure efficient production
  • Enable rapid integration of legacy and new systems
  • Improve workforce skills for rapid acquisition

Location

MITRE
7596 Colshire Drive
McLean, VA 22102
McLean Campus Map (PDF)

Agenda

Participants will be immersed in a full day of keynotes, panels, and debate. Expect a call to action from industry and government voices tackling acquisition’s toughest challenges. Results will be released from the inaugural survey on the state of defense acquisition, and in-person attendees can tour MITRE’s cutting-edge research and technology labs.

8:00 - 8:45amRegistration and Breakfast 
8:45 - 9:00am       Welcome Remarks
9:00 - 10:10am       Keynote Addresses from DoD Leadership  
10:10 - 10:30am   Networking Break  
10:30 - 11:20am    Panel Session – Innovation & Disruption for Capability Driven Acquisition
11:20am - 12:10pm  Panel Session - Scaling & Revitalizing the Manufacturing Base & Supply Chain
12:10 - 1:00pm  Lunch
1:00 - 1:15pm  State of Defense Acquisition Survey Results 
1:15 - 1:25pm  Keynote Address 
1:25 - 2:35pm   Panel Session – Buying Better to Increase Warfighter Lethality
2:35 - 3:00pm  Networking Break 
3:00 - 3:50pm   Panel Session – Extending Capabilities through Allies & Partners
3:50 - 4:10pm   Keynote Address
4:10 - 4:20pm   Closing Remarks 
4:20 - 6:00pmNetworking Reception & MITRE Lab Tours
In-Person Registration (Days 1 & 2) Virtual Registration (Day 1 only)

Participants will engage in focused, concurrent workshops to deliver recommendations for acquisition reform.

7:30 - 8:30amRegistration and Breakfast 
8:30 - 8:35amWelcome Remarks
8:35 - 8:50amKeynote Address
8:50 - 9:30amPanel Session - A View from Capitol Hill
9:30am - 12:00pm

Working Group Sessions

  • Extending Software Intensive Acquisition Pathways
  • Rapid Acquisition for DoD Priority Capabilities
  • Strengthening Capabilities with Allies and Partners
  • Supply Chain and Revitalizing the Manufacturing Base
12:00 - 12:45pmNetworking Lunch
12:45 - 2:20pmWorking Group Sessions Continue
2:20 - 2:30pmClosing Remarks
In-Person Registration (Days 1 & 2)

MITRE Team

Photo of Dan Ward

Dan Ward

Defense Acquisition Innovator

Photo of Allison Reardon

Allison Reardon

Industry Engagement

Publications

Survey

Invitation to Participate

We invite you to participate in a brief survey on the state of defense acquisition as part of the Breaking Barriers Defense Acquisition Summit. Your input is critical to evaluating whether defense acquisition processes are evolving in terms of speed, responsiveness, and the quality of capabilities delivered, as well as identifying areas that require improvement. The survey takes approximately 6 minutes to complete. Your responses will remain anonymous unless you choose to provide identifiable information.

Begin Survey

Navy Lt. works in the command center aboard the USS John P. Murtha

National Security Engineering Center

Delivering impartial and independent systems thinking and technical expertise to strengthen key decision making for national security and global defense.
Learn about NSEC