Looking to Enter the Defense Market? DIU’s New Programs May Help

Article by: Nicholas Hopkins, Associate

Emerging government contractors seeking to break into the defense marketplace should keep an eye on new programs being rolled out by The Department of War’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU). To encourage greater participation from commercial technology companies, DIU is launching initiatives designed to reduce some of the most significant barriers to entering the defense marketplace.

For many contractors, access to classified work has long been limited by a frustrating catch-22. To compete for a classified contract, a company typically needs a facility security clearance (FCL). But obtaining that clearance has traditionally required sponsorship tied to classified work. In other words, a company often needed classified work to get cleared and needed to be cleared to obtain classified work. Add that to the challenges of obtaining personnel clearances, meeting cybersecurity requirements, and navigating complex procurement processes, and the barriers to entry can be substantial for companies that are not already part of the defense industrial ecosystem.

The result of these barriers has been a relatively small pool of contractors with the clearances, facilities, and past performance needed to compete for classified work. DOW believes that the development and deployment of new technologies supporting national security missions is occurring too slowly, and the pool of eligible companies needs to be broadened.

Enter DIU’s Bridge Program. Established within DIU’s Strategic Initiatives Group, the Bridge Program serves as an umbrella initiative designed to incubate promising commercial technologies and the companies that develop them by addressing obstacles that delay adoption by the military.

The centerpiece of these efforts is DIU’s Classified Access to Address Critical Technology pilot program (dubbed “CLASS ACT”). Through CLASS ACT, emerging defense contractors can receive opportunities to be sponsored for Top Secret facility clearances before they hold a traditional classified contract, creating a pathway into the classified marketplace for innovative commercial firms.

The Pentagon is also addressing a second challenge: access to secure facilities. Through its “classified infrastructure-as-a-service” concept, the government is exploring shared classified workspaces and mobile SCIFs that can be used by eligible companies rather than requiring each contractor to build and maintain its own secure facility. These initiatives are primarily aimed at nontraditional contractors and companies participating in DIU-related programs that need access to classified environments.

The first CLASS ACT solicitation was issued on September 24, 2026, and focused on technologies that can detect or defeat unmanned systems operating in maritime environments. Despite the narrow focus of this initial solicitation, it also establishes a 36‑month pilot under which DIU will periodically release solicitations designed to address other technical challenges faced by the military. Firms who aspire to provide products or services to DOW should monitor DIU’s “Work With Us” portal, which lists open DIU contracting opportunities, including those under the Bridge Program for upcoming solicitation releases, eligibility information, and application guidance.

For innovative companies that have historically viewed classified contracting as inaccessible, these initiatives may create meaningful new opportunities to enter the defense market and compete for high-value work. Experienced government contracts counsel can help assess eligibility, navigate clearance and foreign-ownership issues, structure teaming relationships, and position companies to respond quickly as new DIU opportunities emerge.