HR001125S0011.pdf

Broad Agency Announcement (BAA)

TACTICAL TECHNOLOGY OFFICE

TTO Office Wide (OW) BAA 2025 June 23, 2025

This publication constitutes a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) as contemplated in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.102(d)(2) and 35.016 and 2 CFR § 200.203. Any resultant award negotiations will follow all pertinent law and regulation, and any negotiations and/or awards for procurement contracts will use procedures under FAR 15.4, Contract Pricing, as specified in the BAA.

HR001125S0011

OVERVIEW INFORMATION:

Federal Agency Name – Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)

Funding Opportunity Title – TTO Office Wide (OW) BAA

Announcement Type – Initial Announcement

Funding Opportunity Number – HR001125S0011

Assistance Listing Number: 12.910

Dates/Time – All Times are Eastern Time Zone (ET) o Posting Date: June 23, 2025 o Proposers Day: October 1-2, 2025

Special Notice (SN) anticipated to be posted by August 4, 2025 o Executive Summary Due Date: April 17, 2026 at 4:00 p.m.

o Question Submittal Closed: April 17, 2026 at 4:00 p.m.

o Proposal Due Date: June 22, 2026 at 4:00 PM

Anticipated individual awards – Multiple awards are anticipated.

Types of instruments that may be awarded – Procurement Contracts, Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and Other Transactions

NAICS Code – 541715

Agency contact

Points of Contact o The BAA Coordinator for this effort may be reached at:

HR001125S0011@darpa.mil

DARPA/ TTO

ATTN: HR001125S0011

675 North Randolph Street Arlington, VA 22203-2114

SECTION I: FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Tactical Technology Office (TTO) is soliciting innovative executive summaries and proposals in the following focus areas:

o Design/Build/Buy – Using innovative design approaches throughout the system lifecycle to acquire new defense systems, from disrupting systems engineering processes to reimagining test, certification, and accreditation. This includes (1) new design approaches to make manufacturable designs or to dramatically reduce human engineering effort; (2) new approaches to fabrication that enable rapid start-up, reduced production lead times, and frequent changes to military systems; and (3) testing and validation approaches that dramatically shorten the timeline from initial delivery to full military utility.

o Surge and Sustain – Developing technologies that make existing military systems easy to replenish and abundantly available at time of need. Builds upon the legacy of public and private cooperation for national security to make and maintain existing systems rapidly, on-demand, and at high volume, ensuring that the U.S. can win a long-term conflict. This focus area includes (1) development of manufacturable lower-cost systems with “good-enough” capabilities; (2) adaptive manufacturing solutions that allow shifting production seamlessly among products; (3) approaches to broaden and revitalize the supply chain to permit ready use of alternative suppliers for defense products and components; and (4) methods to rapidly leverage non-defense production capabilities and knowledge for defense applications.

o Long Range Effects – Creating new systems and approaches that enable decisive military effects at distances from the tactical to strategic in areas where anti-access and area-denial (A2/AD) strategies are employed by an adversary. This includes (1) approaches that increase range, or which provide alternative paths for access that circumvent A2/AD; (2) systems or technologies to enable constant presence within an adversary’s A2/AD zone; and (3) innovative approaches to re-engineer or re-configure existing systems to confound adversary defenses.

o Disruptive Innovation – Rapidly fielding novel engineering, technology, and systems approaches that disrupt the battlefield in unexpected or non-obvious ways and change the traditional calculus for military advantage. This focus area includes (1) low-cost autonomous systems that can use mass to overwhelm defensive systems; (2) approaches that disrupt the escalation of hide-and-seek between sensors and stealthy platforms by using decoy and deception or new sensing modalities; and (3) capabilities that undermine the readiness or efficacy of adversary systems, creating doubt and deterring attacks.

Submissions that identify potential rapid technological disruption to the tactical battlefield are of interest.

Proposed research should investigate innovative approaches that enable revolutionary advances in science, devices, or systems. Specifically excluded is research that primarily results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice. Individual submissions are not required to include the focus areas outlined above, but proposers are encouraged to address at least one of them, and to make clear which focus area is being addressed.

SECTION II: EVALUATION CRITERIA

Proposals will be evaluated using the following criteria listed in descending order of importance. Overall Scientific and Technical Merit; Potential Contribution and Relevance to the DARPA Mission; and Cost Realism.

o Overall Scientific and Technical Merit: The proposed technical approach is innovative, feasible, achievable, and complete. The proposed technical team has the expertise and experience to accomplish the proposed tasks. Task descriptions and associated technical elements provided are complete and in a logical sequence with all proposed deliverables clearly defined such that a final outcome that achieves the goal can be expected as a result of award. The proposal identifies major technical risks and planned mitigation efforts are clearly defined and feasible.

o Potential Contribution and Relevance to the DARPA Mission: The potential contributions of the proposed effort bolster the national security technology base and support DARPA’s mission to make pivotal early technology investments that create or prevent technological surprise.

For submissions addressing one or more of the focus areas, it is important to consider and explain:

Design/Build/Buy – For the proposed effort, what is the appropriate quantitative scale to demonstrate the claimed technological insight, and how was the scale determined? What design, manufacturing, and testing approaches will be used to remain agile for rapid upgrades? How could the proposed effort be transitioned to end-users at full-scale with high velocity?

Surge and Sustain – How would the proposed effort achieve high start-up velocity and support realistic production needs during a conflict without requiring a “standing army” of capital and labor that requires continuous funding?

Long Range Effects – How would the proposed effort address capabilities of existing or likely adversary countermeasures to remain robust in conflict? How could the technology be produced in sufficient quantity to achieve military effectiveness?

Disruptive Innovation – How could the proposed emergent technology disrupt defense personnel, systems, tactics, or operations based upon a rigorous, realistic, and quantitative analysis of implementation and outcomes?

o Cost Realism: The proposed costs are realistic for the technical and management approach and accurately reflect the technical goals and objectives of the solicitation. The proposed costs are consistent with the proposer's Statement of Work and reflect a sufficient understanding of the costs and level of effort needed to successfully accomplish the proposed technical approach. The costs for the prime proposer and proposed sub-awardees are substantiated by the details provided in the proposal (e.g., the type and number of labor hours proposed per task, the types and quantities of materials, equipment and fabrication costs, travel and any other applicable costs and the basis for the estimates). It is expected that the effort will leverage all available relevant prior research in order to obtain the maximum benefit from the available funding. For efforts with a likelihood of commercial application, appropriate direct cost sharing may be a positive factor in the evaluation. DARPA recognizes that undue emphasis on cost may motivate proposers to offer low-risk ideas with minimum uncertainty and to staff the effort with junior personnel in order to be in a more competitive posture. DARPA discourages such cost strategies.

Unless otherwise specified in this announcement, for additional information on how DARPA reviews and evaluates proposals through the Scientific Review Process, please visit: Proposer Instructions: General Terms and Conditions.

https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/proposer-instructions

SECTION III: SUBMISSION INFORMATION

This announcement allows for multiple award instrument types to be awarded, to include Procurement Contracts, Grants, Cooperative Agreements, and Other Transactions. Some award instrument types have specific cost-sharing requirements. The following websites are incorporated by reference and contain additional information regarding overall proposer instructions, general terms and conditions, and each specific award instrument type.

Proposers must review the following links:

o Proposer Instructions: General Terms and Conditions: https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/proposer-instructions o Proposer Instructions: Procurement Contracts: https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/procurement-contracts o Proposer Instructions: Grants/Cooperative Agreements:

https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/grant-cooperative-agreements o Proposer Instructions: Other Transaction: https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/other-transaction-agreements

Specific information regarding unclassified submission methods through the Broad Agency Announcement Tool (BAAT) can be found in Proposer Instructions: General Terms and Conditions under the section title “Unclassified Submission Instructions.” Specific information regarding classified submission methods can be found in Attachment E.

Due Date: Executive Summaries and/or Full Proposals must be submitted on or before the closing date and time provided in the Overview Section above. Submissions received to HR001125S0011 after this time and date may not be evaluated.

NOTE: Non-conforming submissions that do not follow the instructions herein may be rejected without further review. Submissions that are deemed technically identical, or nearly identical, to previous submissions may be rejected without further review.

Submissions that include profane, racially charged, or other similarly inappropriate language will not be reviewed.

BAA Attachments:

o (required if submitting an Executive Summary) Attachment A: Executive Summary

Instructions o (required if submitting a Full Proposal) Attachment B: Proposal Instructions and Volume I Template (Technical and Management) o (required if submitting a Full Proposal) Attachment C: Proposal Instructions and Volume II Template (Cost) o (required if submitting a Full Proposal) Attachment D: MS ExcelTM DARPA Standard Cost Proposal Spreadsheet o (informational) Attachment E: Classified Submission Instructions https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/grant-cooperative-agreements

BAA Submission Types:

1. Executive Summary (ES)

Executive Summaries are encouraged in advance of submitting a Full Proposal to provide potential proposers with a rapid response to minimize unnecessary effort. Instructions for Executive Summary submissions are contained within Attachment A.

DARPA will respond to Executive Summaries with a brief statement either encouraging or discouraging submission of a Full Proposal. In keeping with the intent of the Executive Summary, these responses will generally be limited to a statement of interest (or lack thereof), rather than providing detailed feedback. DARPA will attempt to reply to Executive Summaries via e-mail to the Technical and/or Administrative point of contact (POC) identified within forty-five (45) calendar days of receipt.

A favorable response to an Executive Summary is not an assurance of commitment of any kind on behalf of the government that a Full Proposal based on the Executive Summary’s topic will ultimately be selected for award.

Regardless of DARPA’s response to an Executive Summary, proposers may submit a Full Proposal. DARPA will review any conforming Full Proposals submitted using the published evaluation criteria and without regard to any comments resulting from the review of an Executive Summary.

2. Full Proposal (FP)

Instructions and templates for the submittal of Full Proposals are provided in Attachments B, C, and D. DARPA will review all conforming proposals using the evaluation criteria in Section II.

Non-conforming proposals may be rejected without further review.

After the evaluation of a proposal is complete, the proposer will be notified that (1) the proposal has been selected, in whole or in part, for funding pending negotiations, or (2) the proposal has not been selected. DARPA will attempt to send these notifications via e-mail to the Technical and/or Administrative POC identified on the proposal coversheet within sixty (60) calendar days of receipt.

3. Pitch Day

Periodically, DARPA may endeavor to hold “Pitch Day(s).” A “Pitch Day” entails DARPA to solicit proposals for a specific, targeted aspect under one or more of the BAA’s focus areas.

Proposers ultimately would pitch their proposals to DARPA via oral presentations. Any “Pitch Day” established under this BAA would be advertised via a separate Special Notice announcement linked to this BAA and posted on SAM.gov, and will include specific instructions and evaluation.

4. TTO Workshop Awards

DARPA may release separate Special Notices for TTO Workshops on a rolling basis. Specific instructions and templates for the submittal of workshop-related proposals may be provided in the Special Notices published on SAM.gov. DARPA will review all conforming workshop proposals using the evaluation criteria in Section II.

http://www.sam.gov/ http://www.sam.gov/

SECTION IV: SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS

This announcement, stated attachments, and websites incorporated by reference constitute the entire solicitation. In the event of a discrepancy between the announcement, attachments, or websites, the announcement takes precedence.

All responsible sources capable of satisfying the Government's needs, including both U.S. and non-U.S. sources, may submit a proposal that shall be considered by DARPA. Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Small Businesses, Small Disadvantaged Businesses and Minority Institutions are encouraged to submit proposals and join others in submitting proposals; however, no portion of this announcement will be set aside for these organizations’ participation due to the impracticality of reserving discrete or severable areas of this research for exclusive competition among these entities. Non-U.S. organizations and/or individuals may participate to the extent that such participants comply with any necessary nondisclosure agreements, security regulations, export control laws, and other governing statutes applicable under the circumstances.

Pursuant to 2 CFR 200.414(c), all new financial assistance awards to Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) issued under this announcement will be subject to a mandatory indirect cost rate cap of 15% of total modified direct costs. This cap aligns with the Department of Defense policy issued on May 14, 2025, and represents a deviation from previously negotiated indirect cost rates.

Indirect cost rates above 15% will not be approved and must conform to the definitions and criteria outlined in 2 CFR Part 200, encompassing both “Facilities” and “Administration” expenses. Furthermore, awardees must ensure that indirect costs are accurately reported in accordance with Departmental requirements and the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014. By submitting a proposal in response to this announcement, performers acknowledge and agree to comply with this indirect cost limitation.

As of the time of publication of this solicitation, all proposal submissions are anticipated to be unclassified.

DARPA encourages technical solutions from all responsible sources capable of satisfying the government’s needs. To ensure fair competition across the ecosystem, DARPA prohibits contractors/performers from concurrently providing Systems Engineering Technical Assistance (SETA), Advisory and Assistance Services (A&AS), or similar support services and being a technical performer, unless the DARPA Deputy Director grants a written waiver.

DARPA extends this prohibition to University-Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs) and Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) including National Labs, who as a result of their specialized expertise and areas of competencies, are able to accomplish integral tasks that cannot be met by government or contractor resources.

Therefore, these entities are highly discouraged from proposing against this solicitation as award to a UARC or FFRDC will only be made by exception. UARCs and FFRDCs interested in this solicitation, either as a prime or a subcontractor, should contact the Agency Point of Contact (POC) listed in the Overview section prior to the proposal (or abstract) due date to discuss potential participation as part of the government team or eligibility as a technical performer.

As of the date of publication of this solicitation, the Government cannot identify whether the work under this solicitation may be considered fundamental research and may award both fundamental and non-fundamental research. For additional information on fundamental research, please visit Proposer Instructions: General Terms and Conditions.

Proposers should indicate in their proposal whether they believe the scope of the research included in their proposal is fundamental or not. While proposers should clearly explain the intended results of their research, the Government shall have sole discretion to determine whether the proposed research shall be considered fundamental and to select the award instrument type. Appropriate language will be included in resultant awards for non-fundamental research to prescribe publication requirements and other restrictions, as appropriate. This language can be found at http://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/additional-baa.

For certain research projects, it may be possible that although the research to be performed by a potential awardee is non-fundamental research, its proposed sub-awardee’s effort may be fundamental research. It is also possible that the research performed by a potential awardee is fundamental research while its proposed sub-awardee’s effort may be non-fundamental research. In all cases, it is the potential awardee’s responsibility to explain in its proposal which proposed efforts are fundamental research and why the proposed efforts should be considered fundamental research.

DARPA’s Fundamental Research Risk-Based Security Review Process (formerly CFIP) is an adaptive risk management security program designed to help protect the critical technology and performer intellectual property associated with DARPA’s research projects by identifying the possible vectors of undue foreign influence. DARPA will create risk assessments of all proposed senior/key personnel selected for negotiation of a fundamental research grant or cooperative agreement award. The DARPA risk assessment process will be conducted separately from the DARPA scientific review process and adjudicated prior to final award. For additional information on this process, please visit Proposer Instructions:

Grants/Cooperative Agreements.

Per Section 8123 of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2015 (Pub. L. 113-235), all grant awards must be posted on a public website in a searchable format. To comply with this requirement, proposers requesting grant awards must submit a maximum one (1) page abstract that may be publicly posted and explains the program or project to the public. The proposer should sign the bottom of the abstract confirming the information in the abstract is approved for public release. Proposers are advised to provide both a signed PDF copy, as well as an editable (e.g., Microsoft word) copy. Abstracts contained in grant proposals that are not selected for award will not be publicly posted.

The APEX Accelerators program, formerly known as the Procurement Technical Assistance Program (PTAP), focuses on building strong, sustainable, and resilient U.S. supply chains by assisting a wide range of businesses that pursue and perform under contracts with the DoD, other federal agencies, state and local governments, and government prime contractors. See www.apexaccelerators.us/ for more information.

APEX Accelerators helps businesses:

https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/proposer-instructions https://ddmdraft.darpa.mil/work-with-us/proposer-instructions http://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/additional-baa http://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/additional-baa https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/grant-cooperative-agreements https://www.darpa.mil/work-with-us/grant-cooperative-agreements https://www.apexaccelerators.us/ o Complete registration with a wide range of databases necessary for them to participate in the government marketplace (e.g., SAM).

o Identify which agencies and offices may need their products or services and how to connect with buying agencies and offices.

o Determine whether they are ready for government opportunities and how to position themselves to succeed.

o Navigate solicitations and potential funding opportunities.

o Receive notifications of government contract opportunities on a regular basis.

o Network with buying officers, prime contractors, and other businesses.

o Resolve performance issues and prepare for audit, only if the service is needed, after receiving an award.

Project Spectrum is a nonprofit effort funded by the DoD Office of Small Business Programs to help educate the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) on compliance. Project Spectrum is vendor-neutral and available to assist businesses with their cybersecurity and compliance needs. Their mission is to improve cybersecurity readiness, resilience, and compliance for small/medium-sized businesses and the federal manufacturing supply chain. Project Spectrum events and programs will enhance awareness of cybersecurity threats within the manufacturing, research and development, and knowledge-based services sectors of the industrial base. Project Spectrum will leverage strategic partnerships within and outside of the DoD to accelerate the overall cybersecurity compliance of the DIB.

www.projectspectrum.io is a web portal that will provide resources such as individualized dashboards, a marketplace, and Pilot Program to help accelerate cybersecurity compliance.

DARPAConnect offers free resources to potential performers to help them navigate DARPA, including “Understanding DARPA Award Vehicles and Solicitations”, “Making the Most of Proposers Days”, and “Tips for DARPA Proposal Success”. Join DARPAConnect at www.DARPAConnect.us to leverage on-demand learning and networking resources.

DARPA has streamlined our Broad Agency Announcements and is interested in your feedback on this new format. Please send any comments to DARPAsolicitations@darpa.mil.

https://www.projectspectrum.io/ http://www.darpaconnect.us/ mailto:DARPAsolicitations@darpa.mil