Automated Discovery for Design and Control of Turbulent Systems (AutoDIDACTS)

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is soliciting innovative proposals for the Automated Discovery for Design and Control of Turbulent Systems (AutoDIDACTS) program, which seeks data-informed development of generalizable models and principles for aeronautical design and optimal control of turbulent systems. The program explicitly targets revolutionary advances in science, devices, or systems, excluding research that results primarily in evolutionary improvements to existing practices. Key contract requirements include developing compact, tunable turbulence simulators for precision ground-truth experimental data; algorithms for automated discovery of macroscale design principles and surrogate models; and demonstration of model accuracy exceeding 95 percent with generalizability across parameter space exceeding 100 times. Evaluation criteria emphasize overall scientific and technical merit, potential contribution to DARPA's mission, and cost and schedule realism, with all proposals requiring independent verification and validation by government teams using computational fluid dynamics and wind-tunnel measurements. Critical deadlines include April 15, 2026 for proposal abstracts, May 15, 2026 for question submissions, and May 28, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time for full proposal submissions.

This solicitation uses no set-aside designations and identifies no incumbent contractors. DARPA anticipates multiple awards through procurement contracts, cooperative agreements, or Other Transaction Agreements for Research, with a target program start date of September 2026. The program consists of a 48-month effort divided into a 24-month Phase I base period and a 24-month Phase II period, with Phase I performance metrics requiring model generalizability exceeding 100 times in parameter space and model accuracy greater than 95 percent, and proposers must identify an end-of-Year-1 intermediate demonstration and provide rough order of magnitude costs for Phase II. All proposals must budget for eight two-day Principal Investigator meetings over 48 months (four in Washington, D.C.; four in San Francisco) and accommodate quarterly technical reports and site visits by the DARPA Program Manager. Proposals may be submitted through DARPA's Broad Agency Announcement Tool (BAAT) for procurement contracts and Other Transactions, or through Grants.gov for cooperative agreements, with CMMC Level 1 certification required for procurement contracts.