US Army Hoping to Speed Weapons Production
August 10, 2026
The US Army plans to open its testing ranges to private companies, hoping to incentivize them to enter the market and build cheaper and effective missiles, drones, and other advanced weapons, AP reports. The move reflects the broad need for government to help start-ups and other smaller companies “cross the divide from development to deployment in critical technologies,” John Burer writes in Issues. As a key step, he calls for creating new industry-focused campuses that can serve as “force multipliers” positioned to “overcome systemic barriers facing hardware start-ups with an eye toward maintaining a resilient and secure defense manufacturing ecosystem.”