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Replicator

Acquisition Initiative · Defense Innovation Unit
Active · Since 2023
Program Type
Acquisition Initiative
Lead Agency
Deputy Secretary of Defense · Sponsor: Defense Innovation Unit
Operational Domains
Air · Sea · Land
Mission Areas
Counter UAS +2
OVERVIEW

Replicator is a Deputy Secretary of Defense initiative accelerating the fielding of thousands of small, attritable, autonomous systems across air, sea, and land domains. Rather than developing new platforms, Replicator selects and scales commercial and defense-industry systems that can reach the warfighter in 18-24 months. The initiative uses existing procurement authorities and OSD-directed acquisition sprints to accelerate delivery. Tranche 1 has included loitering munitions, autonomous surface vessels, and drone systems for maritime operations. Public documentation states the program goal of fielding attritable autonomous systems at scale across multiple domains.

AT A GLANCE
Status
Active
Started
2023
Organizations
6
Technologies
4
Last reviewed 2026-07-23
PROGRAM TIMELINE
Announced
COMPLETE
Prototype
COMPLETE
Testing
CURRENT PHASE
Fielding
PLANNED
Full capability
PLANNED
OBJECTIVES
01Field attritable autonomous systems at scale
02Compress procurement timelines to under 24 months
03Draw on commercial suppliers for production scale
04Prioritize systems that mass-produce faster than adversary attrition
PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS · 6
See all 6 in directory →
Anduril Industries, Inc.Participant · public program documentation
Kratos Defense & Security SolutionsParticipant · public program documentation
Shield AIParticipant · public program documentation
AeroVironment, Inc.Participant · public program documentation
SaildroneParticipant · public program documentation
SkydioParticipant · public program documentation
Participation from public program documentation — never paid, never ranked. Contact Bearings deliberately omitted from the public layer.
RELATED PROGRAMS
REFERENCES
OSD Replicator pageDIU public briefingsCongressional testimony
Last reviewed 2026-07-23
Bearings Network content is compiled from publicly available government, academic, and industry sources and is intended as a factual reference. Analysis, forecasts, and proprietary insights are available through Bearings.