The INSIDER daily digest -- November 13, 2025

We begin this Thursday INSIDER Daily Digest with the government re-opening, the Army stands up a new directorate, defense industry newcomers like Secretary Pete Hegseth’s acquisition reform moves, and news from the world of vertical takeoff aviation.

The Navy’s No. 1 program is left out of the recently passed funding bill:

Shutdown-ending CR funds shipbuilding but omits Columbia

A stopgap spending measure that will fund the federal government through Jan. 30 contains about $1.1 billion in cost to complete funding for Navy shipbuilding accounts but lacks previously requested support for the service’s top-priority Columbia-class submarine program.

The Army is trying to get technology to its soldiers much faster:

Army pushing acquisition to the front lines with new Global Tactical Edge directorate

The Army is creating a new Global Tactical Edge Acquisition Directorate to accelerate how battlefield technology reaches soldiers, part of a broader push to shorten the cycle between innovation and large-scale procurement and a major overhaul of the service’s acquisition enterprise unveiled today.

Defense industry newbies are bullish on DOD’s defense acquisition transformation:

New defense entrants see promise in Hegseth’s ‘acquisition transformation’ plan

Startups and scaleups in the defense industry are saying Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s plan to “transform” the defense acquisition ecosystem signals the Pentagon is ready to act like a rational buyer and open the market to new industrial base players.

A new electric vertical takeoff aircraft has taken flight:

Joby logs first flight of hybrid VTOL aircraft

Joby Aviation flew its autonomous hybrid electric vertical takeoff and landing demonstrator for the first time last week, the company announced today, completing the feat roughly three months after it initially revealed the aircraft’s concept.