Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Tuesday, September 30, 2025
This Tuesday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Pentagon's efforts to foster a U.S. critical minerals industrial base, plus the Army working on counter-drone lasers and more.
While interest in domestic mining activity has ramped up in recent years, that’s only a first step in creating a U.S.-based critical mineral supply chain. Refining -- which includes purifying and separating mined or extracted raw materials -- begins the midstream phase of that supply chain, which also includes processing:
DOD awards $2M to refine critical minerals, rare-earth elements
The Defense Department awarded $2 million to ReElement Technologies Corp. for its technology to separate and purify critical minerals and rare-earth elements for national security applications, the company announced today.
AeroVironment last week announced it had delivered two ISVs paired with its LOCUST weapon system, a 20 kilowatt-class laser designed to track, target and take out aerial threats:
Army to test AeroVironment's counter-drone laser from the back of ISVs
The Army has received two Infantry Squad Vehicles fitted with a directed-energy prototype designed to take down drones, marking a step toward improved mobility with counter unmanned aerial systems.
A new Defense Department inspector general's report "assess[es] the effectiveness of the Navy's management of the MQ‑4C Triton unmanned aircraft program's operational capabilities":
Navy's MQ-4C Triton retains deficiencies that could threaten mission success, DOD IG warns
The Navy failed to effectively manage the operational capabilities of its MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft, according to a Defense Department inspector general program audit, which found the service declared initial operational capability in spite of deficiencies that could prevent the aircraft from performing its mission.
Document: DOD IG report on Navy's management of Triton UAS
The next iteration of the Army's mixed-reality goggle program is now under contract:
Army awards contracts to Anduril, Rivet for next iteration of IVAS
The Army has awarded other transaction agreements to Anduril Industries and Rivet Industries for prototypes of the next iteration of the Integrated Visual Augmentation System, now formally known as the Soldier Borne Mission Command system (SBMC), the service’s Program Executive Office Soldier announced this week.
Gurpartap Sandhoo, who was recently named as the Space Development Agency's deputy director, will serve as acting director, while Chief Program Officer Mike Eppolito will serve as acting deputy director:
Tournear leaving SDA, Sandhoo named acting director
Space Development Agency Director Derek Tournear is leaving the organization he's been leading since it was first established, according to an SDA announcement.