Ousted DIU leader leaves behind a blueprint for faster tech. Defense Innovation Unit Director Doug Beck, a champion of acquisition reform who was instrumental in the Pentagon’s push to rapidly build and deploy new technology, resigned Friday due to political pressure, Defense Department sources told Defense One’s Patrick Tucker. Pentagon officials had raised concerns about Beck’s political donations to Democrats, Reuters reported Monday.

Beck’s efforts had received broad endorsement from Republican lawmakers and SecDef Hegseth. A March memo from the Defense Secretary’s office essentially directed a scaling-up of DIU’s practices: removing barriers and contract restrictions so the services and the combatant commands can purchase new technology through streamlined contracts. The mem

See Full Page