DARPAConnect

DARPA Lift Challenge: Revolutionizing Heavy Vertical Lift Aviation

DARPA Lift Challenge: Revolutionizing Heavy Vertical Lift Aviation DARPA is calling on innovators to help revolutionize vertical lift. The DARPA Lift Challenge offers $6.5 million in prizes to teams that can design drones capable of carrying payloads more than four times their own weight -- a breakthrough that could transform how drones are used for both military and civilian missions. From battlefield logistics to disaster response, this Challenge taps into the American spirit of innovation -- encouraging students, independent inventors, and industry to push the limits of aerodynamic design, propulsion, and materials science. The competition is slated for Summer 2026 , with the application period tentatively opening on January 5, 2026 . Learn More

Fleetwood Industry Day

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will host an in-person Industry Day with a virtual listening option in support of the DARPA Program Solicitation (PS) for Fleetwood on March 12, 2026. DARPA anticipates releasing the program solicitation prior to Industry Day. If released, the PS will be made available at https://sam.gov/. The goals of the Industry Day are: 1) To introduce the science and technology community (industry, academia, and government) to the Fleetwood program vision and goals; 2) To facilitate interaction between researchers with capabilities and interests relevant to the Fleetwood program goals; 3) To collect questions during the event that DARPA may answer and make available in a Question and Answer document; and 4) To encourage and promote teaming arrangements among organizations that have the relevant expertise, research facilities, and capabilities to execute research and development aligned with the Fleetwood program goals. The Industry Day will include overview presentations by government personnel and opportunities for team building among the participants. It is anticipated that Industry Day materials will be posted online to https://www.darpa.mil/research/programs/fleetwood.