BREAKING: Inside DoW w/ Emil Michael, Under Secretary of War for R&E, & DoW CTO
Uber to Pentagon, Truth behind Dept of War
With great honor, Mr. Emil Michael, the Under Secretary of War for Research & Engineering (USW(R&E)) and Chief Technology Officer for the Department of War (DoW), joins Sourcery in front of an F-117 at the Reagan National Defense Forum 2025 to dispel common misconceptions about the DoW, share innovations in modern defense technology, & the role of ‘new primes’ like Palantir, SpaceX, & Anduril.
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Drawing on his unique path from hyperscaling Uber into a global technology company to now overseeing the DoW’s research, development, & prototyping enterprise, he breaks down how the system actually works behind the scenes.
He also outlines the DoW’s 6 Critical Technology Areas — Applied AI, Scaled Hypersonics, Scaled Directed Energy, Biomanufacturing, Contested Logistics, & Battlefield Information Dominance — and explains how these priorities reflect the realities of modern warfare rather than the myths often portrayed around the sector.
Bonus: Newer companies Emil Michael highlights as emerging leaders in defense innovation include:
Planet Labs for commercial satellite imagery
Neros as a next-generation drone company
Hadrian for AI-driven advanced manufacturing
And a broader group of frontier AI companies now engaging with the DoW.
Top 10 Quotes Below.
𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐒
(00:00) Emil Michael
(01:16) Oversight of DARPA, MDA, CDAO & DIU
(02:11) From Uber to the DoW — how he entered government
(03:34) Modernizing the largest bureaucracy in the world
(05:30) China’s advancements & shifting U.S. priorities
(10:14) Why the DoW reduced 14 tech areas to 6
(11:00) Applied AI & adapting commercial AI for defense
(11:47) Hypersonics, directed energy & counter-drone systems
(12:36) Contested logistics, biomanufacturing & new materials
(13:41) America’s “1938 moment” & rebuilding industrial capacity
(15:35) Preparing & protecting future U.S. warfighters
(17:05) Lessons from Ukraine: drone-on-drone warfare
(18:49) Expanding partnerships & accelerating AI across the DoW
(23:13) Clearing misconceptions about Palantir & defense tech companies
(29:35) Emerging innovators: Planet Labs, Neros, Hadrian & frontier AI
EMIL MICHAEL
Under Secretary of War for Research & Engineering & Department of War Chief Technology Officer
Mr. Emil Michael serves as the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering (USW(R&E)) and Chief Technology Officer for the Department of War(DoW), spearheading the Department’s efforts to ensure U.S. military technological superiority and keep the DoW at the forefront of innovation. In this critical role, he provides strategic direction and oversight for the DoW’s entire research, development, and prototyping enterprise, including direct oversight of organizations such as the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Missile Defense Agency (MDA).
Prior to his appointment as USW(R&E), Mr. Michael distinguished himself as a White House Fellow, serving as Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense. In that role, he managed key projects in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan and oversaw the ‘tooth-to-tail’ reform effort aimed at reducing overhead and bureaucracy to provide resources to our warfighters. His contributions earned him the Secretary of Defense Award for Outstanding Public Service.
After his initial tenure in the Department, Mr. Michael served on the Defense Business Board (DBB), where he drew on his vast private-sector experience to introduce commercial best practices into the department’s operational framework. In this role, he helped craft policy recommendations that modernized procurement processes, optimized resource management, fostered a culture of agile decision-making, and facilitated closer collaboration between industry and the Department.
Beyond his government service, Mr. Michael has developed significant business experience in the private sector. He has helped build several successful companies, including D-Wave Systems, Tellme Networks, and Uber Technologies. Mr. Michael has a proven track record of anticipating technology shifts and identifying companies ripe for hyperscale, with investments spanning a broad range of companies across AI, financial technology, quantum computing, and consumer logistics.
During his tenure as Chief Business Officer at Uber from 2013 to 2017, he created global partnerships, drove over $20 billion in capital-raising initiatives, and helped orchestrate strategic mergers and acquisitions. He launched the UberMilitary initiative to support military families during relocations, demonstrating an ability to translate commercial success into meaningful support for the defense community. He also helped drive the creation of Uber’s Advanced Technology Group, which was Uber’s primary initiative to develop self-driving car technology. By blending his private sector insights with the unique imperatives of national defense, Mr. Michael aims to accelerate the transition of breakthrough technologies from prototype to operational reality, ensuring that the U.S. military maintains its technological edge.
Top 10 Quotes
Defense Innovation & Industrial Strategy
1. “My job is to create five more companies [on top of the ‘new primes’] that work in the department and bring new capabilities.”
2. “It’s literally the biggest bureaucracy in the world — three million people — and I get to say, clean sheet of paper, what should we be doing differently?”
3. “If something’s critical for ten years, that means you’re not making much progress on it.”
4. “You don’t want to fight a war. You want to prevent a war… and you can only do that by being strong.”
AI, Technology & Modernization
5. Of the 6 Critical Technology Areas, “Applied AI is number one… the big companies are already spending hundreds of billions of dollars in AI and AI infrastructure… all I need to do is take that and adapt it for the Department.”
Geopolitics, Warfighting & Drones
6. “China started investing in really sophisticated capabilities while we were fighting terrorists with improvised explosive devices.”
7. “The Ukraine war became a robot war — drone on drone… the front lines are robots against robots.”
Defense Tech, Palantir & Misconceptions
8. “Palantir is really a nuts-and-bolts software company… we didn’t know where our stuff was… we were spending trillions of dollars over the years… where are our tanks, where are our munitions… how do we understand where they are in their life cycle, how do we repair them?”
9. “If helping the American government do lawful things makes you evil, I don’t know who’s left.”
Private Sector Perspective & Leadership
10. “The biggest surprise is the quality and camaraderie of the people at the top of the government… there’s not a lot of political infighting — this is about a team effort.”
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