AFWERX, an innovation arm of the Department of the Air Force and powered by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), serves as a facilitator, connecting the Air Force, Space Force with cutting-edge American ingenuity from small businesses and start-ups. AFWERX operates several programs like Ventures, Spark, Prime and Spacewerx to expand the defense industrial base for advanced technologies and accelerate the transition of technology. It partners with organizations like Keystone Space Collaborative and Astrobotic to create innovation hubs and drive collaboration with industry, academia, and government.
All verified mentions of this organization in source documents.
The SpaceWERX TACFI program is run through AFWERX and the Air Force Research Laboratory.
The SSIB 2025 report recommends broader use of AFWERX STRATFI and TACFI funding and the DIU’s commercial grant mechanisms.
Q Station lavora a servizio di SpaceWERX, l’unità per l’innovazione della U.S. Space Force parte dell’ecosistema AFWERX.
The partnership between the Air Force Research Laboratory and AFWERX aims to accelerate small business proposal to award timelines.
$1.25 million AFWERX Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II contract has been awarded to Star Catcher Industries to advance critical subsystems for its orbital energy grid.
The Air Force Research Laboratory and AFWERX have partnered to streamline the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) process.
Under the AFWERX SBIR contract, Viridian plans to assemble and test-fire the propulsion system on the ground over the next two years.
The tests were financed through the STRATFI funding program of AFWERX for the development of aerospace technologies.
The UHF Planar DRA radar was partially funded by a 2023 Direct to Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award from AFWERX to support U.S. Space Force requirements.
In 2023, AFWERX awarded Solstar a $1,250,000 SBIR Phase 2 contract to continue development of the Deke Space Communicator.
Under an AFWERX SBIR announced in May, Solstar is developing radiation-hardened Wi‑Fi access points and client Wi‑Fi Network Cards to support rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking for in-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing applications.
Solstar is designing the Continuous Spacecraft System Communications Wideband unit, known as the Slayton Space Communicator, under a $1,250,000 AFWERX SBIR Phase 2 contract announced in April.
The $1,900,000 Hydrosat contract is part of the AFWERX Tactical Finance program known as TACFI.
Since 2019, AFWERX has executed over 6,200 new contracts worth more than $4,700,000,000.
AFWERX employs approximately 370 military, civilian, and contractor personnel at five hubs and sites and executes an annual $1,400,000,000 budget.
Mobius Logic, Inc. was selected by AFWERX for a Tactical Fund Increase (TACFI) contract worth $3,200,000 focused on developing AI and reinforcement learning tools for an asymmetric autonomous space fleet and augmenting the existing manned fleet to address Department of the Air Force challenges.
Since 2019, AFWERX has executed over 6,100 new contracts worth more than $4,000,000,000.
Outpost Technologies Corporation will receive a $33.2 million, four-year Strategic Funding Increase (STRATFI) contract from AFWERX Air Force Ventures to develop and test a scalable heat shield, payload bus, and paragliding system for a Joint Precision Orbital Cargo (J-POC) space vehicle.
AFWERX employs approximately 370 military, civilian, and contractor personnel at five hubs and sites and executes an annual $1,400,000,000 budget.
HawkEye 360 has been selected by AFWERX for an SBIR Phase II contract focused on delivering RFGeo® and RFIQ™ data to address challenges in the Department of the Air Force.