Alternate Access for Cyber Applications: Exodus

About this funding opportunity

NAICS CODE: 541715

FEDERAL AGENCY NAME: Department of the Air Force, Air Force Materiel Command, AFRL - Rome Research Site, AFRL/Information & Spectrum Warfare Directorate, 26 Electronic Parkway, Rome, NY, 13441-4514

ARA ANNOUNCEMENT TYPE: Initial Announcement

ADVANCED RESEARCH ANNOUNCEMENT (ARA) TITLE: Alternate Access for Cyber Applications: Exodus

ARA NUMBER: FA8750-26-S-7004

PART I, OVERVIEW INFORMATION

This announcement is for an Open, two step ARA which is open and effective until 6:00PM EST on 30 June 2031. Only white papers will be accepted as initial submissions; formal proposals will be accepted by invitation only. While white papers will be considered if received prior to 6:00pm Eastern Standard Time (EST) on 30 SEP 2030, the following submission dates are suggested to best align with projected funding:

FY27 by 30 Sep 2026

FY28 by 30 Sep 2027

FY29 by 30 Sep 2028

FY30 by 30 Sep 2029

FY31 by 30 Dec 2030

Offerors should monitor the Contract Opportunities on the SAM website at https://SAM.gov in the event this announcement is amended.

CONCISE SUMMARY OF TECHNOLOGY REQUIREMENT: Seeking to develop offensive cyberspace operations (OCO) alternate access cyber capability prototypes in support of Long Range Kill Chains (LRKC) that could transition into Department of War (DoW) operational organizations to facilitate gaining adversary infrastructure access that would otherwise not be possible through traditional cyber capabilities ensuring our Nation’s superiority in the Cyber Domain.

ARA ESTIMATED FUNDING: Total funding for this ARA is approximately $999M. Individual awards will not normally exceed sixty (60) months with dollar amounts normally ranging from $10M to $50M. There is also the potential to make awards up to $99.99M.

ANTICIPATED INDIVIDUAL AWARDS: Multiple Awards are anticipated. However, the Air Force reserves the right to award zero, one, or more Procurement Contracts/Other Transactions, for all, some, or none of the solicited effort based on the offeror’s ability to perform desired work and funding fluctuations. There is no limit on the number of OTs that may be awarded to an individual offeror.

TYPE OF INSTRUMENTS THAT MAY BE AWARDED: FAR based procurement contracts or other transactions (OT) under 10 USC 4021, 10 USC 4022 and 10 USC 4023 (previously 10 USC 4002, 2371, 10 USC 4003, 2371b and 4004, 2373)

In the event that an Other Transaction for Prototype agreement is awarded as a result of this competitive ARA, and the prototype project is successfully completed, there is the potential for a prototype project to transition to award of a follow-on production contract or transaction. The Other Transaction for Prototype agreement itself will also contain a similar notice of a potential follow-on production contract or agreement.

AGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION: All white paper submissions and any questions of a technical nature shall be directed to the cognizant Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) as specified below (unless otherwise specified in the technical area):

ARA PROGRAM MANAGER:

Thomas Parisi

AFRL/RFGD

525 Brooks Rd

Rome, NY 13441-4505

Telephone: (315) 315-832-4041

Email: afrl.rf.hellfire@us.af.mil

Questions of a contractual/business nature shall be directed to the cognizant contracting officer, as specified below ( email requests are preferred):

Amber Buckley

Email: Amber. Buckley@us.af.mil

Emails must reference the solicitation ARA number and title of the acquisition.

Pre-Proposal Communication between Prospective Offerors and Government Representatives: Dialogue between prospective offerors and Government representatives is encouraged. Technical and contracting questions can be resolved in writing or through open discussions. Discussions with any of the points of contact shall not constitute a commitment by the Government to subsequently fund or award any proposed effort. Only Contracting Officers are legally authorized to commit the Government.

Offerors are cautioned that…

Topic areas: General and Cross-cutting R&D, Security and Defense.

Funding amount

This contract provides Varies in funding.

Deadline

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis; there is no single fixed deadline.

Who can apply

This opportunity is open to the following applicant types:

• SME
• MidCaps
• Large Company
• Startups
• University
• Research Organization
• NGOs
• Public Authorities

Eligibility

The program did not publish a separate eligibility statement. See the official opportunity page for the full eligibility criteria.

Agency

Alternate Access for Cyber Applications: Exodus is administered by Department Of Defense (DOD), listed via SAM.gov.