The effort is part of the new Workforce Acceleration and Recapitalization Initiative that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth launched in late March.

In two memorandums, obtained and authenticated by DefenseScoop Tuesday, Feinberg directs Defense Department leadership to carry out an incentive program and comprehensive organizational review that Hegseth ordered as part of a broader, disruptive campaign to promote efficiency by reorganizing the department’s workforce and investments.

“I will lead the DOD effort to rebalance and optimize its civilian workforce to urgently rebuild our military, revive the warrior ethos, and deliver maximum deterrence,” Feinberg wrote in the new directive on the organizational review and potential restructuring.

The guidance was sent to Pentagon leadership, combatant commanders, and defense agency and DOD field activity directors.

He confirmed that the “proposed future-state organizational charts” that Hegseth previously requested, which are set to be delivered to Feinberg by April 11, mark an early step in achieving the overarching aims.

Those proposals for the preliminary review “should communicate potential opportunities to reduce or eliminate redundant or non-essential functions and include adjusted civilian manpower levels that reflect these projected changes,” Feinberg wrote.

The Pentagon’s No. 2 told DOD component leaders to conduct a more detailed assessment based on additional guidance attached to the memo and to provide updated proposals to the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness by May 24. Those suggestions will inform the department’s fuller, comprehensive review and other organizational modifications in fiscal years 2025 and 2026.

“Every civilian role should directly enable lethality, readiness, or strategic deterrence. If not, it should be reclassified, outsourced, or removed,” Feinberg wrote in the attached guidance.

“Every role must now meet a simple test: If this position didn’t exist today, and we were at war tomorrow, would we create it? If the answer is no, it should be consolidated, restructured, or eliminated,” he added.

In the process, DOD will aim to consolidate duplicative functions, overlapping offices, and parallel authorities while also eliminating any identified excessive layers of supervision and middle management. 

Further, Feinberg said “Digital-First Operations” associated with technology innovation will be prioritized in this new initiative.

“We should modernize or eliminate manual workflows, paper-based processes, and outdated IT platforms and leverage automation and artificial intelligence to power the mission impact of our civilian workforce,” he wrote. 

Pentagon Spokesman Eric Pahon told DefenseScoop in a statement over email that this memo sets off “one of the most ambitious efforts in decades to modernize how the department is organized and operates.” 

“This is about more than efficiency — it’s about designing a workforce and structure that moves at the speed of today’s challenges,” Pahon said.

In a separate issuance on the WAR initiative focused on providing incentivizes to DOD’s workforce, Feinberg directed DOD component heads this week to “identify and reserve appropriate funding for civilian awards and bonus pools to recognize and reward truly outstanding performance,” adding that he will “also support a broader utilization of bonuses to ensure the department is best positioned to recruit and retain extraordinary civilian employees.”

He called on the undersecretary of defense for P&R to supply him with their recommendations for changes to the department’s civilian personnel performance management and promotion systems within 60 days of the memo’s release. 

Feinberg is “asking leaders across the department to use bonuses and awards not just as a tool — but as a strategy. A strategy to attract, empower, and celebrate extraordinary civilian talent at a time when their contributions are more vital than ever … As we continue to streamline and modernize the Department’s structure over the next 12 to 18 months, this initiative helps ensure that our best people remain at the center of the mission,” Pahon said.

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Obtained by DefenseScoop and authenticated by several defense officials this week, the March 31 memo and its attached spreadsheet reveal a wide range of existing rules and guidance associated with the Defense Department’s intelligence, information technology, weapons acquisition and other portfolios that are now up for review.

The Trump administration’s new Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, is run by billionaire and presidential adviser Elon Musk. Since its launch near the start of Trump’s second term, DOGE has led multiple disruptive initiatives to cut what they consider wasteful spending and reduce the size of the federal workforce.

On Feb. 19, Trump signed an executive order — titled “Ensuring Lawful Governance and Implementing the President’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ Deregulatory Initiative” — that directs federal agencies to review and potentially cancel regulations that are deemed to be unconstitutional, innovation-stifling, not in the United States’ interests, or too burdensome on small businesses and private entrepreneurship, among other categories.

In the March 31 implementation memo that he penned to senior Pentagon leadership and defense agency and field activity directors, Feinberg designated the assistant to the secretary of defense for privacy, civil liberties, and transparency as the principal staff assistant in charge for carrying out the deregulation mandate.

He called on senior officials leading more than a dozen DOD components to go through their organizations’ regulations identified in the attachments and specify whether any “classes” from the Trump EO apply to them, and also indicate whether the rules should be changed or terminated. Some of those DOD components tasked in the guidance include the Office of the Chief Information Officer, the Pentagon’s Research and Engineering and Intelligence and Security directorates, Office of the Inspector General, as well as the Departments of the Army, Navy and Air Force.

Feinberg tasked officials to complete their spreadsheet responses and submit them by close of business April 18.

“As stated in E.O. 14219, the Administrator of [the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs] shall consult with agency heads to develop a Unified Regulatory Agenda that seeks to rescind or modify, as appropriate, regulations that fit within the classes identified” in the memo, he wrote.

Regulations that pertain to the Pentagon CIO’s Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program appear to be among hundreds of rules up for review, according to the memo attachments viewed by DefenseScoop. Two other notable tech-aligned regulatory inclusions that are set to be evaluated are R&E guidance on protecting human subjects during research experiments and an I&S policy on cloud service offerings.

“Deputy Secretary Feinberg’s directive helps to ensure DOD fully supports President Trump’s Executive Order to cut red tape and unleash prosperity, while maintaining our focus on national defense and mission-critical priorities. This memo demonstrates that under Secretary Hegseth’s leadership, we’re actively moving out to eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy, streamline our operations, and refocus resources on warfighter readiness and strategic priorities,” Eric Pahon, spokesman for the deputy secretary of defense, told DefenseScoop Wednesday.

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Caine, President Donald Trump’s pick to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is a former F-16 pilot who held a variety of roles throughout his 34-year military career, including with the active-duty Air Force and National Guard, the special operations community and the CIA.

But at Tuesday’s hearing with the Senate Armed Services Committee, he also highlighted his private sector experience.

“I’ve been an entrepreneur and investor in the business sector while a citizen soldier in the National Guard,” Caine noted. “I’ve also had the privilege of serving alongside incredible business leaders, starting and scaling companies as an entrepreneur. And along the way, I learned what a different kind of grit looks like. Our American entrepreneurial spirit is a force multiplier, and my time as an entrepreneur has made me a better general officer and leader. And if confirmed, I’ll bring more of that spirit into the joint force.”

After his recent retirement from the military, Caine became chairman of the national security advisory board at Voyager Space, a venture partner at Shield Capital, an advisor for Thrive Capital and a venture partner at Ribbit Capital, according to his LinkedIn bio.

“I also may be the only officer ever nominated for this position with experience in the venture capital world, an experience I will draw on as the DoD looks to modernize its business systems and revitalize America’s Defense Industrial Base,” Caine wrote in his responses to advance policy questions from senators.

Caine’s confirmation process comes as the Pentagon is trying to buy more technologies from the commercial sector, including software and hardware, and bring more nontraditional companies into its acquisition fold. The department’s Silicon Valley-headquartered Defense Innovation Unit has been spearheading many of these efforts.

Caine told lawmakers that the U.S. commercial marketplace is “teaming with innovative solutions” for defending the nation. However, the biggest challenge is bringing them into the force.

“The Department must work to exploit these solutions via rapid prototyping programs, defense innovation organizations, and congressionally granted authorities,” he wrote.

The DOD needs to make investments that promote resilient supply chains, workforce readiness, closer collaboration with commercial industry, flexible acquisition, and support from international allies and partners, he suggested.

“The Joint Force should re-evaluate its interactions with industry and fight for access to the commercial space, leveraging organizations like the Defense Innovation Unit,” Caine wrote.

The Pentagon’s research and engineering directorate has been focusing on 14 “critical technology areas” as it pursues next-generation capabilities, including hypersonics, FutureG wireless technology, advanced materials, integrated network systems-of-systems, directed energy, integrated sensing and cyber, space technology, quantum science, trusted AI and autonomy, microelectronics, renewable energy generation and storage, advanced computing and software, human-machine interfaces, and biotechnology.

Caine noted that DOD also needs to spend more money on advanced manufacturing technology.

“Investments in advanced manufacturing will have impacts across the listed 14 critical technology areas and enable the United States to produce complex components and systems more quickly and cost effectively. If confirmed, I’ll work with [Defense] Secretary [Pete] Hegseth to refine the development and acquisition of these technologies in order to enable rapid employment to meet the needs of the Joint Warfighter to fulfill the Administration’s strategy,” he wrote.

If confirmed, he promised to work with Hegseth and his team to evaluate the budget for next-gen capabilities.

Caine told senators that there’s “room for improvement” in how investments in next-gen capabilities are synchronized across the department.

“There is a lot of good work going on, but I do have some concerns that innovation entities are actually colliding with each other in the incubation process. The DOD must have a greater level of collaboration between entities in order to maximize the return on the [U.S. government’s] invested capital,” he wrote.

He said he’s “encouraged” that there are new leaders coming into the department with substantive business backgrounds. Although he didn’t mention any by name, Deputy Secretary of Defense Stephen Feinberg, Navy Secretary John Phelan and other senior officials were wealthy businessmen and investors when they were tapped by Trump to serve on his national security team during his second term.

Pentagon leaders need to have an “entrepreneurial mindset” as they pursue reforms, Caine said.

Trump surprised many in February when he announced Caine, an unconventional pick, as his choice for chairman after firing Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown.

Caine is expected to garner enough votes to get confirmed. Republicans have a majority in the Senate with 53 GOP members. Apart from Hegseth, who narrowly won confirmation in January, Trump’s nominees for top Pentagon posts during his second term have been confirmed by comfortable margins during final voting.

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Hegseth signed a memo on Friday, “Initiating the Workforce Acceleration and Recapitalization Initiative,” that was directed to senior Pentagon leadership, combatant commands, and defense agency and field activity directors. The move comes as department leaders are looking to shed civilian employees and reinvest the savings elsewhere as part of the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency efforts.

“It’s an important new opportunity to right-size DOD,” Hegseth said in a video.

“The Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (USD(P&R)) will immediately open the DoD Deferred Resignation Program and offer the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority to all eligible DoD civilian employees. Exemptions should be rare. My intent is to maximize participation so that we can minimize the number of involuntary actions that may be required to achieve the strategic objectives,” Hegseth wrote in the March 28 memo, which was viewed by DefenseScoop.

Prior to the issuance of the new directive, the Pentagon was already placing more than 20,000 employees on administrative leave and a path to full termination, following staff approval for voluntary participation in the Trump administration’s previous round of the Elon Musk-inspired “fork in the road” initiative, according to officials.

“Employees who accept deferred resignations should promptly have their duties re-assigned or eliminated and be placed on paid administrative leave until the end of the deferred resignation period (generally September 30, 2025, unless the employee has designated an earlier resignation date), unless the agency head determines that it is necessary for the employee to be actively engaged in transitioning job duties, in which case employees should be placed on paid administrative leave as soon as those duties are transitioned,” the acting director of the Office of Personnel Management wrote in a Jan. 28 memo.

In his March 28 memo, Hegseth emphasized that the department needs to realign resources.

“DoD civilians already support mission-critical requirements, but an honest analysis will reveal opportunities to consolidate duplicative functions, reject excessive bureaucracy, and implement technological solutions that automate routine tasks, particularly at the headquarters level. The net effect will be a reduction in the number of civilian full-time equivalent positions, and increased resources in the areas where we need them most,” he wrote.

Defense officials previously said Pentagon leadership was aiming to reduce DOD’s civilian workforce by 5-8 percent — upwards of 50,000 employees — via multiple pathways, including the Deferred Resignation Program, removing certain probationary employees and instituting a civilian hiring freeze.

“Important changes are required to put the department on ready footing to deter our enemies and fight for peace. This is not about a target number of layoffs at the DoD. The intent is to execute a top-to-bottom methodology that results in a force structure that is lean, mean, and prepared to win,” Hegseth wrote in the new memo.

He directed the secretaries of the military departments, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, directors of defense agencies and field activities, and his principal staff assistants to deliver a “proposed future-state organizational chart.”

“It will reflect required analysis and include functional areas, consolidated management hierarchy, and position titles and counts clearly depicted,” he wrote.

The undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness is expected to submit the initial proposal to Deputy Secretary of Defense Stephen Feinberg by April 11.

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Feinberg, a billionaire investor and businessman with no previous experience working at the Defense Department, is now set to play a key role in shaping the U.S. military’s modernization efforts and managing DOD’s sprawling enterprise.

President Donald Trump tapped Feinberg to work with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to shake things up at the Pentagon.

Ahead of his confirmation hearing last month, Feinberg told lawmakers that if confirmed, he would “prioritize the review of the Department’s investments in future technologies to ensure that the Department’s investments are aligned with national security needs.”

He suggested that the high-profile Replicator autonomous systems initiative, launched during the Biden administration, would be part of such a review.

Feinberg noted that he would seek opportunities to eliminate what he considers wasteful spending and reinvest the savings in other programs.

“If confirmed, I expect to lead a thorough review of Defense Department spending, incorporating bottom-up and topdown reviews to ensure that the President’s priorities are funded within the guidance provided by the Office of Management and Budget,” he wrote in response to advance policy questions from senators. “I welcome the opportunity to work with Congress to improve efficiency and increase readiness by rapidly fielding innovative technologies, reviving our defense industrial base, reforming our acquisitions process, and passing a financial audit.”

Feinberg has endorsed the integration of more uncrewed systems into the U.S. military’s arsenal.

“This evolution is crucial for increasing our capacity and augmenting our operational forces with new/novel technologies that will provide both lethal and non-lethal capabilities,” he told lawmakers, noting that he planned to look at related efforts across doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leadership and education, personnel and facilities (DOTMLPF) and “advocate for changes that will capitalize on the pace of which technology is changing while ensuring robust cybersecurity measures to safeguard all of our capabilities.”

Feinberg was previously co-founder, co-CEO and chief investment officer for the global investment and private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, which has invested in companies that do business with the Pentagon.

Feinberg told lawmakers that he had “dozens of ideas” about ways to improve the structure and operations of the DOD.

“I believe our program requirements need to be far less rigid, far less gold-plated, much easier to achieve, less costly, and much quicker to meet. We also need to stop changing the requirements once we set them. This is essential to be able to not only meet our program demands but also to meet them on time. This also enables us to have a much more nimble and agile acquisition capability that would also attract new entrants and promote more competition. This is not easy to achieve, but it can be done effectively,” he wrote.

Another idea he floated would be to “sponsor” private sector manufacturing companies to help them enter the DOD innovation ecosystem, including through “sole-source noncompetitive opportunities.”

“As we know, we have too few fully capable product providers at DoD as there has been way too much consolidation and too much concentration among the big major defense players. This reliance on a few companies leaves DoD very exposed. We have great manufacturing companies in the United States who are excellent in developing and scaling capabilities who aren’t working with DoD today,” he wrote.

“There are creative ways under the [Federal Acquisition Regulation] to provide sole-source noncompetitive opportunities for these large companies to motivate them and make it possible for them to enter the defense industry. Often these types of companies, despite their great capabilities, are not conversant in DoD process or practices and requirements and competing with our big defense majors is very difficult. Being creative to give them help and a big jumpstart in non-traditional ways may be frowned upon because this is a departure from traditional competition-based acquisition policy. But it can be done legally and is very necessary to bring a much bigger part of our large industrial base into the defense industry. We have seen this in the past during wartime, and this is so important today due to a dearth of large manufacturing companies who know how to scale who are currently servicing DoD,” he added.

He noted that the secretary of defense would have to give the green light to implement these types of concepts, suggesting that they need to be “carefully looked at and determined if they are possible.”

He also recommended bringing more people with private sector expertise — including experience working at tech companies — into government.

Feinberg comes into the job as personnel from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — spearheaded by Elon Musk — are examining Pentagon spending, and the DOD is reviewing contracting policies, procedures and personnel to comply with Trump’s DOGE directive.

As of Friday, some of Trump’s other nominees for high-level Pentagon jobs have yet to be confirmed, including Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, John Phelan as Navy secretary and Troy Meink as Air Force secretary, among others.

Last month, Trump removed Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown from his position as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and also fired Adm. Lisa Franchetti as chief of naval operations.

Trump’s pick for Army secretary, Daniel Driscoll, was confirmed in February. Hegseth narrowly won confirmation in January as secretary of defense.

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However, the billionaire investor stopped short of revealing any immediate plans to disrupt the Pentagon’s ongoing Replicator initiative, which includes efforts to field thousands of uncrewed systems by August 2025.

“If confirmed, I will work with the appropriate stakeholders to review the value of initiatives like Replicator,” Feinberg wrote in response to advance policy questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee ahead of his confirmation hearing Tuesday.

That answer came after lawmakers’ inquiry into whether “a separate process like Replicator [is] needed within DOD to address the most pressing investment areas,” or if the existing acquisition and management mechanisms are sufficient to confront contemporary urgent needs.

Feinberg noted that, in his view, Replicator “tailors the rapid acquisition pathway to ensure rapid acquisition and deployment for items urgently needed to react to an enemy threat or respond to significant and urgent safety situations.” 

“I believe the department must utilize all of the authorities available to acquire capabilities to meet the most pressing and urgent needs, to include the capabilities being accelerated through Replicator,” he wrote.

First unveiled by former deputy Pentagon chief Kathleen Hicks in August 2023, Replicator 1.0 was then billed as a key military technology and procurement modernization campaign designed to counter China’s massive, ongoing military buildup by incentivizing U.S. industrial production capacity and the military’s adoption of drones en masse — through replicable processes — at a much faster pace. DOD was largely secretive about the initiative since its inception.

DefenseScoop reported that the first two tranches of selections — dubbed Replicator 1.1 and 1.2 — encompassed a variety of maritime and aerial drones, and associated counter-drone assets selected for mass manufacturing. In September 2024, defense leadership announced that, building on that success and momentum, Replicator 2.0 would accelerate the high-volume production of technologies designed to detect and destroy enemy drones.

Since Trump was elected in November and tapped Feinberg to serve as the Pentagon’s No. 2, many questions have swirled regarding the new administration’s vision for Replicator and whether plans are in the works to transform or terminate it. 

Feinberg’s responses to lawmakers’ questions suggest his intent to continue to prioritize efforts to deliver capabilities to support the military’s most critical operational problems, at scale.

“My understanding is that the Replicator initiative has focused on two critical areas: Replicator-1 is focused on delivering thousands of all-domain attritable autonomous systems to [U.S. Indo-Pacific Command] to counter the pacing threat posed by the People’s Republic of China, and Replicator-2 is focusing on countering the threat posed by small unmanned aerial systems to our most critical installations and force concentrations. Both of these operational problems remain pressing challenges and, if confirmed, I will continue to ensure the department focuses on delivering innovative capabilities to warfighters in line with the secretary’s priorities of rebuilding our military and reestablishing deterrence,” he wrote.

The high-stakes initiative was not a major focus during Feinberg’s confirmation hearing. But in response to questions from Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., the nominee pledged to frequently brief and update Congress on the department’s plan for Replicator, and drones writ large.

“In regards to [threats from] swarming technology, Replicator’s a very important program,” Budd said.

At another point while testifying, Feinberg also emphasized that autonomous technologies and assets like those enabled by the pursuit will be vital to the U.S. military’s ability to deter foreign adversaries in the near term.

“Clearly, we need to develop autonomy — autonomy in significant numbers, with a centralized command, effectively ‘brain.’ And we have to make the right decision on whether we need to build a next-generation aircraft, or we can rely on autonomy. Of course, we’ve got to improve our shipbuilding. China is very strong there. Our nuclear capabilities are old, we have to upgrade them. And we have to develop hypersonics,” Feinberg told lawmakers.

A full Senate confirmation vote for Feinberg has not yet been scheduled.

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Trump’s pick for deputy SecDef, billionaire investor Stephen Feinberg, is the co-founder, co-CEO and chief investment officer for global investment and private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management. He has a net worth of approximately $5 billion, according to Forbes. Unlike many previous nominees for the Pentagon’s No. 2 position, Feinberg has no prior experience working at the Defense Department.

He served as chair of the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board — which assesses the performance of the U.S. intelligence community, including IC activities, organizational structure, management and personnel, and makes recommendations for improvements — during Trump’s first term. He’s also donated to organizations supporting Trump’s presidential campaigns.

In a statement, the president-elect described Feinberg as an “extremely successful businessman” who will “help Make the Pentagon Great Again.”

If his nomination is confirmed by the Senate, Feinberg would be set to play a key role in shaping the U.S. military’s modernization efforts.

The deputy secretary historically has had a strong hand in managing DOD’s sprawling enterprise as well as shaping high-level resourcing and policy decisions. In recent years, that person has also spearheaded major modernization initiatives. For example, Kathleen Hicks, who has been serving in that post during the Biden administration, launched the Replicator initiative last year to accelerate the fielding of cutting-edge drones and autonomous systems.

Feinberg’s career path includes decades of experience as an investor.

Cerberus describes itself as “a global leader in alternative investing with approximately $66 billion in assets across complementary credit, private equity, and real estate strategies.” The firm’s venture investing platform, Cerberus Ventures, “seeks to partner with entrepreneurs and companies building technologies to accelerate innovation in areas critical for the public and private sectors,” according to a recent press release.

The organization has previously invested in companies that do contracting work for the Defense Department.

For example, earlier this year Cerberus announced that it acquired Calspan’s hypersonic and defense test systems business units from TransDigm Group, and formed North Wind, which was described in a press release as “an independent business centrally focused on the advancement of the United States’ hypersonic test capability through ground-based facility design, build and operations, testing, and analysis.”

Cerberus has also hired former senior DOD officials.

Last year, retired Gen. John “Jay” Raymond — who served as the first-ever chief of space operations after the Space Force was established during the first Trump administration — joined the firm as a senior managing director on its “Supply Chain and Strategic Opportunities” platform.

Prior to co-founding Cerberus, Feinberg managed pools of capital for Gruntal & Co. He also previously worked at Drexel Burnham Lambert, according to his Cerberus bio.

Trump’s selection of Feinberg isn’t the first time that he’s tapped a business executive without previous Pentagon employment experience to serve as the department’s No. 2. During his first term, he picked longtime Boeing exec Patrick Shanahan to take that role.

The Washington Post first reported Feinberg as Trump’s preference for the deputy SecDef position in his second term.

On Sunday, the president-elect also announced his picks for other key posts that will shape U.S. military modernization.

He selected Michael Duffey, who has previously held a number of government roles, to be undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment. As head of the A&S directorate, Duffey would be the Pentagon’s top weapons buyer.

Duffey previously served as associate director of national security programs in the Office of Management and Budget during the first Trump administration. He also has Pentagon experience, having held the posts of deputy chief of staff to the secretary of defense and chief of staff to the undersecretary of defense for research and engineering, among other roles, according to his bio on the website for the United Coalition for Advanced Nuclear Power, where he has held the position of treasurer.

“Mike has been a strong advocate for our Warfighters and the American Taxpayer throughout his many years of public service,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike will drive change at the Pentagon and, as a staunch proponent of an America First approach to our National Defense, will work to revitalize our Defense Industrial Base, and rebuild our Military.”

The president-elect also announced that he chose businessman Emil Michael to be undersecretary of defense for research and engineering. The R&E chief plays a key role in fostering next-generation military capabilities and overseeing critical technology areas for the Pentagon’s research-and-development enterprise, including trusted AI and autonomy; space; integrated sensing and cyber; integrated network systems of systems; renewable energy generation and storage; microelectronics; human-machine interfaces; advanced materials; directed energy; advanced computing and software; hypersonics; biotech; quantum; and FutureG wireless tech.

Michael was chief business officer at Uber, the ridesharing company, from 2013 to 2017. He has also been president of Technology Advisory and Consulting Services, chief operating officer of Klout, and special assistant to the secretary of defense, among other positions he’s held, according to his LinkedIn bio.

“Emil has lived the American Dream by building several successful Tech companies, including Uber,” Trump said in a statement, adding that he will “ensure that our Military has the most technologically sophisticated weapons in the World, while saving A LOT of money for our Taxpayers.”

Meanwhile, author and former senior DOD official Elbridge “Bridge” Colby was selected by Trump to be undersecretary of defense for policy. Colby served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy and force development during the first Trump administration, where he helped develop the 2018 National Defense Strategy, which prioritized great power competition with China and Russia.

Colby subsequently penned the book “Strategy of Denial: American Defense in an Age of Great Power Conflict.” He’s called for focusing U.S. military efforts on countering China in the Indo-Pacific and devoting fewer resources to conflicts in other regions.

In a statement, Trump described Colby as a “highly respected advocate for our America First foreign and defense policy,” adding that he will be expected to work closely with the next secretary of defense “to restore our Military power, and achieve my policy of PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.”

Their nominations must be confirmed by the Senate.

On Sunday, Trump also announced that he chose Keith Bass to be assistant secretary of defense for health affairs and Joe Kasper to be chief of staff for the secretary of defense.

Last month, the president-elect announced that he wanted Pete Hegseth, a Fox News commentator and author who previously served in the Army National Guard, to be his defense secretary. He’s also tapped Daniel Driscoll to be secretary of the Army and John Phelan to be secretary of the Navy.

Additional picks for other top Pentagon posts are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

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