DARPA
Logo of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency | |
Headquarters in Ballston in Arlington County, Virginia in 2022 | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | February 7, 1958 (as ARPA) |
| Preceding agency |
|
| Jurisdiction | Federal government of the United States |
| Headquarters | 675 North Randolph St., Ballston, Virginia, U.S. 38°52′44″N 77°06′32″W / 38.8788°N 77.1088°W |
| Employees | 220 |
| Annual budget | $4.122 billion (FY2024) |
| Agency executive |
|
| Parent department | United States Department of Defense |
| Website | www |
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency within the United States Department of Defense that funds and manages research programs aimed at developing breakthrough technologies for U.S. national security.
The agency was established as the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) on February 7, 1958, in the aftermath of the Sputnik 1 launch by the Soviet Union in 1957. It adopted the name DARPA in 1972, briefly reverted to ARPA in 1993, and returned to DARPA in 1996.
DARPA works with universities, industry, and government partners to pursue high-risk, high-reward research and prototype development, including projects that may not align with near-term operational requirements.
The Economist described DARPA as "the agency that shaped the modern world" and credited it with helping seed a range of technologies, including early work related to the internet, GPS, and stealth technology. DARPA’s model has influenced other governments that have launched similar agencies.
DARPA reports directly to senior Department of Defense leadership and operates separately from the military services’ research organizations. It comprises about 220 government employees in six technical offices, including nearly 100 program managers, who oversee roughly 250 research and development programs. The agency is led by Director Stephen Winchell.