Getting Your Technology Past the Valley of Death FAQ

• Promising military technologies regularly never get fielded due to the “valley of death”
• This is a congruence of a bureaucratic acquisition system and startups with little cash reserves
• Learn how the Pentagon is helping companies get past the valley of death at the 2027 Defense R&D Summit!

Promising military technologies often never get fielded. This is because they often encounter what is commonly known as the valley of death: a structural financing gap between the proof of concept phase and the commercialization phase where technologies are abandonedaccording to the 2026 study “Surviving the Valley of Death.”

The valley of death usually takes place after a promising technology has been developed, but before the startup earns stable income. Costs are large and uncertainty is high during this phase, and it is difficult to secure partners, funding and skilled staff. It is usually compounded by a federal acquisition system that does not match the speed and needs of modern commercial technology firms.

Even worse, analysts now describe two new valleys of death: prototype to production and  production to program of record. Fortunately, ExecutiveGov is here to answer all your questions with our handy FAQ about why technologies stall at the valley of deathwhat it takes to get them through and what the Pentagon is doing to transition these promising technologies from idea to demonstration to their optimal destination: in the hands of operators.

Discover the latest Pentagon initiatives to help promising technologies like 6G, quantum and advanced unmanned systems transcend the valley of death by attending the Potomac Officers Club’s 2027 Defense R&D Summit on Feb. 4. Hear firsthand from leading Pentagon technology officials about the newest seed fund programs to streamline investment to promising startups. Get advice directly from industry’s brightest minds from their personal experiences conquering the Valley of Death. Push your promising technology past the valley of death and into the hands of warfighters. Secure your seat today!

What Is the Technology Valley of Death?

The valley of death is the awkward place between research and development, and program funding. It’s vast and daunting and is littered with the remains of outstanding companies that could help warfighters now, according to SIGNAL Magazine.

The typical startup company works on a low budget and the government acquisition process usually lasts longer than most companies have money to keep their doors open. There are many reasons why this dynamic persists, much of it due to a misalignment between government sourcing policies and procedures and tech innovators’ expectations for working with government customers.

Many startups typically lack the cultural and historical expertise of working in government procurement realms, which are vastly different from commercial markets.

Who Is Most Vulnerable to the Valley of Death?

Non-traditional vendors and startups are most vulnerable to succumbing to the valley of death because they lack the cash reserves to survive multiyear funding gaps that prime contractors can absorb. The Pentagon is retooling financing options to help non-traditional firms succeed in military technology development, Federal News Network reported.

Mike Doddassistant secretary of war for critical technologies, said his office includes embedded representatives from In-Q-Tela CIA-funded investment firm, and the Office of Strategic Capital. This integrates expertise in institutional and structured financealong with statutory authorities and executional know-how, into contracting decisions that used to be solely programmatic.

What Are the New Valleys of Death?

There are two new valleys of death, according to a U.S. think tank focused on defense issues. The first new valley of death is the transition from production to programmingthe Center for New American Security reports.

While organizations like the Defense Innovation Unit focus on converting commercial technology for military use, and flexible contracting strategies have helped, technology firms are now running into barriers moving from production to programming.

This is the transition from annual discretionary buys in the tens of millions of dollars to multi-year, institutionalized funding of $100 million or more through programs of record. According to CNAS, this is the difference between selling technology to the Pentagon and having that technology being built into the military’s long term plans, budgets, doctrines and operations.

The second new valley of death is the transition from short-term production success into program procurement, sustainment and force structure, also according to CNAS. Crossing this valley is challenging for three reasons:

• Operational commands can validate a capability and fund limited use, but they rarely control the long-term budget lines required for scale.
• New capabilities rarely receive “new” moneythey instead require shrinking or terminating an existing effort.
• As decisions move toward service headquarters and lawmakers, more stakeholders gain veto power while fewer own the operational outcome

Are you a GovCon professional with a promising emerging technology? Then you cannot afford to miss the Potomac Officers Club’s 2027 Defense R&D Summit on Feb. 4—the elite venue for technology business development. Network with the entire ecosystem under one roof: prime contractors, startups and integrators. Engage with leading program officials, agency leaders and industry executives. Emerge from the summit with new funding leads and the support to power your technology past the valley of death. Sign up now for this must-attend GovCon forum!

How Do Technologies Successfully Transcend the Valley of Death?

It is possible for promising emerging technologies to successfully transcend the valley of death. A Naval Postgraduate School study provided three strategies:

• Target undeserved early adopters who are less committed to legacy systems, thus gaining adoption without threatening the status quo. This is known as dissemination.
• Offer solutions that are superior to the status quoalso known as appropriability.
• Introduce the innovation graduallyfirst through familiar methods and settings to accelerate adoption and reduce resistance from those defending the status quo.

The study also found that companies with technologies that successfully transcend the Valley of Death also have a few key features such as: short, iterative processes, collaborative concurrent development, a passionate focus on user needs, a willingness to take risksand early and rapid prototyping.

How Is the Pentagon Helping Technologies Overcome the Valley of Death?

The Pentagon is taking a number of steps to help burgeoning companies get their promising emerging technologies past the valley of death and into fielding. One of them is focused on an early part of the technology development process: centralizing and streamlining access to the department.

Dodd said the Pentagon is preparing to launch a consolidated “front door” portal that would aggregate many similarly-branded “front door” websites, portals and other access points under a centralized effort, according to Federal News Network. There is also a back-end apparatus that would take white papers, abstracts and capability briefs from across the DOW, and then analyze that material against the department’s problem sets to identify companies worth a better look.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

It is difficult, but not impossible, for promising emerging technologies to transcend the valley of death.