Air Force Research Laboratory

Runs United States air-force research across air, space, and cyber domains, translating science into military capability.

AFRL is the primary scientific R&D center for the US Department of the Air Force, leading discovery, development and integration of warfighting technologies for air, space and cyberspace forces ("One Lab Two Services" — USAF + USSF). It is one of six centers within Air Force Materiel Command, headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, with a workforce across seven mission areas at more than 40 locations worldwide.

AFRL funds external researchers through three main channels: AFOSR basic-research grants for universities (6.1 funding), per-directorate Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs) for applied R&D contracts (6.2-6.3), and SBIR/STTR commercial-innovation solicitations delivered via AFRL directorates AFWERX and SpaceWERX. AFOSR runs an active STTR but has no SBIR program.

In April 2026 AFRL announced its most significant organizational change in nearly 30 years, consolidating 10 legacy directorates into 5 directorates plus 1 office and 1 wing (Foundational Technology, Air Warfare, Space Warfare, Information & Spectrum Warfare, Technology Transition Office, Systems Technology Office, 711th Human Performance Wing). Legacy directorate BAA codes (AFRL-RW, AFRL-RV, AFRL-RD, AFRL-RI, AFRL-RY, AFRL-RQ) are expected to be reissued under new directorate codes.