National Reconnaissance Office director Bruce Carlson said most consumers of intel today want one thing: “a map or a picture with a dot” indicating where someone is to be killed or rescued, or where cargo is to be dropped. He’s orienting his vast processing resources to provide that and to seek other ways of doing it as well. Very soon, he said, signals intelligence will be good enough to support precision targeting. Users today want actionable intel faster and more accurately, and “we can do that,” Carlson asserted.
Pentagon Relents, Seeks Funds for E-7 Wedgetail
May 12, 2026
The Pentagon has now committed to funding the E-7A Wedgetail in its 2027 budget request after previously zeroing out its spending.