About IARPA
Our Research
The Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) invests in high-risk, high-payoff research programs to tackle some of the most difficult challenges of the agencies and disciplines in the Intelligence Community (IC) .
IARPA collaborates across the IC
to ensure that our research addresses relevant future needs.
This cross-community focus ensures our ability to:
- address cross-agency challenges
- leverage both operational and R&D expertise from across the IC
- coordinate transition strategies with our agency partners
IARPA does not have an operational mission and does not deploy technologies directly to the field. Instead, IARPA facilitates the transition of research results to our IC customers for operational application.
Our Leadership
IARPA is led by a distinguished group of accomplished scientists and researchers.
Our Organization
There are four research thrusts within IARPA:
Analysis
seeks to maximize insight from the information we collect, in a timely fashion.
Anticipatory Intelligence
develops technologies that provide decision makers with timely and accurate forecasts for a range of events relevant to national security.
Collection
strives to dramatically improve the value of collected data from all sources.
Computing
endeavors to counter new capabilities implemented by our adversaries that could threaten our ability to operate freely and effectively in a networked world.
High-risk/High-payoff research
is about taking risks rather than going for quick wins or sure bets. In high-risk research, failures are inevitable. Failure is acceptable so long as the failure isn’t due to a lack of technical or programmatic integrity and the results are fully documented.
IARPA brings the best minds
in the field to bear on our research by sponsoring full and open competition to the greatest extent possible. We will not start a research program without both:
- a powerful research idea
- an exceptional person to manage the program
Modeled after
the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), IARPA was established in 2006 with the mandate to:
- conduct cross-community research
- target new opportunities and innovations
- generate revolutionary capabilities