The Department of War has awarded Hidden Level a $100 million Other Transaction Authority contract, and the Hidden Level OTA is now one of the largest rapid acquisition deals aimed at countering unmanned aircraft threats this year. The Syracuse, New York company builds passive radar and radio frequency detection systems, and this new agreement lets the Pentagon move its technology into military use at a faster pace than a standard contract would allow.
The award was announced on July 30, 2026, and it centers on Hidden Level’s ability to detect and track drones without giving away its own position. That capability matters most against RF-silent drones, which do not broadcast a signal that traditional detection tools can pick up. The Hidden Level OTA is meant to close that gap by scaling hardware and software that has already been tested in real operational settings.
Hidden Level OTA Signals Rapid Acquisition Path
An Other Transaction Authority agreement is a contracting tool that lets the government skip some of the slower steps in a typical defense procurement process. The Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering issued this one through the Army Contracting Command at Rock Island. It follows Hidden Level’s performance in recent evaluations, including Technology Readiness Experimentation 25.2 and Falcon Peak 25.2, along with a top performer finish in the Defense Innovation Unit’s Low-Cost Sensing Challenge.
“This award is an important step to delivering our critically needed technology to see without being seen.” Jeff Cole, Founder and CEO of Hidden Level
Cole added that the award reflects years of performance in operational environments and the Department’s commitment to fielding counter-unmanned aircraft systems solutions for troops in the field. He said the company is scaling production to support national security needs at speed. A defense official involved in the award pointed to the same testing history as the basis for moving forward.
“Hidden Level’s passive radar distinguished itself as a top-performing sensing capability at Technology Readiness Experimentation (T-REX 25.2).” Dr. Mike Tran, Director of Prototyping, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for Prototyping and Experimentation
Passive Sensing Technology Behind The Deal
Hidden Level’s product lineup includes BREAKER, SURGE, BYOTx, and its Airspace Monitoring Service, all designed and built in Syracuse using a supply chain based in the United States. These systems detect radio frequency energy from crewed and uncrewed aircraft, and they can also pick up RF-silent aircraft that would otherwise slip past standard radar. Because the sensors do not transmit their own signal while scanning, they can watch airspace without alerting anyone to their location.
The systems also run on an open architecture framework, which allows them to share data with existing command and control networks as well as newer airspace monitoring platforms. That flexibility is part of why the Department of War chose an OTA structure for this deal. It gives military organizations a direct path to prototype, procure, and deploy Hidden Level’s sensors without waiting on a longer acquisition cycle, and it opens the door for the technology to be adapted across different branches and mission types.
Countering Escalating Drone Threats Nationwide
Under the agreement, Hidden Level will place its multi-function RF sensors at military installations, test ranges, and along the U.S. border to detect, track, and identify aircraft of all kinds. The company says the need for this kind of coverage has grown as cheaper and more capable drones spread across conflict zones and civilian airspace alike, a trend that has pushed several counter-drone firms toward similar military agreements, including the kind of counter-drone agreement other companies have signed with the Army in recent months.
Hidden Level frames its sensing infrastructure as useful beyond the counter-drone mission alone, noting that the same technology already supports defense, homeland security, and critical infrastructure applications. The Department of War’s statement made clear that the views expressed by company officials in the release reflect their own positions rather than any official government endorsement. Even so, the size of the award, and the testing record behind it, mark a notable step for a company that has spent the past several years building out its passive detection systems for military and civilian airspace protection.
