U.S. Army Selects Defense Innovation Networking Group to Operate VEDDER Biotechnology Accelerator
INDIANAPOLIS — September 14, 2026 — The Defense Innovation Networking Group (D!NG) today announced that it has been selected by U.S. Army Contracting Command-Aberdeen Proving Ground (ACC-APG) and the Capability Program Executive for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (CPE CBRND) to lead the Validation of Emerging Defense & Detection Equipment for Readiness, or VEDDER initiative, designed to accelerate dual-use biotechnology innovation with applications across national security and defense.
D!NG will operate the VEDDER accelerator under an Other Transaction agreement supporting the U.S. Army's initiative to grow the national biotechnology industrial base.
The overall $95 million other transaction agreement obligated an initial $8 million to launch the flywheel of innovation to help D!NG scout, vet, and accelerate company commercialization for the next five years. The VEDDER Prototype Agreement includes provisions for a potential follow-on production award valued at up to $500 million upon successful completion of the prototype phase.
The accelerator will establish a platform connecting promising U.S. biotechnology companies with technical resources, business support, capital networks, government acquisition expertise and industry partners intended to reduce the barriers between commercial innovation and national security application.
The public-facing program will operate as the VEDDER Biotechnology Accelerator, subject to final approval. Information about the accelerator, including application details, is available at https://dingusa.org/vedder
VEDDER will focus on helping innovators better understand government requirements, mature promising technologies, identify appropriate validation and demonstration pathways, strengthen their businesses and engage effectively with the national security ecosystem.
“America does not have an innovation problem. We have a translation problem—getting promising technologies from innovative companies into the hands of the people who need them. VEDDER gives us an opportunity to build a faster, more connected pathway between biotechnology innovators and the national security mission,” said Heath Murray, chairman of the board, Defense Innovation Networking Group. “D!NG was built to bring people, technology and opportunity together, and that is exactly what this accelerator is designed to do.”
“D!NG is excited to bring our unique model of connecting innovators with the Department of War to help advance novel dual-use biotechnology with both military and commercial applications. VEDDER lets us do what we do best at the scale the mission demands,” said Greg Sapp, founding board member, Defense Innovation Networking Group, and VEDDER solution lead. “We are surrounding the country's most promising biotechnology companies with the resources, partners and pathways they need to succeed. Our job is to ensure that promising American biotechnology companies have access to the support, partnerships and pathways needed to build durable businesses and move relevant capabilities toward national security applications.”
The VEDDER Biotechnology Accelerator is designed to connect innovative U.S. companies with resources, expertise, capital and government pathways supporting potential national security applications. Operated by the Defense Innovation Networking Group, VEDDER is intended to strengthen connections among biotechnology innovators, government stakeholders, investors, technical experts, research institutions and industry partners. For more information and to apply to the upcoming cohort: https://dingusa.org/vedder/apply
About the VEDDER Name: The VEDDER Biotechnology Accelerator pays homage to Colonel Edward Bright Vedder (1878–1952), a U.S. Army physician-scientist whose career defined what it means to move science into service. During three decades in uniform, COL Vedder determined the cause of a nutritional deficiency called beriberi, established its treatment, and laid the foundation for modern chemical and biological defense medicine. A century later, VEDDER carries the legacy forward—connecting today's U.S. biotechnology innovators to the same mission: turning discovery into protection for those in harm's way.
About the Defense Innovation Networking Group: The Defense Innovation Networking Group (D!NG) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization focused on strengthening the defense innovation ecosystem through collaboration, education, workforce development, knowledge transfer and connections among companies, government organizations, academic institutions and other partners. D!NG is headquartered in Indiana and works to expand opportunities nationwide for innovative and nontraditional businesses to engage with the national security ecosystem. For more information: https://dingusa.org/
Media Contact: Comms@dingusa.org