The Space Force is in the middle of the most significant acquisition overhaul in its short history. For commercial companies and startups trying to sell into the defense space market, understanding this structure is the difference between finding the right door and knocking on the wrong wall.
In January 2026, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth directed the military services to replace their traditional Program Executive Offices (PEOs) with a new structure called Portfolio Acquisition Executives (PAEs). The core idea: instead of managing individual programs in silos, a single PAE owns an entire mission area — with the authority, resources, and accountability to deliver capability to the warfighter faster.
For the Space Force, this means nine PAEs will eventually replace the previous PEO structure under Space Systems Command (SSC). All PAEs report to the Secretary of the Air Force through the Space Service Acquisition Executive. SSC Commander Gen. Philip Garrant oversees the implementation and expects the final three PAEs to be established around June 2026.
The shift matters for commercial companies because PAEs have more flexible funding authority and a mandate to move faster — creating more opportunities for non-traditional defense contractors and startups to compete.
Six PAEs have been officially established as of May 2026. Three more are expected around June 2026. All report to the Secretary of the Air Force through the Space Service Acquisition Executive.
Delivering national security, civil, and commercial capabilities to orbit. Responsible for launch vehicles, launch services, and access to space programs.
Delivering persistent space-based battlespace awareness. Includes SDA Transport Layer transition. GP Sandhoo named as PAE at Space Symposium 2026.
Delivering data management, Space Force training and test capabilities, and personnel management systems across the enterprise.
Battle Management, Command, Control, Communications & Space Intelligence. Delivering cross-cutting data, networks, C2, intelligence, and space domain awareness.
Satellite Communications & Positioning, Navigation and Timing. Delivering resilient commercial and military SATCOM and integrated PNT capabilities.
Delivering diverse, integrated, and resilient missile warning and tracking space architecture across all orbital regimes including LEO. PAE: GP Sandhoo.
Defensive and offensive actions to protect U.S. and allied space forces and negate adversary space capabilities across all orbital regimes.
Electronic warfare, cyber warfare, and orbital warfare capabilities across the space domain. Exact scope still being defined by Space Force leadership.
Chief engineer and systems architect function. Brings commercial and emerging technologies across all PAEs. Primary focal point for cislunar operations. Key entry point for commercial innovation.
Understanding which PAE owns your mission area is step one. Step two is knowing the acquisition pathways available to you. The Space Force uses three primary mechanisms for working with non-traditional and commercial companies.
A flexible, fast acquisition mechanism that bypasses traditional FAR-based contracting. Commonly used by DIU and SSC for prototype agreements. No requirement to be an established defense contractor.
Federally-funded R&D grants for small businesses. SpaceWERX administers the Space Force SBIR program with open topic solicitations year-round. Phase I up to ~$50K · Phase II up to ~$1.75M · Phase III to production.
Traditional government contracting. Requires more compliance infrastructure but opens the door to larger, longer-term program contracts. Necessary for most sustained production programs.
Three organizations are the primary entry points for commercial and startup companies trying to engage the Space Force acquisition ecosystem.
Runs SBIR open topics, connects startups to Space Force program offices, and supports technology transition from prototype to program of record. Based in El Segundo and Austin. Most accessible entry point for early-stage companies.
spacewerx.usBridges the gap between commercial technology and DoD needs. Uses OTA agreements to rapidly prototype and field commercial solutions across all military services. Based in Mountain View, Austin, and Boston. Fastest path from commercial tech to DoD contract.
diu.milSpace Systems Command's official portal for commercial companies to identify which program office or PAE aligns with their technology. Start here to understand where your product fits in the SSC acquisition structure.
SSC Front Door
The PAE transition is creating a genuine window of opportunity for commercial companies. PAEs have a mandate to move faster, a directive to prioritize commercial-first solutions, and flexible funding authority that didn't exist under the old PEO structure.
The three pending PAEs — Space Control, EW/Cyber/Orbital Warfare, and Integration — represent mission areas where commercial technology is least mature and government investment is most urgently needed. Companies that engage now, before the structure fully solidifies, have the best chance of shaping requirements and getting in early.
The Integration PAE in particular — expected to serve as chief engineer and systems architect — will be the primary focal point for emerging technologies including cislunar operations, which the Space Force has identified as a critical near-term mission area per President Trump's Executive Order on Space Superiority.
The companies that win in the Space Force acquisition ecosystem are the ones that understand which PAE owns their mission area, which acquisition pathway fits their stage and size, and which relationships to build before a solicitation drops. By the time an RFP is released, the smart companies are already known quantities to the program office.