RED QUEEN 7 - HOSTED BY STEVE BLANK & PETE NEWELL
Reinvent the Front End of Acquisition for the PAE Era
The creation of Program Acquisition Executives is the lynchpin in building a 21st century Warfighting Acquisition System. Red Queen 7 convenes the leaders designing what comes next.
DATES
April 22 - 23, 2026
LOCATION
Silicon Valley, CA
FORMAT
75 Leaders, Invite Only
THE OPPORTUNITY
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Build the collection system that feeds the acquisition system.
PAEs, Services and Intelligence orgs are independently building Rapid Capability Cells and Offices. This year's Red Queen will offer PAEs, Combatant Commands, and foremost Intelligence leaders the opportunity to learn best practices from each other and to discuss, share, and prototype Innovation Collection Cell concepts.
RED QUEEN EXPLAINED
Hosted by Steve Blank & Pete Newell. Powered by Common Mission Project. Small, off-the-record, invite-only. Not a traditional conference; no hashtags, no uplighting, no optics.
THE WORKING SESSIONS
Peer-Led Design for the Acquisition Front End
PAEs, Combatant Commands, and Intelligence communities, share and prototype Innovation Collection Cell concepts. The focus is practical: how can operational needs and field feedback rapidly shape acquisition priorities and workflows, creating validated requirements in weeks or months, not years?
TECHNICAL TERRAIN WALK
Hands-On Education with the Technology Enterprise
In addition to the private conversation with peers, Red Queen provides hands-on education with 50+ startup founders as well as investors, on how to rapidly identify, validate, assist, and onboard the right technology for the mission.
TECHNICAL TERRAIN WALK
Hands-on across 26 technology domains.
BATTLESPACE AWARENESS & DECISION ADVANTAGE
ISR, RF, SIGINT, PNT, Electronic Warfare, Data FUsion & AI-enabled C2, Agentic AI & Autonomous Mission Systems
LOGISTICS & INDUSTRIAL BASE
Advanced Manufacturing, Supply Chain Resilience, Energy & Sustainment
FRONTIER
Quantum, AI at the Edge, Advanced Guidance Systems
FORCE PROTECTION & THREAT DEFEAT
Counter-UAS (Detection), Counter-UAS (Defeat), Air & Missile Defense, Cyber & Cyber-Physical Defense
CAPABILITY TRANSITION & INTEGRATION
Acquistion Integration, Digital Engineering & Simulation
POWER PROJECTION & STRIKE
Marine & Undersea Warfare, High-Speed Maritime Strike, Long-Range Fires & Strike Enablers, Advanced Propulsion, Space Operations
GOLDEN DOME / INDOPACOM-RELEVANT
Distributed C2 & Comms, Long-Endurance Unmanned Systems, Logistics in Denied Environments
THE ROOM
Deliberately small. Deliberately senior.
75 people. Senior acquisition executives, operational commanders, and a handful of experts who have done this work at scale.
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NO SALES
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NO PRESS
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NO PANELS
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OFF THE RECORD
Past Red Queen have convened senior military and civilian decision-makers from U.S., UK, and NATO defense and intelligence agencies.
BEFORE YOU ATTEND
Logistics
Red Queen 7 marks the event's seventh year.
It is free and sponsored by the Common Mission Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The event qualifies under the "widely attended gathering" exception outlined in House and Senate ethics guidelines and maintains a strict off-the-record, not-for-attribution policy.
DATES
April 22 - 23, 2026
LOCATION
Pescadero, California
A hotel block has been reserved. Shuttle service will run between K&S Ranch and the hotel.
MEALS & LOGISTICS
All meals and beverages are provided on-site.
WHAT TO BRING
Comfortable or hiking shoes. There will be an opportunity for those who wish to join Steve Blank for a guided walk of the property. The hike is considered moderate.
COSTS
Participants are responsible for airfare, lodging, and transportation outside the scheduled shuttle. Hotel details and booking instructions will be shared upon confirmation.
MATERIALS
Read-ahead materials and a finalized agenda will be provided in advance.
CONFIRM YOUR SEAT
This is a unique educational opportunity for leaders across the U.S. Defense and Intelligence community.
If your calendar won't allow it, a trusted deputy or chief of staff is equally welcome.
HISTORY
Red Queen since 2019
Red Queen was founded in 2019 by Steve Blank and Pete Newell to investigate how to consistently link invention to adoption through a structured, repeatable approach. The initial meeting resulted in the Innovation Pipeline, a comprehensive framework designed to identify, evaluate, and scale impactful solutions the national security sector. Each following Red Queen event has built upon this foundation, producing actionable responses to common innovation challenges. Notably, Red Queen II facilitated the establishment of the Defense Investor Network, which has evolved into the main connector between over 500 investors and senior government officials; two groups that had seldom interacted meaning before its inception.
COMMON MISSION
501(c)(3) Nonprofit | Tax ID: 81-2345565