The U.S. Army announced on June 22, 2026, that it has selected Anduril Industries as the lead integrator for the Next Generation Command and Control common data layer baseline, formalizing a role the company had been prototyping with the 4th Infantry Division over the past year. Anduril will provide the foundational software layer via its Lattice platform, partnering with Palantir's Foundry for edge-to-cloud data mesh and Raft for data registries and transformation services. The announcement marks the transition of the Army's most ambitious command-and-control modernization effort from prototype experimentation to structured product delivery.

What the Common Data Layer Does

NGC2 — Next Generation Command and Control — is one of the Army's top modernization priorities. The program is designed to replace legacy, stovepiped systems that prevent units from sharing battlefield data in real time. The NGC2 architecture is organized into four layers: data, transport, integration, and application. The common data layer sits at the foundation of that stack, enabling drones, air defense systems, artillery, and ground vehicles to exchange information across formations regardless of which vendor built those systems.

Anduril's Lattice software serves as the orchestration engine, ingesting sensor data, AI model outputs, and command data from across the battlespace and making them available to decision-makers through a unified interface. Palantir's Foundry adds enterprise data management and AI integration capabilities, while Raft's data platform handles the registries and transformation services that allow data from disparate systems to be normalized into a common format before distribution.

The combined stack was validated during the 4th Infantry Division's Ivy Mass exercise at Fort Carson, Colorado, in May 2026 — a division-scale event that stressed every element of NGC2 under simulated cyber and electromagnetic attacks modeled on real-world threat intelligence. A parallel validation, Lightning Surge, was conducted by the 25th Infantry Division in Hawaii and the Philippines. The Army reported both exercises demonstrated that the common data layer could sustain operations in contested environments where adversaries actively worked to degrade communications and sensor networks.

Dual-Architecture Approach

The Army's NGC2 program does not standardize on a single vendor stack across all divisions. Lockheed Martin continues to lead the operational implementation of a full NGC2 stack at the 25th Infantry Division, using a modernized network baseline called C2 Fix. The June 22 announcement specifies that Lockheed Martin will also implement Anduril's common data layer within its 25th ID implementation by the end of 2026 — meaning the two approaches share a common data foundation while differentiating at the integration and application layers.

This dual-architecture model gives the Army the ability to run force-on-force comparisons at scale during Project Convergence-Capstone 6, scheduled for July 2026 at the National Training Center, where 4th and 25th Infantry Division elements will validate NGC2 in a division-scale exercise. Results will inform which capability mixes the Army deploys as it scales the program from two pilot divisions to all 11 Army divisions over five years, with I Corps formations targeted first in 2027.

The common data layer selection draws on the broader enterprise licensing agreement the Army signed with Anduril in March 2026, a 10-year vehicle with a $20 billion ceiling that gives the service flexibility to call on Anduril's Lattice capabilities across programs without requiring individual competitive actions for each use case. That vehicle has already supported counter-drone and other Lattice deployments; the NGC2 data layer designation represents its most consequential use to date, anchoring Lattice at the core of the Army's foundational command-and-control architecture rather than treating it as one option among several.

The decision to build NGC2 on a commercial software foundation — rather than a government-developed or prime-contractor-owned proprietary stack — reflects lessons the Army took from earlier C2 modernization failures, including the Army Integrated Air and Missile Defense program and the canceled Warfighter Information Network-Tactical Increment 2. Both programs struggled with closed architectures that made upgrades expensive and vendor lock-in difficult to escape. The NGC2 common data layer's open data registry design, provided by Raft, is specifically intended to allow new data producers and consumers to plug into the mesh without requiring modifications to the core Lattice or Foundry software.

What It Means for Contractors

  • Anduril's role as common data layer lead positions Lattice as the connective tissue for Army C2 modernization — firms building sensors, fires systems, or mission applications should assess Lattice integration requirements early to ensure interoperability.
  • Palantir's Foundry is now embedded in the Army's foundational C2 architecture, extending the company's footprint beyond its existing Maven Smart System and TITAN contracts.
  • Raft, a smaller defense software company, secures a visible role in a high-priority Army program — a demonstration that NGC2 is not exclusively a large-prime competition.
  • Lockheed Martin retains a significant position through 25th ID operational implementation, and the requirement to integrate Anduril's data layer into its stack by year-end creates near-term integration work for Lockheed's C2 team.
  • Application-layer vendors — companies developing AI decision-support tools, mission planning software, or unit-level interfaces — should engage Army program offices now, as the common data layer decision opens the door to a defined integration standard for the NGC2 application tier.
  • Project Convergence-Capstone 6 in July will be a major evaluation milestone; contractors with NGC2-adjacent capabilities should monitor after-action reporting for follow-on solicitations expected in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026.
  • The Army's open data registry approach — implemented through Raft's data platform — is designed to support new third-party data producers without core software modifications, creating a potential avenue for smaller defense software firms to integrate their sensor outputs or decision-support tools into the NGC2 environment without requiring a prime contractor relationship with Anduril or Lockheed Martin.
  • Firms providing battle management, fires coordination, or ISR integration software that currently operates outside NGC2 should engage Army Futures Command program offices about integration standards and certification requirements before the program scales to additional divisions in 2027.

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