Army Assistant Secretary Andersen calls on private capital to rebuild 'Arsenal of Democracy'
In his keynote address titled "Resourcing the Arsenal of Democracy at the Speed of Capitalism," Andersen emphasized that the primary strategic challenge in modern multi-domain competition is institutional velocity.
"The primary strategic challenge we face today is a crisis of velocity," Andersen said, emphasizing that while the Army remains the most lethal and capable ground combat force in the world, traditional acquisition processes designed in the mid-20th century frequently take years or decades to deliver critical capabilities to the frontline.
The nature of modern conflict has shifted toward software deployment, commercial technology, rapid capital allocation and industrial agility, Andersen said. Meanwhile, foreign adversaries are already executing economic and technological warfare by systematically buying up and weaponizing international supply chains, rare earth minerals, microelectronics, maritime shipping networks and domestic energy grids to degrade American surge capacity before forces can deploy.
Andersen argued that fulfilling his role of resourcing our Army to fight and win the nation’s wars can no longer be limited to managing the Army’s $255 billion annual defense budget because its requirements exceed what it can match. Army needs collaborative financial and industrial architecture bridging the Pentagon and commercial markets to allow the military to move at the speed of American capitalism.
Andersen said, historically, the Army operated like a "troubled asset," not in the context of our soldiers or their families, but in the platform, we resource them with. For example, maintaining more than 33 million acres of land alongside depots, manufacturing arsenals and testing grounds that were largely locked behind regulatory hurdles and administrative friction.
Under the Army’s [Strategic Capital Initiative](https://www.army.mil/sci) (SCI), of which Andersen serves as chief investment officer, the service is repurposing that vast footprint of real property from an overhead burden into a secure, shovel-ready platform for national industrial revitalization by aligning venture capital and private equity with long-term government demand.
Andersen outlined immediate priorities under the initiative, led by investments in digital computing infrastructure. Under the public-private model, private developers finance and build the facilities at zero upfront taxpayer construction expense, operating a commercial side to generate steady revenue from these partnerships while providing the Army the potential to secure classified computing capability as in-kind value and surge support during national crises.
Addressing the second priority, domestic energy resilience, Andersen cautioned that civilian power grids will be prime targets for state-sponsored cyberattacks in future conflicts. Under [Tranche II](https://www.army.mil/article/293293/army_launches_tranche_ii_of_strategic_capital_initiatives_focused_on_energy_resilience) of SCI, commercial power developers are signing enhanced-use leases to build, own and operate microgrid-capable energy facilities on Army installations.
Andersen also highlighted new conditional lease awards designed to re-shore critical mineral supply chains, converting historical military depots into domestic processing hubs. Under the awards, the Army is establishing lithium processing at Red River Army Depot in Texas, synthetic and battery-grade graphite production at Anniston Army Depot in Alabama and Pine Bluff Arsenal in Arkansas, and processing for boron and heavy rare earth elements, including dysprosium and terbium, at Tooele Army Depot in Utah.
In logistics, the Army has partnered with FedEx Dataworks and Google Cloud to modernize its Organic Industrial Base. The collaboration integrates commercial predictive analytics and next-day delivery precision into Army depots, ensuring soldiers receive parts, munitions and equipment ahead of operational demand.
Invoking President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s World War II call for an "Arsenal of Democracy," Andersen contrasted the rigid and coercive nature of state-controlled authoritarian economies with the voluntary alignment of American free enterprise, bold capital and entrepreneurial ambition.
Andersen emphasized that the military is not asking Wall Street for favors or philanthropy, but inviting private industry to build high-performing, profitable businesses on military assets that simultaneously safeguard the nation and further strengthen the Arsenal of Democracy.
"The United States Army is open for business, and we’re moving out fast" Andersen said. He urged investors to partner with the Army to ensure American warfighters never enter a fair fight.
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