Mission-Driven Innovation: How DST Leverages AI and Agile for Defence Excellence

Jeremy Campbell-Hand, CTO at Defence Science and Technology Group (DST), highlights the mission-driven focus of the organisation. DST employs scientists and engineers who push the boundaries of science and technology to deliver defence and national security capabilities. Jeremy emphasises that technology modernisation projects succeed when they are aligned with clear mission outcomes rather than purely technological objectives. Key factors for successful adoption include a strong narrative about the project’s purpose, visible leadership support, and alignment between technology and research teams, ensuring staff understand how new systems contribute to broader capability improvements.

He discusses the challenges of legacy technology and the continual need to adopt cutting-edge systems to support research projects. DST has been an early adopter of AI and large language models, integrating them into mission-specific applications such as software development assistance, data interrogation, and capability-focused AI agents. Jeremy notes that over a thousand staff involved in software development have…