Pentagon Quietly Establishes Elite Technology Support Office for Covert Foreign Sabotage

The Pentagon has quietly established an elite new agency tasked with disrupting and sabotaging foreign technology programs that pose potential threats to American military superiority. The organization, internally designated as the Technology Support Office, was formed through the reorganization of two existing classified intelligence programs that had operated on a smaller scale since 2023.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg spearheaded the creation of TSO without public announcements or outside scrutiny. While the Pentagon has frequently publicized other defense modernization initiatives, officials have made no public mention of TSO since its creation in April, with its existence only traceable through previously unreported Defense Department historical records and memoranda.

The agency’s overarching mandate is to buy time and impede adversaries from developing advanced military capabilities, particularly in artificial intelligence and commercial technologies like drones. Staffed by engineers, special operators, and intelligence officers, TSO’s operations span the development of bespoke hacking tools and elaborate deception operations intended to introduce faulty components into foreign weapons platforms.

Deputy Defense Secretary Feinberg led the internal push for the agency, supported by senior adviser Tom Rakusan, a veteran of the CIA’s clandestine service and a former executive at Feinberg’s private equity firm. On April 14, Feinberg signed a memorandum establishing TSO under the authority, direction, and control of the Undersecretary of War for Intelligence and Security. Bradley Hansell currently heads that office following his Senate confirmation in July 2025.

Leadership also appointed Grant Hundley, a former Marine Corps special operations officer, to serve as TSO director, while William Nelson was selected as the new Director of Intelligence for Sensitive Activities and Special Programs to provide internal oversight.

While the agency lacks direct legal authority to conduct clandestine operations, it collaborates with military and intelligence officers to develop disruptive technologies and strategies. Planning for the agency began in early 2025 through a white paper drafted within the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security. The review evaluated nesting the programs under U.S. Cyber Command before recommending the creation of a standalone agency with independent budget and procurement powers to accelerate integration with private-sector technology.

Financial allocations for TSO remain undisclosed, though estimates from former defense officials place its classified contracting budget north of $1.5 billion. The agency has signaled interest to defense contractors in procuring offensive hacking capabilities and cutting-edge technical tools.

The agency’s emergence has generated internal friction, with U.S. Cyber Command and Special Operations Command reportedly raising objections over potential budget encroachment. Friction related to the initiative contributed to the recent departure of Khoi Nguyen, chief acquisition officer for Cyber Command.

Outside the military, the agency’s shroud of secrecy has raised concerns among national security experts and lawmakers regarding transparency and oversight. While the Pentagon has briefed a limited number of congressional staffers on TSO, critics warn that the classified nature of the work limits effective scrutiny.

Questions have also been raised regarding potential conflicts of interest involving defense modernization efforts and leadership ties to the private equity sector. Defense Department spokesperson Jacob Bliss dismissed those concerns, emphasizing that the agency maintains a rigorous ethics framework and that all officials are in full compliance with ethics laws.

Bliss strongly rejected claims regarding the nature of the agency, stating that inquiries into TSO relied on information that was entirely false and driven by misinformed sources.