Signal CSIS report examines organising and sustaining a dedicated US cyber force

Summary

CSIS published a report on 3 June 2026 examining how the United States would organise and sustain a dedicated cyber military service, drawing on 10 months of expert engagement by its Strategic Technologies Program. The report's authors include Joshua Stiefel, Lt. Gen. Ed Cardon (Ret.), Lauryn Williams, Taylar Rajic, Matt Pearl and Erica D. Lonergan. The commission examined structural, operational and workforce challenges, including talent shortages, fragmented authorities and barriers to readiness, and addressed force structure, recruitment, training, retention and operational integration. The report states its aim is to provide "a practical roadmap for strengthening U.S. cyber capabilities and ensuring long-term readiness in a contested domain increasingly central to national security." The question is one of force structure rather than doctrine.