The Pentagon’s chief technology officer told lawmakers last week she is committed to the Defense Innovation Unit’s objective to leverage commercial technology to boost DOD’s mission, as C4ISRNET reported.

DIU Director Michael Brown recently announced he’s leaving his post in September, saying DOD isn’t moving quickly enough to modernize, as On Base reported.

DOD Chief Technology Officer Heidi Shyu told lawmakers she will push for more funding for the DIU in future fiscal years.

“A lot of small companies have great ideas, they produce a lot of prototypes and it’s this funnel going down to production,” she said. “It’s the pull from the acquisition community that we need, so I think that’s what I want to focus on.”

DOD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer Second Class Zachary Wheeler