Embedded Computer Systems

Although defense weapons systems are increasingly dependent on software for everything from communications to firing weapons, the Pentagon has no idea how much it is spending on this critical and costly technology. Estimates of software costs range as high as $32 billion annually, or about 11 percent of the total defense budget. Such projections, however, are extremely sketchy because the Defense Department (DOD) has never isolated software costs as a discrete item in weapons system development. DOD has recently required that new weapons programs separately identify and report software costs. Collecting more complete cost information on embedded software could help DOD to more effectively manage its weapons programs.

GAO found that: (1) advanced defense weapons systems depend heavily upon software; (2) although DOD expenditures are not known, DOD spends an estimated $24 billion to $32 billion annually on weapons software technology; (3) DOD has not identified or tracked software costs in its weapons systems programs; (4) weapons software cost information traditionally is reported as part of the total system and is available only at the contractor level; and (5) DOD now requires separate identification and reporting of weapons program software costs.