Official UK procurement notice
UK4 Notice - DDAITF/008 Computer Vision Capability - Model Arena Comp
Authority: Ministry of Defence (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Defence AI Model Arena is opening a new competition for suppliers developing computer vision (CV) capability relevant to UK Defence; this use case is sponsored by the Rapid AI Delivery Taskforce (Taskforce RAID).
We are looking for suppliers who can demonstrate strong model performance against a military object detection use case and who are interested in working collaboratively with Defence to improve that capability using representative data and feedback from live exercise activity.
The competition will use the Model Arena’s “demonstration by doing” approach: suppliers will be assessed on how their models actually perform against the use case, rather than on written proposals alone.
The use case is to develop and deploy the CV – based components for autonomous drones in the land domain, operating within an AI enabled drone swarming system.
This phase is focused on establishing an effective baseline for experimentation and iterative deployment. The intention is to evolve this capability and implement other sensing-specific AI domains and multiple layers of decision-making behaviour; any potential successful supplier would be a core component of an industry co-creation ecosystem.
Why take part:
- The Model Arena gives suppliers an opportunity to demonstrate capability directly against a real Defence requirement and receive evidence-based feedback on model performance.
- For suppliers progressing to Stage 2, it also provides an opportunity to work much more closely with the Defence user community, understand the operational problem in greater depth and develop capability using increasingly representative data.
- For successful suppliers selected for Stage 3, it provides the ability to rapidly develop models and demonstrate suitability for continued co-creation.
- The intent is to create a level playing field for suppliers while helping Defence identify the strongest technical solutions and teams for continued development.
We will hold a supplier drop-in session on:
Wed 9 Sep 2026 at 13:00.
Sign Up: DAIC Model Arena AI Enabled Swarming -
forms.cloud.microsoft/pages/responsepage.aspx ↗
The session will provide more detail on:
- The use case.
- Stage 1 dataset and evaluation approach.
- Technical submission requirements.
- The Stage 2 co-creation activity.
- Commercial; and
- Supplier questions.
Suppliers considering entering the competition are strongly encouraged to attend. Please note the session will be recorded and made available on request.
Indicative Key Dates:
- 9 September 2026 - Supplier drop-in session
- 16 September - Stage 1 begins (Suppliers MUST be registered on both the Model Arena and Commercial X dynamic Market – details on how to register are contained within this notice)
- 11 October - Stage 1 Concludes
- 14 October - Stage 2 begins
- 30 October - Stage 2 concludes. Evaluations Begin.
- Early 2027 - Stage 3
- How the procedure runs: DDAITF/008 falls under the scope of the Procurement Act 2023 and will be run under the Commercial X dynamic market. The MOD plans to run a streamlined two-stage competitive flexible procedure and will have the following components: - Stage 1: Open Competition and Down selection (3 weeks) Prospective Candidates wishing to participate in this opportunity must submit a model for evaluation within the ‘Model Arena’ and be a member of the Commercial X Dynamic Market prior to the commencement of this phase. - This stage is open to all interested suppliers. - Suppliers will be provided with the information needed to submit a model for evaluation against a labelled dataset containing UK military-relevant objects. - Models will be evaluated consistently through the Model Arena, with suppliers ranked using a consistent technical score. - At the end of Stage 1, MOD will conduct a ‘Down Select’ of the ‘highest performing suppliers – expected to be between 5 and 8 – who will be invited to progress to Stage 2. The aim is simple: identify which solutions perform best against a relevant Defence use case before moving into a more collaborative development activity Assessment at this stage will be 100% Technical, with a Qualification envelope (including security requirements for stage 2 onwards) in addition across the following areas: 1. Reliability. This considers how well the application performs under normal operating conditions. 2. Robustness. This considers how well the application continues to perform when faced with edge-case conditions. 3. Latency. This considers how efficiently the application processes inputs and returns outputs. - Stage 2: Exercise-Aligned Hackathon (2 weeks) Candidates successful at Stage 1 will be invited to the next Stage in the procurement process. Stage 2 will be a more detailed, focussed, assessment of Suppliers' capabilities. Stage 2 will include: - 1 x Social Value (Scored) - 1 x Commercial Envelope (Scored) - 1 x Technical Envelope (Scored) o Phase 2 will run alongside UK-based military exercise activity. o Rather than simply submitting another model, down selected suppliers will be invited to work in a more collaborative, hackathon-style environment. o Suppliers will receive access to a more representative dataset configured around the exercise and will be asked to train, tune, and improve their model over the course of the activity. o Models will be evaluated against an established baseline, with feedback from the exercise used to help suppliers iterate their solutions. o This phase will assess both what the model can do and how the supplier works. Technical evaluation will consider: a. Model performance against the baseline; b. Ability to improve performance through iteration; c. Responsiveness to exercise and user feedback; d. Approach to collaboration and co-creation; and e. Overall suitability for continued development against the use case - Stage 3: Award (Dates TBC) Following the outcome of the competition, the MOD may seek to award a contract, or contracts, to the successful supplier or suppliers through the appropriate contracting route. Under that route, the supplier or suppliers would work collaboratively with Defence to spiral and incrementally evolve the trained model towards operational use cases through spiral development. This would involve iterative model development informed by the evolving context of the use cases, improved and increasingly representative datasets, and expert user feedback. It is expected that completing this phase to the desired standard will result in a continued engagement into FY 27/28 to further develop and refine the model, however this will be subject to contract and no commitment will be made at this stage. Please note the MOD reserves the right not to award following to outcome of this competition.
CPV: Development of software for military applications · IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1RenewalPublished value£2,500,000
- Technical & professional ability
The competition will utilise the Commercial X Dynamic Marketplace and DAIC Model Arena. Details on how to onboard are as follows:
- Technical Submission. Suppliers wishing to participate should register their interest via [email protected]. Please quote “Model Arena – AI enabled Swarming” when registering.
- Dynamic Marketplace. Applications to the Dynamic Market need to be completed on the Defence Sourcing Portal.
On the home page, click ‘view DSP opportunities’ > make sure you’re in the ‘current opportunities tab’ > click the filters drop down and select ‘project info’ > in the value field type ‘commercial x’ > click search. You should be able to access the ‘PQQ’ event that we are using for the applications. When you find this event there are also downloadable documents which should provide more clarity.
To complete applications, suppliers need to have a profile completed on the Central Digital Platform so they can share their company details as part of the application process.
Further information covering data access, submission requirements, evaluation methodology, commercial arrangements and competition terms will be provided through a competition pack that is provisioned via the technical submission mechanism.
What it takes to wini
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add morei
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
- Stage 1: Technical: 1. Reliability. This considers how well the application performs under normal operating conditions. 2. Robustness. This considers how well the application continues to perform when faced with edge-case conditions. 3. Latency. This considers how efficiently the application processes inputs and returns outputs.
- Stage 2:: - 1 x Social Value (Scored) - 1 x Commercial Envelope (Scored) - 1 x Technical Envelope (Scored) o Phase 2 will run alongside UK-based military exercise activity. o Rather than simply submitting another model, down selected suppliers will be invited to work in a more collaborative, hackathon-style environment. o Suppliers will receive access to a more representative dataset configured around the exercise and will be asked to train, tune, and improve their model over the course of the activity. o Models will be evaluated against an established baseline, with feedback from the exercise used to help suppliers iterate their solutions. o This phase will assess both what the model can do and how the supplier works. Technical evaluation will consider: a. Model performance against the baseline; b. Ability to improve performance through iteration; c. Responsiveness to exercise and user feedback; d. Approach to collaboration and co-creation; and e. Overall suitability for continued development against the use case
- Technical & professional ability
The competition will utilise the Commercial X Dynamic Marketplace and DAIC Model Arena. Details on how to onboard are as follows:
- Technical Submission. Suppliers wishing to participate should register their interest via [email protected]. Please quote “Model Arena – AI enabled Swarming” when registering.
- Dynamic Marketplace. Applications to the Dynamic Market need to be completed on the Defence Sourcing Portal.
On the home page, click ‘view DSP opportunities’ > make sure you’re in the ‘current opportunities tab’ > click the filters drop down and select ‘project info’ > in the value field type ‘commercial x’ > click search. You should be able to access the ‘PQQ’ event that we are using for the applications. When you find this event there are also downloadable documents which should provide more clarity.
To complete applications, suppliers need to have a profile completed on the Central Digital Platform so they can share their company details as part of the application process.
Further information covering data access, submission requirements, evaluation methodology, commercial arrangements and competition terms will be provided through a competition pack that is provisioned via the technical submission mechanism.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Closed
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Defence & security
- Commercial structure
- Call-off under a framework
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 3 Sept 2026, 09:38 BST
- Last source update
- 3 Sept 2026, 09:38 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 4 Jan 2027
- Authority reference
DDAITF/008- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-083303- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06f0e7Find a Tender
- How it runs
DDAITF/008 falls under the scope of the Procurement Act 2023 and will be run under the Commercial X dynamic market.
The MOD plans to run a streamlined two-stage competitive flexible procedure and will have the following components:
- Stage 1: Open Competition and Down selection (3 weeks)
Prospective Candidates wishing to participate in this opportunity must submit a model for evaluation within the ‘Model Arena’ and be a member of the Commercial X Dynamic Market prior to the commencement of this phase.
- This stage is open to all interested suppliers.
- Suppliers will be provided with the information needed to submit a model for evaluation against a labelled dataset containing UK military-relevant objects.
- Models will be evaluated consistently through the Model Arena, with suppliers ranked using a consistent technical score.
- At the end of Stage 1, MOD will conduct a ‘Down Select’ of the ‘highest performing suppliers – expected to be between 5 and 8 – who will be invited to progress to Stage 2.
The aim is simple: identify which solutions perform best against a relevant Defence use case before moving into a more collaborative development activity Assessment at this stage will be 100% Technical, with a Qualification envelope (including security requirements for stage 2 onwards) in addition across the following areas:
- Reliability. This considers how well the application performs under normal operating conditions.
- Robustness. This considers how well the application continues to perform when faced with edge-case conditions.
- Latency. This considers how efficiently the application processes inputs and returns outputs.
- Stage 2: Exercise-Aligned Hackathon (2 weeks)
Candidates successful at Stage 1 will be invited to the next Stage in the procurement process. Stage 2 will be a more detailed, focussed, assessment of Suppliers' capabilities. Stage 2 will include:
- 1 x Social Value (Scored)
- 1 x Commercial Envelope (Scored)
- 1 x Technical Envelope (Scored)
o Phase 2 will run alongside UK-based military exercise activity.
o Rather than simply submitting another model, down selected suppliers will be invited to work in a more collaborative, hackathon-style environment.
o Suppliers will receive access to a more representative dataset configured around the exercise and will be asked to train, tune, and improve their model over the course of the activity.
o Models will be evaluated against an established baseline, with feedback from the exercise used to help suppliers iterate their solutions.
o This phase will assess both what the model can do and how the supplier works.
Technical evaluation will consider:
a. Model performance against the baseline;
b. Ability to improve performance through iteration;
c. Responsiveness to exercise and user feedback;
d. Approach to collaboration and co-creation; and
e. Overall suitability for continued development against the use case
- Stage 3: Award (Dates TBC)
Following the outcome of the competition, the MOD may seek to award a contract, or contracts, to the successful supplier or suppliers through the appropriate contracting route. Under that route, the supplier or suppliers would work collaboratively with Defence to spiral and incrementally evolve the trained model towards operational use cases through spiral development. This would involve iterative model development informed by the evolving context of the use cases, improved and increasingly representative datasets, and expert user feedback.
It is expected that completing this phase to the desired standard will result in a continued engagement into FY 27/28 to further develop and refine the model, however this will be subject to contract and no commitment will be made at this stage.
Please note the MOD reserves the right not to award following to outcome of this competition.
- Call-off under framework Commercial X Dynamic Market
How it was run
Official notice- Requests to participate (first stage)
- 15 Sept 2026, 23:59 BST
- Submission deadline
- 15 Sept 2026, 23:59 BST
- Electronic submission
- Not allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Please refer to Technical ability conditions of participation on how to sign up to both the Model Arena and Commercial X Dynamic Market.
Suppliers MUST be registered to both ahead of the start date to participate.
Timeline
3 Sept 2026 → 4 Jan 2027 · 4 dates- Tender notice published49 days ago3 Sept 2026, 09:38 BST
- Submission deadline36 days ago15 Sept 2026, 23:59 BST
- Today22 Oct 2026
- Contract startsin 74 days4 Jan 2027
- Award decision expected byin 75 days4 Jan 2027, 23:59 GMT
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Tender notice published3 Sept 2026, 09:38 BSTUK4
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (1)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender