--- title: U.S. Military's Special Ops Wish List description: High on their list: a "Concealable/Take Down Urban Sniper Rifle" canonical: https://time.com/79982/us-military-special-operations-wish-list/ author: Mark Thompson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-04-28T21:17:18.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:02:06.149Z article:section: Politics og:title: U.S. Military's Special Ops Wish List og:description: High on their list: a "Concealable/Take Down Urban Sniper Rifle" og:url: https://time.com/79982/us-military-special-operations-wish-list/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt353255f21effabe8/69868ce0810bbb360fc9148e/110614-a-zy462-082.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2160 og:image:height: 1215 og:image:alt: Enduring Freedom og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: U.S. Military's Special Ops Wish List twitter:description: High on their list: a "Concealable/Take Down Urban Sniper Rifle" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt353255f21effabe8/69868ce0810bbb360fc9148e/110614-a-zy462-082.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Check Out This New Wish List for U.S. Special Ops > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Mark Thompson](https://time.com/author/mark-thompson/) ## Mark Thompson Apr 28, 2014 9:17 PM UTC  A U.S. Special Forces soldier hunting for Taliban inside a compound in Wardak province, Afghanistan. A U.S. Special Forces soldier hunting for Taliban inside a compound in Wardak province, Afghanistan. Army Photo / Staff Sgt. William Newman by [Mark Thompson](https://time.com/author/mark-thompson/) ## Mark Thompson Apr 28, 2014 9:17 PM UTC The U.S. military’s commandos are among the best in the world. But they can always get better. That means faster, lighter, deadlier, cheaper. So that’s why U.S. Special Operations Command [issued](https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=5c83e95e3a393a70fc9d5934d9d95ee9&tab=core&%5Fcview=0) a formal request for “Advancement of Technologies in Equipment for Use by U.S. Special Operations Forces” on Monday. “USSOCOM is interested in receiving white papers from all responsible sources from industry, academia, individuals, and Government laboratories capable of providing the design, construction, and testing of SOF related technologies,” Special Ops headquarters in Tampa, Fla., says. Many of the wished-for technologies simply improve on existing gear. But others seem like blue-sky fantasies. Since everyone else seems to be carrying concealed weapons lately, why not U.S. Special Forces: --- > “” --- Not to mention their everyday weapon: --- > “” --- Some high-powered bullets would be nice: --- > “” --- As would kinder, gentler rounds: --- > “” --- Not to mention area-denial options: --- > “” --- We’ve got guided missiles … why not guided bullets? --- > “” --- And boosted brainpower, via drugs or other means, would surely be an advantage: --- > “” --- Time lag in video games is a drag. Inside battlefield electronics, it can be deadly: --- > “” --- Calling Google! --- > “” --- Finally, a technology that would be hailed by civilians just as much as soldiers: --- > “” --- “The intent,” the Special Ops command says, “is to accelerate the delivery of innovative capabilities to the SOF warfighter.” Developers are invited to submit five-page proposals, complete with cost and schedule estimates, before June 12 for possible Pentagon funding. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/79982/us-military-special-operations-wish-list/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/79982/us-military-special-operations-wish-list/"},"headline":"Check Out This New Wish List for U.S. Special Ops","datePublished":"2014-04-28T21:17:18.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:02:06.149Z","description":"High on their list: a \"Concealable/Take Down Urban Sniper Rifle\"","url":"https://time.com/79982/us-military-special-operations-wish-list/","keywords":["Military","Tech","Brain","Pentagon","Weapons"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt353255f21effabe8/69868ce0810bbb360fc9148e/110614-a-zy462-082.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mark Thompson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/mark-thompson/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt353255f21effabe8/69868ce0810bbb360fc9148e/110614-a-zy462-082.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Enduring Freedom","caption":"Enduring Freedom","creditText":"Army Photo / Staff Sgt. 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