We lead off today’s INSIDER Daily Digest with news from the House Appropriations defense subcommittee and a new report obtained by Inside Defense.

House appropriators rebuke White House budget strategy, back multiyear munitions

House appropriators are moving ahead with a $1.07 trillion fiscal 2027 defense spending bill while sharply criticizing the Trump administration's decision to divide major Pentagon investments between annual appropriations and separate reconciliation funding, arguing the approach creates uncertainty for weapons procurement and industrial-base planning, according to a congressional document obtained by Inside Defense.

Lawmakers, in the same report, say they want a new contractor to replace AM General in manufacturing the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle A2:

House appropriators back search for new JLTV maker, report major delays from AM General

The House Appropriations defense subcommittee is calling for a new Joint Light Tactical Vehicle A2 provider to replace contractor AM General and meet the Marine Corps’ remaining procurement needs, according to a new report that cites major production shortfalls following the Army’s reduction of future purchases last year.

Over at Inside Defense/AI, we have a story about the concerns House appropriators have over what they say is the Pentagon’s lack of understanding when it comes to the full cost of AI:

House appropriators warn Pentagon lacks visibility into true AI compute costs

House appropriators are raising concerns that the Defense Department lacks adequate visibility into the full costs of deploying artificial intelligence across the enterprise, warning that computing expenses represent a growing share of AI investments and directing the Pentagon to provide regular updates on its oversight efforts, according to a document obtained by Inside Defense.

We also have more AI news from an Army exercise in Pittsburgh:

Army testing first phase of autonomous 'hunter-killer' mission at key exercise

PITTSBURGH -- The Army's 4th Infantry Division will demonstrate an autonomous "hunter-killer" mission during this summer's Project Convergence Capstone 6 exercise, connecting drones and sensors through the Next Generation Command and Control network to accelerate the targeting process from detection to engagement.

News from the Army and Anduril:

Army, Anduril work out common data layer baseline for NGC2

Anduril will lead the Army’s newly established common data layer baseline for Next Generation Command and Control after the service validated the modernized network architecture operationally at major test events last month.

Meanwhile, Senate authorizers are focused on low-cost interceptors:

Senate authorizers call for drone and interceptor ‘manufacturing hub’ amid capacity concerns

Senate authorizers worry the organic industrial base, hampered by fragile supply chains, costly production and limited testing sites, can’t handle the military’s future needs for autonomous systems and low-cost interceptors.