The MITRE Corporation is a nonprofit organization that operates “federally funded research and development centers” (FFRDCs) with the aim to improve government agencies and their partners. ¹ In 2023, the organization reported a revenue of $2 billion and ended the year with $700 million in assets. ²

Background

The MITRE Corporation was founded in 1958 and is formally incorporated in Delaware. ³

Activities

The MITRE Corporation runs federally funded research and development centers in the United States and throughout the world. The Corporation claims to apply engineering methods to the data collected in these centers and recommends changes to improve efficiency. Its six major federally funded research and development centers work with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. ⁴

According to forum posts on the website of tech start-up accelerator Y Combinator, MITRE directly advocates for the U.S. military and intelligence agencies, representing them at conferences and committees and helping them shape government policy in their favor. As such, MITRE is granted access to secure files in a way that is rare among contractors, and MITRE staffers have extremely close ties with high-level Defense and Security government employees. ⁵ However, the MITRE Corporation does not report any lobbying expenses on its tax return and claims it does not lobby the U.S. government. ⁶

Financials

In 2023, the MITRE Corporation reported revenue of $2,372,797,370, expenses of $2,318,681,975, and net assets of $745,020,106. ⁷

It paid its officers, directors, trustees, and key employees $25,461,501, spent $1,283,561,677 on “other salaries and wages,” $145,364,257 on pension plans, $307,286,773 on other employee benefits, and $146,485,690 on fees for non-employee services. ⁸

Funding

The MITRE Corporation receives a large amount of funding from the U.S. government. Of its 2023 reported revenue of $2,372,797,370, $2,354,247,526 came from government grants. ⁹  An additional $1,791,162 came from membership dues. ¹⁰ Its investments brought in an income of $5,380,523 and its royalties brought in $397,894. ¹¹

Grantmaking and Spending

In 2023, the MITRE Corporation reported substantial payments to independent contractors. These included accounting firm KPMG LLP ($7,017,150), Tangoe Inc. ($7,717,318), CE Floyd Company Inc. ($8,959,068), GCS-Sigal ($10,886,379), and Cushman Wakefield Inc. ($22,381,744 for “real estate services”). ¹²

In 2023, the MITRE Corporation spent a total of $37,452,862 on “DOD and CAA Projects” abroad. Of this, $19,377,358 was spent on programs in East Asia and the Pacific, $17,164,585 on programs in Europe, $360,969 on programs in the Middle East and North Africa, $134,470 on programs in North America, $34,191 on programs in Russia and “the Newly Independent States,” $92,753 on programs in South America, and $288,536 on programs in Sub-Saharan Africa. ¹³

Leadership

As of 2025, Mark Peters serves as the president and CEO of the MITRE Corporation. Peters is described as a “recognized expert in nuclear energy and national security.” He worked for 25 years in scientific research projects for federal research and development centers. Prior to joining MITRE, Peters was the executive vice president of laboratory management and operations at the Battelle Memorial Institute. He sits on the boards of Idaho Power, the National Academies Board on Human-Systems Integration, and several other organizations. ¹⁴

In 2025, the MITRE Corporation reported having roughly 10,000 staff. ¹⁵

1. “Home.” MITRE Corporation. Accessed February 24, 2025. https://www.mitre.org/.
2. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Part I, lines 12, 22.
3. ^[1] Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Boxes L and M.
4. ^[1] “R&D Centers.” MITRE Corporation. Accessed February 24, 2025. https://www.mitre.org/our-impact/rd-centers.
5. “Hacker News – Can anyone shed light on what MITRE Corporation is and what kind of systems they build?” YCombinator, August 14, 2019. Accessed February 24, 2025. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20694381.
6. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Part IV, line 4; Part IX, line 11d.
7. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Part I, lines 12, 18, 22.
8. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Part IX – Statement of Functional Expenses.
9. ^[1] Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Part VIII – Statement of Revenue, line e.
10. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Part VIII – Statement of Revenue, 2a, line g.
11. ^[1] Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Part VIII – Statement of Revenue, sections 3 and 5.
12. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Part VII, Section B. – Independent Contractors.
13. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). MITRE Corporation. 2023. Schedule F, Part I – General Information on Activities Outside the United States.
14. “Mark Peters.” MITRE Corporation. Accessed February 24, 2025. https://www.mitre.org/who-we-are/our-people/mark-peters.
15. “Mark Peters, PH.D.” MITRE Corporation. Accessed February 24, 2025. https://www.mitre.org/who-we-are/our-people/mark-peters.