Hegseth puts Musk, Luckey, Gingrich in charge of military future warfare review

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Wednesday that Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich will co-lead a new Pentagon initiative called Project Meridian, tasked with identifying the military capabilities and technologies the United States may need in future wars, according to CNBC. Hegseth unveiled the effort during a "State of the Force" address to junior officers and enlisted leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia, CNBC reported.

The appointments place Musk and Luckey in a position to help shape the Pentagon's future technology priorities while their companies compete for billions of dollars in Defense Department business, CNBC reported. TechCrunch noted that critics could argue the assignment aligns with the pair's business interests, since Project Meridian may end up recommending the kinds of technology their own companies already sell.

The project will run for 120 days and work under the direction of Pentagon chief technology officer Emil Michael, with Musk, Luckey and Gingrich as co-leads alongside a broader team from government, industry, academia and policy, according to CNBC and Business Insider. Hegseth said in a letter cited by TechCrunch that the team's job is to "study the battlefields of the future" and the "weapons and technologies warfighters" may use on them, and to propose "actionable solutions to start developing, testing, and fielding" advanced technology.

"Project Meridian, the future of warfare, is not about developing new strategies or new policies," Hegseth said, according to CNBC, adding that its purpose is to "identify the domains that we must conquer, and capabilities we must master." Speaking to Business Insider's account of the same address, Hegseth said the group would "creatively look to the future" and focus on "discovering, developing, and fielding the weapons and systems that our children and our grandchildren will need in their lifetimes, without any creative limitations or restrictions."

Hegseth also used the address to announce a new four-star Autonomous Warfare Command, known as AUTOWARCOM, meant to speed the development and deployment of autonomous systems and drones, according to TechCrunch and Business Insider. Business Insider reported the command will have "service-like authorities" and will be built out through a separate effort called Project Agincourt, which pairs commercial developers with active-duty forces. "We need bolts of lightning," Hegseth said of costly legacy weapons, according to Business Insider. Hegseth added that the military also needs large numbers of inexpensive, expendable drones and autonomous systems capable of shifting the cost balance and pressuring adversaries on the battlefield.

Musk's SpaceX holds numerous Pentagon contracts, including a $4.16 billion Space Force contract awarded in May to build satellites to track and target airborne threats, and a $2.29 billion contract for a military satellite communications network awarded days earlier, CNBC reported. Luckey's Anduril, which makes autonomous weapons and other military technology, received up to $642 million from the Marine Corps in 2025 to supply counter-drone systems, CNBC reported. TechCrunch reported Anduril has also been awarded contracts to produce long-range missiles, semi-autonomous fighter aircraft, and hardware for the Army's mobile intelligence system.

CNBC reported that none of the three Project Meridian co-leads has served in the U.S. military, and that Musk has said he moved to Canada as a teenager partly to avoid compulsory military service in South Africa. Anduril, SpaceX, Tesla and Gingrich did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests for comment. TechCrunch said the Defense Department, when asked for comment, referred the outlet to a press release and said it had "nothing further to provide beyond the Secretary's comments."