The Pentagon is bringing Silicon Valley's biggest names into its war-planning rooms — and the move is drawing fire.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced last week that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey will co-lead "Project Meridian: The Future of Warfare," a 120-day study of automated and AI-powered weaponry, alongside former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. The goal, Hegseth said in his September 30 announcement, is to keep America ahead of its adversaries.
"We are witnessing rapid advances in artificial intelligence, autonomy, directed energy, robotics, biotechnology, among other critical high-tech areas. Combined, these new domains, new ways of fighting, and technological developments will profoundly alter the character of warfare," Hegseth said. "To maintain global dominance, the United States must anticipate future operational environments and act decisively to develop the tools to dominate in them."
The study lands just as President Trump is expected to speak at an Anduril facility in Baltimore on Tuesday — a public signal of how central the administration considers the tech-defense partnership.
But an NPR report published Tuesday morning is raising ethical concerns about the arrangement, questioning whether Musk and Luckey stand to benefit commercially from recommendations they help write. SpaceX has secured over $8 billion in U.S. defense contracts in 2026 alone, according to government contract announcements cited in the report. Its Starshield satellite network provides secure military communications, and its Grok AI chatbot is in use at the Pentagon. Anduril, which builds military drones for land, sea and air operations, received its initial funding from tech billionaire Peter Thiel.
The concern, as framed by critics: if Project Meridian recommends heavier investment in satellite communications or autonomous drone fleets, SpaceX and Anduril would be first in line for the contracts — giving the study's leaders a direct financial stake in its conclusions.
The report does not establish that any misconduct has occurred. The study is advisory — its recommendations, due in both public and classified form by January 28, 2027, would still have to go through normal procurement channels.
For the administration, the calculus is straightforward: the people building the future of warfare should help plan for it. Musk's rockets and satellites already carry much of America's military communications; Luckey's drones are reshaping the battlefield. Sidelining them, supporters argue, would mean planning the next war without the people winning the current tech race.
Still, with billions in defense contracts on the line and Anduril's star rising, the ethics spotlight isn't going away — and how the Pentagon handles the conflicts question will shape public trust in the project.