Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appointed Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich to co-lead Project Meridian, a 120-day study on the future of warfare. The initiative will identify critical technologies the U.S. military will need, including artificial intelligence, autonomous systems and robotics. A public report is due by January 2027.
The appointments may draw scrutiny because Musk’s SpaceX and Luckey’s Anduril are major defense contractors that could benefit from the study’s recommendations. The executives will help define future military needs while their companies compete for resulting contracts.