Hegseth names Musk, Luckey and Gingrich to lead Pentagon study

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Project Meridian, a Pentagon study led by Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich to identify technologies and capabilities the U.S. military may need in future wars and recommend ways to develop, test and field them. Hegseth unveiled the initiative during his State of the Force address at Marine Corps Base Quantico on September 30. The commissioning memo sets a 120-day period for the study and calls for a public, unclassified report accompanied by a classified annex. The memo-reported deadline is January 28, 2027. Accounts differ on whether the 120 days begin with the announcement or are counted from the memo; the supplied information does not resolve that discrepancy. The study is intended to examine future warfare and identify emerging domains and capabilities, rather than produce new military strategies or policies, Hegseth said. In his commissioning description, he said the project would propose actionable ways to begin developing, testing and fielding technologies. The memo lists artificial intelligence, autonomy, directed energy, robotics and biotechnology as fields expected to affect warfare.