The clock started Wednesday. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave a group led by Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich 120 days to tell the Pentagon what the next war may look like and what American troops will need to fight it.
Hegseth unveiled the effort, named Project Meridian, during a “State of the Force” address.
He also signed a letter commissioning the project, and the Defense Department posted that letter on its website for the public to read.
Musk, who owns SpaceX, will co-lead the project with Luckey, the founder of defense technology company Anduril.
Gingrich, a former speaker of the House, completes the trio. Specialists from academia and policy will join them on the team.
Emil Michael, the Defense Department’s chief technology officer, will direct the group’s work.
The Pentagon has not said how many people will serve on the team, and it has not released a roster beyond the three co-leaders.
Hegseth’s letter lays out the assignment in plain terms.
The group will “study the battlefields of the future” and the “weapons and technologies warfighters” may use on them, according to the document.
The work does not end with a report on what might come.
When the 120 days expire, the team must deliver its findings along with “actionable solutions to start developing, testing, and fielding” advanced technology.
Hegseth said the purpose is to keep America a dominant military power.
One piece of the structure remains unexplained. The letter states that the study will move through a partner organization.
Neither the letter nor the announcement names that organization or identifies who leads it.
Hegseth made a second announcement the same day. He created an Autonomous Warfare Command, a new body meant to speed up how quickly the military develops and deploys autonomous systems and drones.
TechCrunch asked the Defense Department for comment on the project.
Officials directed the outlet to a press release and said they had “nothing further to provide beyond the Secretary’s comments.”
The assignment carries particular significance for Musk.
He left the Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, last year, and Project Meridian appears to be his first official return to the administration’s fold since his departure.
Musk has reportedly renewed close ties with the administration in recent weeks.
He joined President Donald Trump for a lunch that also included other leading figures in artificial intelligence, where the group discussed the future of AI.
His company already works with Washington on national security. SpaceX launches satellites for the U.S. government and operates a satellite network that supports national defense and security missions.
Luckey’s company brings its own federal portfolio.
Anduril manufactures autonomous military systems and drones, and the firm was recently awarded government contracts to produce long-range missiles and semi-autonomous fighter aircraft.
Anduril also secured a role supplying hardware and integration for the Army’s mobile intelligence system, adding another federal award to the company’s recent run of defense business.
The Trump administration has made advanced military technology a priority, both in how the Pentagon develops it and in how the Pentagon buys it.
That emphasis has drawn the administration toward companies that have earned approval in Silicon Valley.
Project Meridian fits into that effort.
Its leaders include two executives whose companies hold or recently won federal defense work, along with a former House speaker, all reporting to a Pentagon technology chief.
As of Wednesday, the Pentagon’s public record on the project consists of three items: Hegseth’s address, his commissioning letter and the accompanying press release.
The department said it has nothing further to add.
