US – Hegseth appoints Musk to task force on the future of warfare

WASHINGTON, Oct 1 /ATSH-DPA/ – Tech billionaire Elon Musk is expected to take a leading role in a new Pentagon project that will examine the future of warfare, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced.

Speaking to military personnel at the US Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia, Hegseth said that Musk and drone-technology entrepreneur Palmer Luckey will be among the leaders of the initiative, called “Project Meridian”.

The Pentagon expects the project to present its conclusions within 120 days.

According to Hegseth, the aim is to examine the future creatively and to identify the areas where the US must achieve superiority, as well as the technological capabilities it must possess.

The defense secretary also spoke about autonomous warfare, which means the use of weapons systems and artificial intelligence (AI) that can operate and carry out attacks without direct human intervention.

“We must look ahead to the future to achieve technological and military superiority on the battlefield for the decades to come”, Hegseth said.

He also announced the creation of a new four-star Autonomous Warfare Command, which will aim to expand the use of autonomous and robotic systems in the US military.

The Pentagon debate over autonomous weapons

The issue of AI-powered autonomous weapons has recently come into focus because of a conflict between the Pentagon and the American AI company Anthropic.

Anthropic has refused to allow its technology to be used for autonomous weapons or mass surveillance of American citizens, while the Pentagon has insisted that it must be able to use AI for any lawful purpose.

The Pentagon then classified the company as a supply-chain risk.

Musk is also extensively involved in the field of AI and robotics. SpaceX AI develops the Grok system, while Tesla, the company he leads, is increasing production of the Optimus humanoid robots.

Until the end of May 2025, Musk led the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the cost-cutting programme created by US President Donald Trump, through which considerable cuts were undertaken and jobs in government agencies were reduced.

Other changes at the Pentagon

“Project Meridian” was one of several initiatives presented by Hegseth in his speech.

He confirmed plans to cut about 20% of the positions of generals and admirals.

Hegseth also announced an effort to make the main US military bases able to produce their own electricity, in case of disruptions to civilian grids.

According to him, Trump also wants to build a new military base in the US and has called on American states to come forward as candidates to host it.

The base could house up to 25,000 troops.