Marc Andreessen, cofounder and general partner of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, has joined Elon Musk in advocating for AI-controlled drones over traditional manned fighter jets. During an appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience that aired Tuesday, Andreessen argued that AI-controlled jets are “far superior” to those requiring human pilots.
The venture capitalist outlined several key advantages of unmanned aircraft. Speed and processing power are significant factors, but Andreessen emphasized that removing the human element—what he called “the spam in the can”—eliminates the need to keep a pilot alive during combat. This allows AI-controlled aircraft to move faster and execute more aggressive maneuvers that would be impossible or fatal for human pilots.
The Pentagon is actively developing uncrewed fighter technology as a priority initiative. The US Air Force and the Defense Department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency have made significant progress in AI piloting systems. These systems have reached such maturity that AI-controlled F-16s are now engaging in aerial combat simulations against human pilots—and winning. In May, the Air Force Secretary personally flew in an AI-controlled F-16 to observe these dogfighting capabilities firsthand.
Andreessen’s comments echo Elon Musk’s recent criticism of the Pentagon’s F-35 fighter jet program. On Sunday, Musk posted on X that “crewed fighter jets are an inefficient way to extend the range of missiles or drop bombs.” He continued his commentary Tuesday, responding to Andreessen’s interview by stating: “Future wars are all about drones & hypersonic missiles. Fighter jets piloted by humans will be destroyed very quickly.”
Musk’s remarks carry heightened significance given his appointment as co-leader of President-elect Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). While Musk hasn’t specified cost-cutting plans for the F-35 program, he and co-leader Vivek Ramaswamy referenced the Defense Department’s $841 billion budget in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, noting the Pentagon has failed its seventh consecutive audit.
Silicon Valley’s growing interest in defense technology is evident. Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt described himself as a “licensed arms dealer” while working to mass-produce drones for Ukraine. Startup accelerator Y Combinator backed its first weapons startup, Ares Industries, in August.
However, military experts caution against dismissing manned aircraft entirely. Justin Bronk of the Royal United Services Institute notes that human pilot flexibility is “very difficult to replicate in an automatic system.” The F-35’s extensive bombing, surveillance, and communications capabilities remain unmatched by current drone technology, according to retired Air Force pilot Mark Gunzinger.
Key Quotes
AI-controlled jets are far superior to fighter jets that need pilots. And there’s a bunch of reasons for that. And part of it is just simply the speed of processing and so forth.
Marc Andreessen explained to Joe Rogan why he believes AI-controlled aircraft outperform traditional fighters, emphasizing the computational advantages of autonomous systems in combat scenarios.
If you don’t have a human in the plane, you don’t have the, as they say, the spam in the can, you don’t have the human body in the plane. You don’t have to keep a human being alive, which means you can be a lot faster, and you can move a lot more quickly.
Andreessen outlined the physical limitations that human pilots impose on aircraft performance, arguing that removing these constraints allows for superior combat capabilities.
Future wars are all about drones & hypersonic missiles. Fighter jets piloted by humans will be destroyed very quickly.
Elon Musk responded to Andreessen’s interview on X, reinforcing his position that autonomous systems will dominate future warfare and render traditional manned fighters obsolete.
Pilots continually emphasize that this is the fighter they want to take to war if called upon.
A Pentagon spokesperson defended current manned fighter programs, highlighting that actual combat pilots still prefer traditional aircraft despite the theoretical advantages of AI systems.
Our Take
The alignment between Andreessen and Musk on AI-controlled warfare represents more than just tech industry opinion—it signals a potential paradigm shift in defense spending and strategy. Both leaders command enormous influence through capital allocation and, in Musk’s case, direct government access. Their public advocacy could accelerate AI adoption in military applications far beyond current timelines.
However, the gap between AI demonstration and deployment remains significant. While AI systems excel in controlled dogfighting scenarios, real combat involves unpredictable variables, electronic warfare, and split-second ethical decisions. The military experts’ caution about human flexibility reflects hard-won lessons from actual warfare.
What’s most striking is how this debate mirrors broader AI adoption patterns: initial superiority in narrow tasks, followed by questions about generalization and reliability. The defense sector’s conservative approach may frustrate Silicon Valley, but it reflects the catastrophic consequences of AI failure in combat. This tension between innovation speed and reliability requirements will define military AI development for years to come.
Why This Matters
This story highlights a critical inflection point in military technology where AI is challenging decades of defense doctrine around manned aircraft. The backing of influential tech leaders like Andreessen and Musk—both with significant capital and political connections—could accelerate the Pentagon’s shift toward autonomous warfare systems.
The convergence of Silicon Valley and defense represents a fundamental transformation in how military technology is developed and deployed. With AI systems now demonstrating superiority over human pilots in controlled combat scenarios, the defense industry faces pressure to rapidly adopt autonomous systems or risk technological obsolescence.
Musk’s position as DOGE co-leader adds political weight to these technological arguments, potentially influencing billions in defense spending. The F-35 program alone represents one of the most expensive military projects in history, making it a prime target for efficiency-focused cost-cutting.
This debate also raises critical questions about AI in warfare: the ethics of autonomous weapons systems, the reliability of AI in unpredictable combat situations, and whether human judgment should remain in lethal decision-making. As AI capabilities advance, these discussions will shape not just military strategy but international relations and warfare ethics for decades to come.
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