Palmer Luckey, the controversial founder of Oculus and now CEO of Anduril Industries, has emerged as the most prominent figure in Silicon Valley’s dramatic pivot toward defense technology and AI-powered weapons systems. The 33-year-old entrepreneur is on what he calls an “I told you so tour,” promoting his AI munitions company that has skyrocketed from a $14 billion valuation in 2024 to over $30 billion in early 2025.
Anduril Industries represents a fundamental shift in how America develops military technology. Unlike traditional defense contractors like Lockheed Martin and Boeing, Anduril sells ready-made AI-powered weapons to the government at fixed prices rather than relying on lengthy government contracts. The company’s flagship products include the Fury unmanned fighter jet, which beat established defense giants for the Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft program in 2024, and Lattice, an AI-powered software platform for autonomous warfare.
The defense tech sector has experienced explosive growth, with venture capitalists investing $31 billion into defense-related companies in 2024, up 33% from the previous year according to McKinsey. This represents a complete reversal from 2018, when 4,000 Google employees protested the company’s involvement in Project Maven, a Pentagon AI intelligence-gathering program. Anduril later won a Project Maven contract after Google withdrew.
Luckey’s company is pioneering AI-powered autonomous weapons systems, including drones, counterdrone technology, and surveillance systems. The company recently announced a partnership with OpenAI to build AI systems to thwart drone attacks, and is collaborating with Meta on augmented reality wearables for soldiers that turn warfighters into what Luckey calls “technomancers.”
Anduril is planning to open a weapons manufacturing plant outside Columbus, Ohio, next year and is on track to go public within “low single-digit years,” according to Luckey. The company claims to have “did in two weeks what the Army had been working on for years” on certain projects.
However, recent reports from The Wall Street Journal and Reuters revealed that Anduril’s Lattice AI platform and drone products have faced technical challenges and failed some military tests. The company defended itself, stating it “welcomes scrutiny” and that setbacks are normal in weapons development. The Trump administration’s defense priorities, including a $1 billion investment in American drone manufacturing announced by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, position Anduril to benefit significantly from increased defense spending focused on rapid AI-powered innovation.
Key Quotes
I build cruise missiles, and I post on X.
Palmer Luckey describing his unique approach to running a defense tech company, combining weapons manufacturing with social media presence to build his brand and normalize AI weapons development among tech elites.
If both the smartest minds in technology abandoned defense innovation, the United States would forever lose its ability to protect our way of life. And if no one else was willing to solve that problem, I would.
Luckey’s justification for founding Anduril, positioning himself as defending American interests when other tech companies withdrew from military contracts following employee protests against AI weapons systems.
There’s no moral high ground in outsourcing that work to people who are less ethical and less competent than you.
Luckey’s argument to Joe Rogan for why tech leaders concerned about AI weapons ethics should be the ones developing them, a pitch that has convinced many founders to enter the defense tech space.
Take me with a pound of salt. I am a propagandist.
Luckey’s candid admission to journalist Bari Weiss that his media tour is deliberately designed to reshape public perception of AI weapons and defense technology, making ‘killer robots’ acceptable to investors and the tech community.
Our Take
Luckey’s success reveals how quickly AI warfare technology has moved from taboo to celebrated in Silicon Valley. The $31 billion in defense tech venture funding represents not just capital flows but a fundamental ideological shift among tech elites. The OpenAI-Anduril partnership is especially concerning—it directly contradicts OpenAI’s stated mission of ensuring AI benefits humanity. When the leading AI safety-focused company partners with a weapons manufacturer, it signals that commercial and political pressures are overwhelming ethical considerations. The reported technical failures of Anduril’s Lattice AI platform in military tests should raise alarm bells about rushing autonomous weapons to deployment. Unlike software bugs in consumer apps, AI failures in combat systems cost lives. The cult of personality around Luckey—celebrating his provocateur persona while glossing over the profound implications of AI-powered autonomous weapons—suggests the tech industry has learned nothing from past mistakes about moving fast and breaking things.
Why This Matters
This story represents a watershed moment for AI in warfare and Silicon Valley’s relationship with the military-industrial complex. The explosive growth of AI-powered defense technology signals a fundamental shift in how wars will be fought, with autonomous systems replacing traditional weapons platforms. Anduril’s rise from startup to $30+ billion valuation in just a few years demonstrates that AI weapons development has become one of tech’s most lucrative and consequential sectors.
The partnership between OpenAI and Anduril is particularly significant, showing how leading AI research companies are now directly contributing to military applications. This marks a dramatic reversal from the 2018 Google employee protests against military AI contracts. The normalization of AI weapons development among Silicon Valley’s elite—with prominent executives joining the Army Reserve and Stanford students seeking defense tech jobs—suggests autonomous warfare systems will rapidly advance. The technical challenges reported with Anduril’s AI platform also raise critical questions about the reliability and safety of deploying AI systems in combat scenarios where lives are at stake.
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Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/palmer-luckey-america-worlds-gun-store-defense-tech-2025-12