Pentagon Names Musk, Luckey and Gingrich to Lead 120-Day Future Warfare Study
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Project Meridian on September 30, 2026. It is a Pentagon study on the future of warfare, to be co-led by Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich. Axios
Hegseth said Musk will co-lead what he described as a government project to study the future of warfare. Musk will work with Luckey and Gingrich. The announcement describes the group as a short-term task force, a temporary team, that will report back to Pentagon leaders. The Guardian
The effort will last 120 days. It will end with an unclassified public report of its recommendations. Unclassified means not secret and open to the public. Its stated goal is "identifying the capabilities required to achieve absolute technological dominance on the next-generation battlefield." The project will look years and decades ahead at how warfare could change. CNBC
The scope Hegseth outlined goes beyond current U.S. military plans. Project Meridian will examine how the military could use new technology and operate in unfamiliar areas, including deep underground and on the moon. Think of it as a blueprint stage. The focus is on naming what tools and abilities will be needed, not on buying weapons or changing force structure now.
The three co-leads bring different backgrounds. Musk previously led the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or Doge. Luckey is CEO of defense tech company Anduril. Gingrich is a former Republican speaker of the House. Gingrich was named to the Defense Policy Board in December 2020 and was removed less than three months later after Joe Biden became president.
The broader context here is how defense leaders try to turn fast-moving commercial technology into long-term military plans. A 120-day study with a public report works as a signal as well as a plan. It can set terms, highlight technology areas for further study, and give officials a shared reference for later debates over budgets, doctrine and requirements. It does not by itself approve purchases or operational change.
Looking at what this means for Pentagon process, the setup may matter as much as the findings. A group with three outside chairs, paired with a public report, points to pressure from outside to push change inside. The inclusion of moon and underground operations points to areas where doctrine, legal rules and technical needs are still unclear. The practical questions are specific: what gaps the report names, what timelines it sets, and whether its ideas show up in official guidance after the 120 days expire.
