The world’s richest man, the legend, Elon Musk has returned to the Trump administration.
This time, the Tesla CEO is returning to the Trump administration in a new Pentagon role that could give him a direct hand in shaping the future of warfare.
On Wednesday, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced that Musk will co-lead a new government project that is tasked with studying the future of warfare.
The new project is being called Project Meridian, and according to the Pentagon, its goal is to “identify the capabilities required to achieve absolute technological dominance on the next-generation battlefield”.
BREAKING: Secretary Pete Hegseth announces that Elon Musk will co-lead a new War Department effort studying the future of warfare during his State of the Force address.
Hegseth unveils Project Meridian, naming Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich to co-lead the effort under the… pic.twitter.com/stxOPThY8z
— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 30, 2026
Per The Hill:
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday announced that SpaceXAI CEO Elon Musk, Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey and former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) will lead a new Pentagon effort to study the future of warfare, dubbed “Project Meridian.”
The Pentagon chief said the project is meant to harness America’s innovators, senior leaders and technologists to look decades into the future and “forecast the creative solution for tomorrow’s conflicts.”
“It is futuristic on purpose,” he said of the project, noting it was not meant to develop new strategies or policies
“We should have the humility to recognize that the best forecasters of future conflict do not solely reside inside the Pentagon,” Hegseth continued. “There are obvious biases and risks to asking ourselves to both ask the questions and answer them.”
The Department of War revealed that Project Meridian will be completed in 120 days, and that its final report will be unclassified and presented to the public.
Musk is no stranger to partnering with the Pentagon.
In July of 2025, the Pentagon awarded Musk’s xAI a contract with a $200 million ceiling.
Reuters reported that Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, received $1.6 billion in orders from the U.S. Space Force to launch 18 Falcon 9 missions through 2027.
Musk’s new role with the Pentagon marks his first time serving in an advisory capacity under the Trump administration since leaving DOGE.
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