US Secretary of Defense Hegseth announced the establishment of an “Autonomous Operations Command” on September 30 to enhance the large-scale autonomy and robotic combat capabilities of the US military. Hegseth announced this move during his speech at the Quantico Marine Corps Base in Virginia on the same day, calling it a new four-star joint operations command. The command's jurisdiction will cover drones, artificial intelligence, and command and control systems. According to the Wall Street Journal, the move is aimed at “completely overhauling the way the Pentagon procures, tests, and deploys drones and other cutting-edge technology.” The report also said that the Pentagon is seeking to triple spending on autonomous warfare and is proposing to invest 74 billion US dollars in drones and anti-drone technology in the budget application. On the same day, in his speech, Hegseth also announced a new plan aimed at “studying future forms of warfare.” The project, called “Project Meridian,” will be co-led by Pentagon Chief Technology Officer Emil Michael, US tech billionaire Elon Musk, tech entrepreneur Palmer Luckey, and former Speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich.

US Secretary of Defense Hegseth announced the establishment of an “Autonomous Operations Command” on September 30 to enhance the large-scale autonomy and robotic combat capabilities of the US military. Hegseth announced this move during his speech at the Quantico Marine Corps Base in Virginia on the same day, calling it a new four-star joint operations command. The command's jurisdiction will cover drones, artificial intelligence, and command and control systems. According to the Wall Street Journal, the move is aimed at “completely overhauling the way the Pentagon procures, tests, and deploys drones and other cutting-edge technology.” The report also said that the Pentagon is seeking to triple spending on autonomous warfare and is proposing to invest 74 billion US dollars in drones and anti-drone technology in the budget application. On the same day, in his speech, Hegseth also announced a new plan aimed at “studying future forms of warfare.” The project, called “Project Meridian,” will be co-led by Pentagon Chief Technology Officer Emil Michael, US tech billionaire Elon Musk, tech entrepreneur Palmer Luckey, and former Speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich.