Reuters sources say SpaceX, along with miltech startups Anduril and Palantir, are the favorites to build a key part of the «Golden Dome» announced by US President Donald Trump. They are offering the Pentagon a subscription fee for a constellation of hundreds of satellites that will track and shoot down enemy missiles.
Reuters sources say SpaceX, along with miltech startups Anduril and Palantir, are the favorites to build a key part of the «Golden Dome» announced by US President Donald Trump. They are offering the Pentagon a subscription fee for a constellation of hundreds of satellites that will track and shoot down enemy missiles.
SpaceX and its partners have emerged as frontrunners in the race to secure a key part of President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense shield, six sources told Reuters.
Elon Musk’s space company is partnering with Peter Thiel’s software company Palantir and drone maker Anduril to build key parts of the Golden Dome. Trump previously called the missile attack «the most catastrophic threat the United States has ever faced.»
All three companies were founded by entrepreneurs who were major political supporters of Trump. Musk donated over a quarter of a billion dollars to help elect Trump and is now a special adviser to the president working to cut government spending through his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
It was previously reported that Palantir and Anduril are in talks with a dozen competitors, including SpaceX and OpenAI, to create a consortium that will jointly participate in tenders for US government orders.
Despite the Pentagon’s positive signals to the SpaceX group, some sources emphasize that the decision on Trump’s «Golden Dome» is still in the early stages. Its final structure and those chosen to work on it could still change dramatically in the coming months.
Representatives from SpaceX, Anduril, and Palantir are said to have met with senior officials in the Trump administration and the Pentagon in recent weeks to present their plan, which involves building and launching anywhere from 400 to more than 1,000 satellites that will orbit the globe to detect missiles and track their movements.
A separate constellation of 200 strike satellites armed with missiles or lasers will shoot down enemy missiles. The SpaceX group is not expected to be involved in arming the satellites.
One source familiar with the negotiations described them as «a departure from the usual acquisition process.» SpaceX is said to have proposed defining its role in the Golden Dome as a «subscription service,» in which the government would pay for access to the technology rather than owning the system outright.
The previously unreported subscription model could circumvent some Pentagon procurement protocols, allowing the system to be deployed more quickly, insiders said. While the approach doesn’t violate any regulations, it could lock the government into a subscription model and lose control over the system’s development and pricing.
Some Pentagon officials have expressed concerns about using a subscription model for any part of the Golden Dome. Such a scheme would be unusual for such a large and critical defense program.
U.S. Space Force General Michael Gatlin is leading talks about whether SpaceX should own and operate its portion of the system. Other options include the U.S. owning and operating the system.
If the SpaceX-led group wins the Golden Dome contract, it would be the biggest victory for Silicon Valley tech companies in defense procurement and a blow to traditional contractors.
However, traditional contractors like Northrop Grumman, Boeing, and RTX have not given up on the contract, and Lockheed Martin has even created a page to advertise its vision for the «Golden Dome.» According to a US official, the Pentagon has received interest from more than 180 companies seeking to participate in the project.
