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Hegseth's Project Meridian

News · Heat 2.0 / 10 · 2 shows · 25m airtime

On October 1, 2026, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Project Meridian, a study of the future of warfare co-led by Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich. Reporting since has established that it is a 120-day MITRE-run project of about 20 people, chaired by the three, with a report due in January that focuses on warfare in 2040 and 2050 rather than Pentagon operations. The 120-day limit is set by when special government employee status ends. Coverage still centers on the purge rhetoric in Hegseth's speech and on whether that trio counts as America's best minds. The study's full scope and staffing remain unreported.

How 2 podcasts covered it

  1. The Daily Show: Ears Edition, 2026-10-02 (4:14 to 9:57)
    Covers the speech and names the co-leaders
    Covers Hegseth's speech declaring the department no longer woke or weak and the launch of Project Meridian, mocking the co-leaders and noting Luckey built the Oculus headset at 19.
    New angle: Project Meridian is co-led by Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich.
  2. The Daily Show: Ears Edition, 2026-10-02 (9:57 to 12:38)
    Defends Project Meridian as future-war prep
    A live-from-the-Pentagon bit that defends Project Meridian as preparation for future wars and dismisses the current war with Iran. It stays inside the announcement's framing - the trio, the future-war pitch - and adds no new fact.
  3. Bloomberg Tech, 2026-10-02 (5:09 to 12:36)
    Walks through Vectis and Project Meridian
    Skunk Works chief OJ Sanchez walks through Vectis, the F-35 fleet and the SR-71, then welcomes Project Meridian as opening the tent; a separate segment details the 120-day study and its contractor-led conflict of interest.
    New angle: Project Meridian is co-led by Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich over 120 days.
  4. Bloomberg Tech, 2026-10-02 (18:51 to 22:07)
    Explains the 120-day clock on Meridian
    Wendy Benjaminson walks through Project Meridian: the six-initiative State of the Force rollout, the contractor conflict of interest, and the reason for the 120-day clock - special government employee status runs out then.
    New angle: The 120-day limit is set by when special government employee status ends.
  5. Bloomberg Tech, 2026-10-27 (52:13 to 55:18)
    Describes the MITRE-run Meridian project
    Luckey, one of three steering committee chairs, describes Project Meridian: about 20 people, run by MITRE, with Axon's Rick Smith among them and a report due in January. He frames it around warfare in 2040 and 2050 rather than near-term Pentagon reform.
    New angle: Project Meridian is a 120-day MITRE-run project of about 20 people, with a report due in January.
  6. Bloomberg Tech, 2026-10-28 (9:06 to 10:42)
    Details the 120-day MITRE-run effort
    Luckey gives the first public shape of Project Meridian: a 120-day MITRE-run effort with about 20 people, three steering committee chairs, and Axon's Rick Smith among the participants.
    New angle: Project Meridian is a 120-day MITRE-run project with about 20 people; Luckey, Musk and Gingrich chair it.
  7. Bloomberg Tech, 2026-10-28 (10:42 to 12:21)
    Narrows the report's scope to 2040 warfare
    Luckey narrows Project Meridian's scope on the record: the January report is about warfare in 2040 and 2050, not day-to-day Pentagon operations, with Ukraine's buy-and-stop-buying procurement as the lesson he draws.
    New angle: Project Meridian's report is due in January and focuses on warfare in 2040 and 2050, not Pentagon operations.
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