Reporter's Notebook
War Doesn’t Belong to U.S. Weapons Startups Yet
Defense tech companies argue that warfare is changing rapidly—but the current conflict is using mostly traditional weapons.
War focuses attention on the present. That was very clear from a week’s worth of conversations in Washington with leaders at defense tech startups, traditional military contractors and people close to the Pentagon.
Until the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, buzz was building around startups such as Anduril and Saronic that promised to deliver AI-infused autonomous weapons quickly and economically. The U.S., meanwhile, has relied more in the current conflict on cruise missiles and bombs from its regular stable of traditional defense contractors.