SpaceX to Compete in Pentagon Contest for Autonomous Drone Tech

Elon Musk’s SpaceX and wholly owned subsidiary xAI are competing in a secretive new Pentagon contest to produce voice-controlled, autonomous drone swarming technology, according to people familiar with the matter.

The entry of the two Musk companies — which he announced in early February would merge – into a new frontier of AI-enabled weapons development marks a new and potentially controversial departure for Musk. While SpaceX is a well-established defense contractor and Musk is enthusiastic about advancing AI, he is among those who have also previously argued against making “new tools for killing people.”

Musk’s companies are among only ...