President-elect Donald Trump and his team consulted with Trae Stephens, executive chairman of defense technology startup Anduril Industries Inc., underscoring the incoming administration’s plans to shake up the US military, according to people familiar with the matter.
Trump and other members of his inner circle met Thursday with Stephens to discuss ways to transform the nation’s defense, said the people, who requested anonymity to discuss a private conversation. Stephens, also a partner in Peter Thiel’s venture capital firm Founders Fund, previously worked in support of US intelligence and on Capitol Hill.
Several prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalists threw their weight behind Trump and his running mate, US Senator JD Vance, who invested in Anduril’s first venture round while at Steve Case’s firm Revolution. Elon Musk has emerged as Trump’s staunchest ally, spending more than $100 million on the election effort and lending the campaign credibility among many within the tech industry.
Spokespeople for Anduril had no immediate comment while the Trump transition didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump has promised to revamp the US defense establishment, cutting waste and modernizing how weapons are made and procured. Anduril, valued at $14 billion in its most recent funding round, makes underwater vehicles, surveillance tools and autonomous weapons systems, and sees itself as an alternative to more established military contractors.
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Those changes are already under way with a series of iconoclastic picks for key national security jobs. This week, Trump named former Democrat Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence, Fox News host Pete Hegseth as defense secretary and staunch loyalist Representative Matt Gaetz as Attorney General. All three will need to be confirmed by the US Senate.
The outreach to Stephens also highlights the continuing influence of Thiel, who supported Trump in 2016 and helped place several of his mentees and allies in key roles during the first administration.
Michael Kratsios, previously a principal at Thiel’s eponymous private investment firm Thiel Capital, served as US Chief Technology Officer before joining Thiel-backed Scale AI in 2021. He joined the president-elect’s transition team earlier this week to handle tech policy, according to Politico. Thiel’s longtime colleague Ken Howery also served as Ambassador to Sweden in Trump’s first term.
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Anduril was co-founded by Stephens and Palmer Luckey, one of the creators of the Oculus virtual reality headset and an ardent Trump backer. The company has blossomed into an important US government contractor as it vies with traditional defense giants for a larger piece of national security business.
Stephens begin his career two decades ago working on Capitol Hill and for the political affairs office at the Embassy of Afghanistan in Washington. He graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, according to Anduril’s website.