The Pentagon has named SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey to help lead a 120-day study of future warfare, prompting concerns that the executives could influence recommendations benefiting their own companies. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Project Meridian: The Future of Warfare on Sept. 30. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is also leading the effort, which will examine automated and artificial-intelligence-powered weapons and other technologies expected to shape military operations over the next 10 to 20 years. SpaceX has received more than $8 billion in U.S. defense contracts in 2026, according to government contract announcements. It operates Starshield, a satellite network for government communications, and its Grok chatbot is being used by the Pentagon. Anduril makes military drones and other defense systems, and recently won a Navy contract to build 200 autonomous underwater drones annually. Those business interests could intersect with the study’s conclusions. Recommendations favoring drones or space-based systems, for example, could benefit Musk’s or Luckey’s companies, while approaches centered on equipment such as tanks would not offer the same direct advantage, a former senior Defense Department official said. Richard Painter, a University of Minnesota corporate law professor and former White House ethics lawyer, said the executives should not be viewed as neutral participants. “They all want to sell stuff,” Painter said, describing Musk’s interest in selling AI to the Defense Department. The Pentagon said its chief technology officer, Emil Michael, commissioned the study through MITRE, a nonprofit that manages federally funded research. A department spokesperson said MITRE would conduct the analysis and recommendations with technical rigor and apply conflict-of-interest and information safeguards. The Pentagon did not say whether Musk and Luckey would serve as special government employees or as contractors, a distinction that affects which ethics rules apply. Federal criminal law bars executive-branch employees from participating in government decisions that affect their own financial interests or those of their families and businesses. Contractors are not covered by that law, Painter said. The Defense Department did not respond to questions about the potential conflicts, and SpaceXAI and Anduril did not respond to requests for comment. A Government Accountability Office official said safeguards are expected to keep panel members away from procurement decisions, but added that the study’s eventual recommendations warrant scrutiny. A former Pentagon official, meanwhile, said the panel’s advice would be distinct from writing a weapons requirement and then competing to supply it. The study was announced days before President Donald Trump was expected to give a speech at an Anduril facility in Baltimore. Its findings could help frame future Pentagon priorities as the department considers how to use AI, autonomy and robotics in warfare—making transparency about the study’s membership, methods and safeguards central to public oversight.