Palmer Luckey, a 32-year-old tech billionaire, is on a mission to revolutionize the U.S. military through his defense startup, Anduril Industries, which focuses on developing autonomous, AI-powered weapons.

Luckey expresses more concern about the potential misuse of less advanced technology by malicious actors than the risks posed by advanced AI systems.

He emphasizes that all Anduril weapons are equipped with a 'kill switch' for human intervention, claiming they are safer than existing indiscriminate weapons like land mines.

Luckey has criticized the current state of U.S. military technology, arguing that it lags behind commercial innovations, such as those from Tesla, particularly in AI.

Anduril has already secured over $6 billion in government contracts, with its technologies actively deployed by the U.S. military and in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

The autonomous weapons developed by Anduril are designed to function independently, utilizing AI for surveillance and targeting without human intervention.

Before founding Anduril, Luckey gained notoriety as the founder of Oculus, which he sold to Facebook for $2 billion in 2014, although he was ousted from the company in 2017 amid political controversy.

In addition to Fury, Anduril's Dive XL submarine can autonomously execute missions and is currently being used by Australia to bolster its defense against China.

The company's innovative business model focuses on delivering effective defense products directly to the Pentagon without relying on government funding for development.

Luckey advocates for a shift in U.S. military strategy, suggesting that the nation should transition from acting as the 'world police' to becoming a 'world gun store' by arming allies instead of deploying troops.

Anduril is also working on several advanced systems, including the Roadrunner drone interceptor, 360-degree soldier headsets, and an electromagnetic warfare system.

One of Anduril's flagship products, the unmanned fighter jet known as Fury, is designed to seamlessly integrate with manned aircraft, eliminating the need for a traditional cockpit.