How Silicon Valley Can Reindustrialize America

Inside Anduril’s bold bet on American defense manufacturing

Peace through strength has been an enduring doctrine in American foreign policy. From Teddy Roosevelt’s big stick to Ronald Reagan’s Star Wars program, successful presidents have understood this instinctively. But the nature of war, as in all things, is ever-changing. Measuring defense capabilities by the size of the Pentagon budget or the number of military personnel does not tell you everything you need to know about how well prepared the country will be for future conflict. The quality and lethality of the technology and equipment available, as well as the ability to manufacture them securely and at speed, are also essential. One company drawing attention to the role of defense and technology in reindustrializing and protecting the country is Anduril Industries.

Founded in 2017 by Silicon Valley entrepreneur and VR pioneer Palmer Luckey, Anduril (meaning ‘Flame of the West’ in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Elvish language and the name given to the hero Aragorn’s sword) announced their new factory in Columbus, Ohio. Arsenal-1, an over 5-million-square-foot complex near Rickenbacker Airport, will employ 4,000 people and manufacture drones, missiles, and high-tech weaponry. This is supported by $452 million of tax credits from the state and $70 million from the All Ohio Future Fund to build a new taxiway and other improvements at the airport to ensure the quick delivery of Anduril’s products. JobsOhio will also provide grants to support workforce training. Arsenal-1’s first products will start being made next July and join Anduril’s factories in Georgia, Mississippi, and Rhode Island, as well as contracts in Australia and the UK. Working with Microsoft, Anduril is also testing a visual augmentation program for the US Army to help improve “beyond line-of-sight perception capabilities,” such as detecting drones and navigating battlefields. Over the past six months, the company’s valuation doubled to $28 billion.

This is the launch of Anduril’s project to reindustrialize the heartland through defense manufacturing. It is not just clever branding to based cutting-edge technology in an area rich with industrial heritage. Anduril is evoking a time when defense elites dreamed big and defense technology was viewed as a public good. FDR spoke of the United States being an “arsenal of democracy” during the West’s darkest hour. The marketing for Arsenal-1 has deliberately tapped into a broader patriotic sentiment about how manufacturing and defense go together. The posters and slogans have relied on an aesthetic that appeals to the MAGA-Tech Right alliance and could inspire other entrepreneurs and engineers to follow…

Please continue reading at Commonplace where I am a contributor.