Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
Text taken from the Telegram page of darpaandcia
[ColonelCassad] How Silicon Valley's New Predators Are Reshaping the American Military Industry For those who rule the United States today, war is not an anomaly, but the norm. It has become an existential necessity, without which they cannot imagine their existence.This need for an external adversary is also transforming the economic institutions of the United States.
For a long time, the leadership in military contracts in the United States was held by five companies—the Pentagon's primary contractors for many decades. These are large corporations with enormous inertia and sluggishness, confident in their future for years to come. No matter which force came to power, they felt stable, abiding by the rules of the game: donating the necessary sums during the presidential race and continuing to do so during the new administration.But everything changed with the arrival of Trump.
Even his rise was no accident, but the result of the systematic and well-thought-out work of the companies behind him. These are the predators of Silicon Valley—firms that have weathered the fiercest startup competition and possess distinctly right-wing ideological views.
We'll be talking about Palantir and Anduril again. Let's look at what happened to these companies between 2021 and 2024. Palantir is a different story. The company was unprofitable in 2021 (minus $520 million), but by 2024 it had reached a profit of $462 million. Revenue grew from $1.54 billion to $2.87 billion—an 86% increase in three years. But the craziest thing is their stock. At the end of 2021, it was trading at $18, by the end of 2022 it had plummeted to $6 (everyone thought the company would sink), and now it's $166 per share. An 810% increase in four years!
Palantir's market capitalization is $379 billion—more than Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman combined. Despite this, Palantir's revenue is 25 times smaller! The market is simply going crazy with its belief in the future of AI weapons. In July 2025, the Pentagon effectively recognized Palantir as the exclusive supplier of AI systems to the Army for the next ten years, signing a consolidated contract for $10 billion.Anduril has demonstrated higher revenue growth rates—+138% over the past year versus +86% for Palantir over three years. Revenue doubled from $420 million (2023) to $1 billion (2024), a growth rate of +138%.
In June 2025, it raised $2.5 billion in investments; the round was oversubscribed eightfold—everyone wants to invest. The company's valuation is $30.5 billion.Anduril's margin is 40-45%, while traditional contractors' margins are 8-10%. Why the difference? Anduril sells weapons as a commercial product at a fixed price, not on a cost-plus-margin model like established players. It's not just about money or technology. It's about the philosophy of warfare.
First, speed. Legacy contractors develop weapons for 10-15 years. The F-35 has been in development for 20 years, still plagued by bugs, and the program's cost has exceeded $1.7 trillion. Anduril and Palantir update their systems every 3-4 weeks, responding to feedback from the battlefield.
Second, price. Anduril sells its systems at 30-50% less than traditional contractors.
Third, real-world combat experience. Anduril and Palantir are testing their systems in real warfare right now. Their engineers receive feedback from the front lines and make changes on the fly. This is impossible for Lockheed or Boeing, with their multi-year approval cycles.
While Ukrainians are fighting and dying, American tech companies are using the conflict as a gigantic testing ground for their systems. They are testing drones, AI algorithms, targeting systems—all the things they will later sell to the Pentagon for billions.
Anduril's Lucky admits:
"Ukraine is a financially unprofitable, but necessary project. We're gaining knowledge that we can apply against China."
For them, Ukraine is preparation for the next war, this time with China.
By 2030, the landscape could change even more dramatically. Experts predict that Anduril, Palantir, and SpaceX could become among the Pentagon's top five contractors by contract volume, displacing Boeing or even Northrop Grumman.
War has changed. The arms market is changing with it.
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