For a long time, it wasn't a great look for startups and big tech – outside of companies like Microsoft – to openly work with the military-industrial complex. That was for contractors like Raytheon and General Dynamics. Tech generally maintained the sunny disposition that it was better to enable world peace through well targeted digital ads.

That has changed, and startups like Anduril are now positioning themselves as a new generation of military supplier, marrying Silicon Valley innovation with surveillance tools and military weaponry. In this ep, we look at the history of Silicon Valley and the military, and this new crop of weapons makers.

Links
Defence and Anduril unveil first Ghost Shark prototype
‘The machine did it coldly’: Israel used AI to identify 37,000 Hamas targets – The Guardian
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Sign up for Down Round Premium

For a long time, it wasn't a great look for startups and big tech – outside of companies like Microsoft – to openly work with the military-industrial complex. That was for contractors like Raytheon and General Dynamics. Tech generally maintained the sunny disposition that it was better to enable world peace through well targeted digital ads.
That has changed, and startups like <a href="https://www.anduril.com">Anduril</a> are now positioning themselves as a new generation of military supplier, marrying Silicon Valley innovation with surveillance tools and military weaponry. In this ep, we look at the history of Silicon Valley and the military, and this new crop of weapons makers.
Links
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.australiandefence.com.au/news/news/defence-and-anduril-unveil-first-ghost-shark-prototype">Defence and Anduril unveil first Ghost Shark prototype</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/03/israel-gaza-ai-database-hamas-airstrikes">‘The machine did it coldly’: Israel used AI to identify 37,000 Hamas targets – The Guardian</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/downroundpod">Down Round on X</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.instagram.com/downroundpod/">Down Round on Instagram</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@downroundpod">Down Round on TikTok</a></li>
<li><a href="http://downround.memberful.com">Sign up for Down Round Premium</a></li>
</ul>

The number one podcast about tech business and culture, from James "JR" Hennessy and Raph Dixon.

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