Anduril Industries is a defense technology company that, while remaining largely unknown to most people, is increasingly central to the future of U.S. national security. Private-market investors now value the company at roughly $60 billion, a remarkable figure for a firm founded less than a decade ago. That valuation reflects not only rapid growth but also the Pentagon’s growing recognition that the United States must modernize how it builds military power.

Founded in 2017, Anduril set out to challenge the traditional defense contracting model. For decades, the U.S. defense industry has relied on slow procurement cycles and custom-built weapons systems that reward delay rather than speed. That model is poorly suited for an era defined by artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, and rapidly evolving threats from adversaries such as China.