Episode 11

Palmer Luckey on Threats, Autonomy, and the Future of American Power

Published on: 21st May, 2026

The battlefield is changing faster than the weapons on it. In this fireside chat recorded live at West Point's Castle Lecture series, Brig. Gen. Shane Reeves, West Point Dean and show host, sits down with Mr. Palmer Luckey, founder of Oculus VR and Anduril Industries. The conversation covers autonomous systems, defense manufacturing, and the leaders who will have to make it all work under fire.

Episode Timestamps

00:00:00 Introduction and Guest Bio

00:01:11 Opening Conversation

00:06:21 Origin Story: Homeschool to $2 Billion

00:08:21 The Geopolitical Landscape: Russia, Ukraine, China

00:10:44 Don’t Overfit to Ukraine and The China Threat

00:13:31 Building a Military We Can Actually Manufacture

00:16:42 The WWII Industrial Analogy

00:19:53 China, Taiwan, and the Amphibious Problem

00:22:16 Drone Technology and Autonomous Systems

00:23:51 Counter‑UAS: Layered Defense and Reusable Kinetics

00:27:50 Policy, Bureaucracy, and What Is Already Changing

00:29:25 What Do You Look for in a Young Leader?

00:31:49 Q&A with Cadets

00:42:09 The Subterranean Domain

00:45:20 Closing: Socrates, ChatGPT, and Inspiring the Next Generation

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About the Podcast

Inside West Point: Ideas That Impact
Join Brigadier General Shane Reeves, Dean of the United States Military Academy at West Point, as he takes you behind the scenes to explore the applied research and cross-disciplinary work being done by the Academy's scholars.

From high-energy lasers and artificial intelligence to civil-military relations and ethics, this podcast goes beyond the textbook to give you a deeper understanding of the complex issues shaping the modern battlefield. Hear directly from the experts as they make even the most complex topics accessible to a broad audience. Get inside access to West Point's work and see how it's being applied today.

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Disclaimer: This podcast does not imply Federal endorsement.
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