Trae Stephens on defense industry
From Andruil co-founder Trae Stephens Talks Innovating in an Age of War | Bloomberg Talks · · Bloomberg Podcasts
“The idea was that we have this defense ecosystem that's dominated by a handful, five or six large defense companies that have been a consolidation of the entire defense industry that existed during the cold war. The capabilities that we have are really incredible, but these platforms take decades to develop, build, and hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars to sustain. A Patriot missile, which was initially developed in 1969, is a 70-year-old system at this point. Every missile costs millions of dollars, literally between two and a quarter to five million per unit basis. These were built to shoot down MiG-29s. When you're shooting at an airplane that costs tens of millions of dollars, you can afford to shoot a $3 million missile to do that. This is not the nature of threats as they exist today.”
On , Trae Stephens, Cofounder at Anduril Industries, spoke about defense industry during Andruil co-founder Trae Stephens Talks Innovating in an Age of War | Bloomberg Talks on Bloomberg Podcasts.
About Trae Stephens
Trae Stephens, co-founder and executive chairman of Anduril Industries and a partner at Founders Fund, discussed defense technology and investment strategy in several recent interviews. At Bloomberg Tech 2026, Stephens said Anduril's goal is to introduce software and autonomy to reduce the cost of engaging with modern threats, describing an economic imbalance in which a $3 million cruise missile is used against a $200,000 weapon. He stated that Anduril's Arsenal One facility in Ohio is producing the Fury autonomous fighter aircraft, with Barracuda cruise missiles and Roadrunner interceptor missiles expected to begin production later in 2026. Stephens said additional factories, both domestic and international, are planned. On the topic of U.S. allies, he said it is important for U.S. foreign policy to provide capabilities to allies so they can defend themselves using U.S. production. In separate interviews, Stephens discussed his investment philosophy at Founders Fund, saying the firm creates "a ton of friction" in deal-making by requiring high conviction and allowing any one partner to block an investment. He said the fund makes significantly fewer investments by number than others of its size, with about 40% of each fund concentrated in a few companies. Stephens also spoke about his Christian faith and his view that defense work is about creating conditions for peace, stating that he wants his children to grow up without fearing for their personal safety. He described the September 11 attacks as a moment that led him to pursue national security work.