Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
The future of high-tech warfare has arrived. Just look to the conflicts in Ukraine and Iran to see how much drones and robots have remade the modern battlefield. Is the U.S. positioned to win wars in this new era? What are the ethical constraints of waging autonomous warfare? My guest this week is Christian Brose, the president and chief strategy officer of Anduril, a defense technology company building a slate of autonomous weapons and defense systems for the American military.
00:00 - Intro
03:18 - Drones on the Russia - Ukraine battlefield
8:17 - Was the U.S. unprepared for Iran? Depleting our missile and munitions stockpile
17:11 - How Anduril differs from Palantir: It's more than a "Lord of the Rings" reference
25:33 - What is Anduril building? Force fields and a layered defense
31:12 - The challenges of "finicky" autonomous systems
38:20 - Selling to the Trump Administration
44:44 - The ethics of automating the kill chain
53:42 - Should the Pentagon call the shots with Anduril and A.I. companies like Anthropic?
56:23 - Are autonomous weapons the nuclear weapons and mustard gas of the 21st century?
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Read the full transcript here: nytimes.com/2026/05/28/opinion/our-military-is-built-for-the-wrong-century.html
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
The future of high-tech warfare has arrived. Just look to the conflicts in Ukraine and Iran to see how much drones and robots have remade the modern battlefield. Is the U.S. positioned to win wars in this new era? What are the ethical constraints of waging autonomous warfare? My guest this week is Christian Brose, the president and chief strategy officer of Anduril, a defense technology company building a slate of autonomous weapons and defense systems for the American military.
00:00 - Intro
03:18 - Drones on the Russia - Ukraine battlefield
8:17 - Was the U.S. unprepared for Iran? Depleting our missile and munitions stockpile
17:11 - How Anduril differs from Palantir: It's more than a "Lord of the Rings" reference
25:33 - What is Anduril building? Force fields and a layered defense
31:12 - The challenges of "finicky" autonomous systems
38:20 - Selling to the Trump Administration
44:44 - The ethics of automating the kill chain
53:42 - Should the Pentagon call the shots with Anduril and A.I. companies like Anthropic?
56:23 - Are autonomous weapons the nuclear weapons and mustard gas of the 21st century?
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Read the full transcript here: nytimes.com/2026/05/28/opinion/our-military-is-built-for-the-wrong-century.html
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
