Anduril commits billions to a Maryland shipyard and California component facility as Luckey links with a government tech initiative.
Anduril has won a Navy contract worth up to $2.9 billion to help manufacture submarine components, tying the defense tech company more closely to traditional submarine production. The plan includes a large new shipyard in Maryland and a component facility in California, with operations slated to begin around 2030. The deal comes as co‑founder Palmer Luckey joined a Pentagon tech group called Project Meridian. The Pentagon says the arrangement is appropriate and Meridian aims to study future warfare tech. For readers, this signals a broader push to expand U.S. defense manufacturing and could affect local jobs and supply chains near Baltimore and Northern California.
What to watch next includes construction milestones, hiring, and how the supplier network is organized as the 2030 deadline nears.
Anduril, a defense tech firm best known for its autonomous systems and software, has landed a Navy contract valued at up to $2.9 billion to help manufacture submarine components. The award ties the company more closely to the nation’s submarine supply chain and expands its footprint in a field dominated by long-standing shipyards.
Days before the contract was announced, co-founder Palmer Luckey joined Project Meridian, a Pentagon initiative designed to study future warfare technologies with a mix of government, industry and academic participants. Officials say Meridian is a broad, collaborative effort and that Luckey’s involvement does not create a conflict of interest with the Navy award.
The Navy agreement centers on supplying components for Virginia-class submarines and coordinating related manufacturing work across a wider supplier network. Anduril will help produce parts at new sites and support the broader production pipeline to keep submarines moving through final assembly elsewhere in the U.S.
In Maryland, Anduril plans a large manufacturing complex at a site named Arsenal-2 within Tradepoint Atlantic, Baltimore County. The project spans about 187 acres and more than two million square feet when fully built. The company also intends a separate, 160,000-square-foot facility in California to handle simpler components like torpedo tubes, which engineers say are a key constraint in ongoing submarine programs.
At full speed, the Maryland operation could support thousands of jobs and generate roughly 9 million labor hours annually. The push broadens the U.S. submarine supply chain beyond established players like General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Industries.
For consumers, the move signals a ramped-up effort to bolster domestic defense manufacturing through a wider network of private firms. Local economies around Baltimore and in Northern California may feel the effects, and the arrangement highlights how private companies and government programs are shaping the next generation of naval capabilities.
Construction and ramp-up at the Maryland site are slated to progress toward full capacity later this decade, with operations expected to begin around 2030. Milestones will hinge on procurement, suppliers, and regulatory approvals as the project evolves.
The contract covers manufacturing components for Virginia-class submarines and related supply-chain work.
Officials say operations are planned to begin in 2030, with expansion over time.
Luckey joined Meridian days before the award; Pentagon officials say the group is a broad collaboration and does not indicate a conflict of interest.
Look for updates on construction timelines, hiring, and how the supplier network will be organized as 2030 approaches.
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