Gen. Masiello was right (once again): the US defence revolution speaks the language of data, artificial intelligence and executive speed

"Those who master artificial intelligence, data and dual-use technologies will dominate the battlefield of the future.". This is not a sentence extracted from a NATO strategic report or a RAND Corporation paper, but a public statement of Army Corps General Carmine Masiello, Chief of Staff of the Italian Army, released months before the US military system was overwhelmed by the new tech wave. Masiello, considered one of the top innovators of the Italian military apparatus, had already launched an appeal against theexcessive bureaucratisation of defence and the slowness of decision-making processes, strongly calling for a transition to a digital, fast and data-driven operational culture.

Today, those warnings find confirmation in the United States. The Department of Defence, at the instigation of the White House, has started a real revolution in military procurement. Palantir, Anduril and SpaceX are undermining historical giants such as Lockheed Martin and Boeing. The new face of war speaks the language of data, artificial intelligence, executive speed.

Palantir and NATO: artificial intelligence takes the lead

The most powerful signal of this paradigm shift came on 14 April 2025, when the NATO signed an agreement with Palantir Technologiesfounded by Peter Thiel, libertarian financier and Trumpian ideologue. Object of the contract: the Maven Smart System (MSS)an artificial intelligence capable of analysing all the data collected by the Member States in real time, reducing the work of hundreds of analysts to a few minutes of automatic processing. A system that required six months to be approved and integrated: a record time, compared to the years normally required by the military bureaucracy.

Deal value: approx. 400 million dollars. But above all, symbolic value: the western defence procurement system has decided to speed up. Just as Masiello, who has long emphasised the urgency of thinning out intermediate levels, fluidifying decision-making chains and encouraging experimentation in the field.

The 'five sisters' and the decline of the monopoly

Palantir, however, is but the tip of an iceberg. The crisis of the so-called 'military-industrial complex', a concept coined by Dwight Eisenhower in 1961, is now well established. The Pentagon until 2024 was dominated by five major contractorsLockheed Martin, RTX (formerly Raytheon), Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics and Boeing shared almost all the contracts.

Yet, the war in Ukraine has prompted the US administration to open the innovation taps. The new DoD strategy document - Defence Industrial Base Strategy 2024 - speaks clearly: you have to build a more dynamic, diversified and resilient industrial ecosystemcapable of reacting to global crises and high-intensity conflicts.

With this in mind, came one of the most radical turning points: the US Air Force's decision to entrust Anduril Industries e General Atomics the programme Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA), beating Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman in the race. The contract provides for the production of at least 1000 intelligent drones to be flanked by piloted fighters in high-risk missions, with an estimated cost of 30 million dollars per unit.

Trump reforms the Pentagon: speed and competition

The technological revolution has found in Donald Trump a strategic ally. On 9 April, the former president signed a executive order with an unambiguous title: 'Modernise defence procurement and stimulate innovation in the industrial base'. The measure takes immediate effect and requires a radical overhaul of procurement procedures. Objective: reduce time, increase flexibility, reward risk and efficiency.

Here, too, echo the warnings of Gen. Masiello, who had already severely criticised Italy's excessive regulatory rigidity and the difficulty of rapidly experimenting with new solutions back in 2023. Masiello promoted the use of dual-use technologies, strengthened relations with domestic industry and supported innovative programmes in the field of ground robotics and C4I systems. But in Italy - unlike the USA - bureaucracy holds backand the risk of being left on the sidelines is real.

Palantir's '18 theses' and the new war doctrine

Reinforcing the change of course came the Palantir's ideological manifestothe so-called "18 theses" drafted by CTO Shyam Sankar and posted - according to internal legend - to the Pentagon underground. The text calls for a Protestant reform of the military systemNo more monopolies, no more mediation, green light to competition and transparency.

It reads: "The only requirement is to win. We have to get rid of the priestly class of procurement. Innovation is painful, but necessary'. The target is clear: the conservative, slow and self-referential public procurement system. A target against which even General Masiello has taken a stand in Italy, advocating the adoption of instruments 'fast procurement' for the Armed Forces and the introduction of integrated experimental cells between military, industry and university.

Musk, Thiel and war as enterprise

Meanwhile, Palantir allies itself with Anduril and SpaceX of Elon Musk for the Golden Domea next-generation space shield. The three companies are creating a technical-industrial axis with geopolitical ambitions. Investments are multiplying: 450 million dollars raised by Anduril in one year, Palantir's share price quadrupled on the stock exchange, Ghost-X drones already in use in Ukraine, AI towers on the Mexican border.

But the stakes are higher: shaping the strategic doctrine of the 21st century. The Palantir leadership openly speaks of a 'Second Cold War' with China, while simulating attacks in the China Sea and release videos where Ukraine turns into 'Palantir', a digital nation defended by the algorithm.

And Italy?

Italy has advanced skills and an integrated industrial system (from Leonardo to Fincantieri, from Iveco Defence to Elettronica), risks marginalisation if it fails to grasp this paradigm shift. Gen. Masiello, with his forward-looking vision and defence of innovative programmes, has mapped out a path. But courageous political and regulatory choices are needed, capable of unlocking resources and authorising experimentation outside traditional schemes.

As he said in a recent interview: "We cannot face wars of the future with the tools of the past. We need a new culture of decision-making, capable of recognising the value of speed, synergy and boldness"..

The transformation taking place in the United States is not a simple technological upgrade: it is a systemic restructuring the way we think about, finance and fight wars. Palantir, Anduril and SpaceX are just the beginning. Europe - and Italy - must decide whether to observe, imitate, or participate.

But one thing is certain: Gen. Masiello had seen it coming, once again.

Source: https://youtu.be/Nz8F7ulavfA?si=FEKULqJkytpQf_Tw

Source: https://tomdispatch.com/a-new-military-industrial-complex-arises/