Elon Musk’s company, SpaceX, is reportedly close to securing a $2 billion deal under Donald Trump’s defense project, “Golden Dome.” The company is expected to manufacture up to 600 satellites for the project.
SpaceX is expected to receive a $2 billion contract as part of US President Donald Trump’s defense project named “Golden Dome.” According to sources, the project will involve up to 600 satellites to establish an “air moving target indicator” system.
A New Defense Initiative
According to the Wall Street Journal, this will be a new defense initiative in addition to the other satellite projects the Elon Musk-led company is pursuing with the Pentagon. SpaceX is currently working on a military communication network called “Milnet,” which relies on classified “Starshield” satellites and terminals for the Pentagon. While neither the Pentagon nor SpaceX has commented on the matter, no official announcement has been made yet. However, the necessary funding for this project has already been approved under the “One Big Beautiful Bill” signed by Trump in July 2025. Only the identity of the defense contractor to be awarded the contract has not yet been disclosed.
The $175 Billion Giant Project
Golden Dome is designed as an advanced missile defense shield composed of satellites, interceptor systems, command and control systems, and other supporting infrastructure. The total cost is estimated to be at least $175 billion, with some experts predicting the figure could be much higher. Therefore, the $2 billion share SpaceX is set to receive constitutes only a small portion of this massive Department of Defense project.
Furthermore, SpaceX is not expected to be the sole contractor on the project; many defense companies and technology startups will also contribute. These companies include new players like Anduril Industries and Palantir Technologies, as well as defense giants such as Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and L3Harris. Due to the project’s scale, both the legislative and executive branches are hesitant about relying solely on SpaceX. Florida Senator Rick Scott stated that Washington does not want to depend on a single firm while building its missile defense system. The Pentagon’s Defense Science Board also warned that such a contractor dependency could stifle innovation, increase prices, and weaken market competition.
Inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome
Trump’s missile defense project will be similar in structure, though on a much larger scale, to Israel’s highly successful “Iron Dome” system. The Iron Dome is known to intercept threats like rockets and mortars with an estimated 90% success rate. The roots of the Golden Dome, however, stretch back to the “Strategic Defense Initiative” (SDI) unveiled by President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. SDI aimed to provide protection against ballistic missile attacks from the Soviet Union using space-based lasers and advanced defense systems. At the time, the necessary technology was not sufficiently developed, making the project unfeasible, and it was shelved with the end of the Cold War.
Today, the emergence of new threats like hypersonic missiles is causing existing defense systems to become inadequate. For this reason, Golden Dome aims to be more than just a new missile defense system; it seeks to be an integrated defense network extending from land to sea, space, and even cyberspace.
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