Pentagon officials have expressed reservations about SpaceX's proposed "subscription-based" missile defense model, in which the government does not own the system itself but contracts access to the technology by paying a consistent fee.
The company, led by billionaire Trump ally Elon Musk, is collaborating with companies Anduril and Palantir to develop a "Golden Dome" missile defense shield, proposing that the government pay a subscription in exchange for SpaceX's contributions to the project instead of establishing ownership over the technology, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
While the subscription model could allow for quicker development and implementation of the technology by avoiding some of the Pentagon's procurement protocols, it may also create disadvantages by trapping the government into a contract with no fixed pricing and inconsistent development.
"It remains to be seen whether SpaceX and these tech companies will be able to pull any of this off," one of the sources told the outlet. "They've never had to deliver on an entire system that the nation will need to rely on for its defense."
Sources also revealed that Pentagon officials are uneasy regarding the matter, noting the unconventional nature of a subscription-based service for a large-scale overarching defense program.
U.S. Space Force General Michael Guetlein has been negotiating ownership of the Golden Dome with the space exploration company, discussing whether or not SpaceX will own part of the system.
Furthermore, the overall cost for the system could be hundreds of billions of dollars.
Originally published on Latin Times
