The secret meeting with the Secretary of Defense - and the message: 'We need you'

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth secretly convened senior executives from leading defense technology companies at the Pentagon, amid an unusual depletion of missile and interceptor stockpiles in the war against Iran. The message: the US needs them to quickly replenish weapons reserves.

In late June 2026, against the backdrop of the war with Iran and the severe depletion of missile and interceptor stockpiles, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth secretly convened at the Pentagon senior executives from over a dozen leading US defense technology companies. According to a report in the Washington Post, the message was clear: the Pentagon needs them to rapidly rebuild weapons reserves. The meeting included representatives from companies such as Shield AI, Anduril, CoAspire, and Castelion. The Secretary sought to hear about barriers to expanding production, including cumbersome procurement procedures and difficulty in raising financing. The report cites CSIS data: the Patriot interceptor inventory dropped from about 2,200 to fewer than 827, and the THAAD missile inventory fell to fewer than 278. It will take three years or more to rebuild. Meanwhile, the 2027 budget sets a target that 50% of munitions will be low-cost, and by 2031 – 70%. The Pentagon plans to purchase about 10,000 low-cost cruise missiles within three years and thousands of hypersonic missiles.