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Industry · New product line

Anduril enters laptop business with Qualcomm

The BlueChip line starts with a laptop designed and assembled in the United States. Anduril plans to begin taking orders in 2027.

Anduril and Qualcomm Technologies unveiled BlueChip on Oct. 27, introducing a computing hardware line aimed at government, defense, first responders and public safety, among other critical industries. Anduril has functional prototypes of its first laptop and plans to begin taking orders in 2027.1

Anduril and Qualcomm Technologies unveiled BlueChip

a new product line for American-built computing hardware

Qualcomm TechnologiesSnapdragon X Seriesplanned

providing the laptop’s core computing capabilities

circuit board assemblyArsenal-1planned

planned for Anduril's Arsenal-1 facility in Ohio

Anduril has functional prototypes of the first BlueChip laptop and plans to begin taking orders in 2027.

Source: Anduril

Sources
TGOs tgos.io

The companies are putting their own research and development dollars into the effort, DefenseScoop reports, citing Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey. Luckey said the U.S. government has not yet provided subsidies or contracts to develop the laptops; he did not disclose the companies' investment.2

Anduril plans to assemble the laptop circuit boards at Arsenal-1 in Ohio.1 The facility also builds autonomous drones for the Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft program, DefenseScoop reports.2

Qualcomm Technologies will supply Snapdragon X Series chips for general-purpose processing, graphics and on-device AI.1 DefenseScoop reports that Qualcomm President and CEO Cristiano Amon said the laptop chips will be made at a TSMC facility in Arizona.2

DefenseScoop reports that Luckey declined to disclose production quantities and said full-rate production would not begin until next year. He also said the allocation of manufacturing steps among facilities remained in flux.2

The manufacturing effort reaches beyond assembly: Anduril is developing domestic production for enclosures and battery components while qualifying suppliers. The company says U.S. and allied-country suppliers account for more than 90% of the prototypes' component procurement cost. A fully domestic supply chain remains its long-term goal.1

Sources (2)
  1. Anduril: Anduril and Qualcomm Unveil BlueChip to Rebuild American Computer Manufacturing www.anduril.com
  2. DefenseScoop: Anduril expanding into laptop manufacturing in partnership with Qualcomm defensescoop.com
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Industry · Collaborative combat aircraft

General Atomics adds Spirit Defense as FQ-42 fuselage design-build partner

Spirit Defense, a Boeing company, will support fuselage design and production as General Atomics seeks to scale manufacturing of its Air Force collaborative combat aircraft.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) announced on Oct. 23 a partnership with Spirit Defense to support airframe production of the FQ-42 Vengeance collaborative combat aircraft. Spirit Defense, a Boeing company, will serve as a fuselage design-build partner, supporting the program from design through production.1

Spirit Defense's role is fuselage design-build partner

FQ-42 Vengeance Collaborative Combat Aircraft

Spirit Defensefuselage design-build partnerStated scope

supporting the program from design through production

GA-ASIcontract from the Air Forceactual

In June GA-ASI won a contract from the Air Force to produce FQ-42

Source: GA-ASI, October 23, 2026

Sources
TGOs tgos.io

The partnership follows an initial Air Force order for the FQ-42A, which GA-ASI announced June 17.2 GA-ASI says Spirit Defense offers the manufacturing capacity and industrial depth to scale production faster and reduce the risk of single points of failure.1

Also announced: GA-ASI says it is discussing its Gambit Series with interested international militaries. The family of uncrewed combat jets derives partly from its FQ-42 work.1

The partnership puts Spirit Defense's engineering and manufacturing capabilities behind a program already under an Air Force production contract.1–2 Faster production remains GA-ASI's stated benefit; the announcement provides no delivery schedule or work-share split for Spirit Defense.1

Sources (2)
  1. GA-ASI: GA-ASI Partnering With Spirit Defense For FQ-42 CCA Production (Oct. 23, 2026) www.ga-asi.com
  2. GA-ASI: U.S Air Force Awards GA-ASI Production Contract for FQ-42A CCA (June 17, 2026) www.ga-asi.com
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Industry · Command and control

Army encounters problems integrating Anduril’s Lattice with older communications, Breaking Defense reports

The 25th Infantry Division’s architecture largely represents what the Army must build on for other I Corps units, officials told Breaking Defense.

The Army encountered problems integrating Anduril’s technology with existing communications, Army and company officials told Breaking Defense. The 25th Infantry Division attempted to use Lattice during September’s Lightning Surge 5 exercise in Hawaii.1

First attempt to integrate Anduril NGC2 tech into existing Army comms systems did not go exactly to plan

The test came in September when the 25th Infantry Division attempted to use Anduril's Lattice during Lightning Surge 5 in Hawaii

25th Infantry Divisionwill preserve some legacy capabilitiesplanned

the team will maintain integration with legacy equipment because not everyone gets fresh fielding like 4th ID

other I Corps divisionsNo definitive timelineplanned

Welch said it will occur within the fiscal year; the continuing resolution is having some impact and the Army will have to look at pacing some systems

Army and industry officials said the 25th ID architecture is largely representative of what they must build on as they baseline and field other I Corps units in the coming fiscal year

Reported by Breaking Defense, Oct. 19, 2026. Comments from Anduril NGC2 program manager James Craven and Joseph Welch, the Army's portfolio acquisition executive for command and control and counter command and control

Sources
TGOs tgos.io

Army and industry officials said the division’s architecture is largely representative of what they must build on to field other I Corps units.1

Earlier use at the 4th Infantry Division in Colorado paired Anduril’s Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) technology with new, mostly commercial hardware and software. James Craven, Anduril’s NGC2 program manager, said the 25th would preserve some legacy capabilities, and not every unit would receive fresh fielding like the 4th.1

Lockheed Martin leads integration for the 25th’s portion of NGC2 and served as integrator for Lattice. Chandra Marshall, Lockheed’s vice president of multi-domain combat solutions, said scaling with Lattice was an issue and passing data through the system was not where it should be. An Anduril official acknowledged growing pains but said they had discovered technical limitations in the broader communications architecture.1

Brig. Gen. Shane Taylor, the Army’s portfolio management executive for command and control information network, characterized much of what the Army saw as normal growing pains.1

Breaking Defense reported no definitive timeline for baselining other I Corps divisions. Joseph Welch, the Army’s portfolio acquisition executive for command and control and counter command and control, said it would occur within the fiscal year. The continuing resolution was having some impact, he said, and the Army would have to consider pacing some systems.1

Sources (1)
  1. Breaking Defense, “Army feels ‘growing pains’ as it integrates Anduril NGC2 tech with older comms,” Oct. 19, 2026 breakingdefense.com
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