Shakedown Social

NonilexThe shift marks a pivot away from reliance on Musk's <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SpaceX" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#SpaceX</a>, whose <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Starlink" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starlink</a> & <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Starshield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starshield</a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/satellite" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#satellite</a> networks have become central to <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/US" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#US</a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/military" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#military</a> communications.It comes amid a deteriorating relationship between <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Trump" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Trump</a> & <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Musk</a>, which culminated in a public falling-out on June 5. Even before the spat, ofcls at the <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Pentagon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Pentagon</a> & White House had begun exploring alternatives to SpaceX, wary of over-reliance on a single partner for huge portions of the ambitious, $175B space-based <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/defense" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#defense</a> shield…

Kevin Karhan :verified:Anyine who's worried about <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/DEWs" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#DEWs</a> and <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/WAMI" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#WAMI</a> should not look into "<a href="https://infosec.space/tags/Starshield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starshield</a>" aka. <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/SpaceX" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#SpaceX</a>'s *<a href="https://infosec.space/tags/militarized" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#militarized</a> <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/payload" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#payload</a> on <a href="https://infosec.space/tags/Starlink" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starlink</a> satellites...<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Starshield" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Starshield</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directed-energy_weapon" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Directed-energy_weapon</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide-area_motion_imagery" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide-area_motion_imagery</a>

Chuck DarwinThen there’s the <a href="https://c.im/tags/taxes" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#taxes</a>, of course. The billionaires don’t want to pay them, and Trump is amenable to that. Scott Bessent, nominated for Treasury Secretary, said “the most important economic issue of the day” was making sure tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy stayed in place. Bessent is accused of being a tax dodge himself.Mass privatization could make things even more profitable for the tech industryBut that’s all small potatoes. The real money is in the <a href="https://c.im/tags/military" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#military</a>. The venture capitalist Marc Andreessen — also a board member of Meta and major investor in X — has been recruiting Trump administration staffers and even influencing Defense Department and intelligence agency hiring, The Washington Post reports. As usual, he’s given the game away by bragging about it on a podcast.Silicon Valley investors generally have been bullish on defense tech like industry poster children <a href="https://c.im/tags/Anduril" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Anduril</a> and <a href="https://c.im/tags/Palantir" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Palantir</a>. (a16z is a major Anduril backer, and both companies are founded and owned by some of the Valley’s earliest MAGA faithful.) They want to shift Pentagon spending away from old-school contractors like Lockheed Martin, which appears to be so freaked out that when the “Big Tech Alert” X account noted it had unfollowed Musk, the Lockheed account DM’d to say it was “inadvertent.”Musk’s <a href="https://c.im/tags/SpaceX" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#SpaceX</a> has a number of contracts with the US military and intelligence agencies, including the so-called <a href="https://c.im/tags/Starshield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starshield</a> satellites. He’s used his influence to meddle in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and has even reportedly taken phone calls from Vladimir Putin. The military’s interest in artificial intelligence has also inspired a new race for everything from building out data centers to providing cloud computing. Musk’s <a href="https://c.im/tags/xAI" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#xAI</a>, something of an also-ran next to OpenAI, Meta, and Google, could legitimize itself with DoD contracts.

Chuck Darwin“We’ve changed our procurement methods to take advantage of <a href="https://c.im/tags/LEO" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#LEO</a> technologies,” Troy Meink, <a href="https://c.im/tags/NRO" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#NRO</a>'s principal deputy director, said in a speech at the Satellite 2024 conference on Monday, according to SpaceNews. "Our main priority is to meet the requirements with minimum risk.When the new constellation, or at least an initial segment thereof, might begin <a href="https://c.im/tags/collecting" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#collecting</a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/intelligence" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#intelligence</a> operationally, if it hasn't already, isn't clear. <a href="https://c.im/tags/SpaceX" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#SpaceX</a> has been launching relevant prototype satellites since 2020, before its formal contract with NRO, and "a U.S. government database of objects in orbit shows several SpaceX missions having deployed satellites that neither the company nor the government have ever acknowledged," per Reuters.In the context of the Reuters report about its work for the NRO, SpaceX's Starshield website does currently list "Earth Observation" as one of its three main focus areas. The other two are "Communications" and "Hosted Payloads.""Starlink already offers unparalleled end-to-end user data <a href="https://c.im/tags/encryption" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#encryption</a>. Starshield uses additional high-assurance cryptographic capability to host classified payloads and process data securely, meeting the most demanding government requirements," according to the Starshield site. "Starlink's inter-satellite <a href="https://c.im/tags/laser" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#laser</a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/communications" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#communications</a> terminal, which is the only communications laser operating at scale in orbit today, can be integrated onto partner satellites to enable incorporation into the Starshield network."Laser-based communications systems are capable of sending large amounts of information quickly and are also highly secure and resistant to electronic warfare jamming <a href="https://c.im/tags/Starshield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starshield</a>

Chuck DarwinThe U.S. National Reconnaissance Office ( <a href="https://c.im/tags/NRO" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#NRO</a> ) is reportedly acquiring a <a href="https://c.im/tags/constellation" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#constellation</a> of hundreds of <a href="https://c.im/tags/intelligence" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#intelligence</a>-<a href="https://c.im/tags/gathering" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#gathering</a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/satellites" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#satellites</a> from SpaceX, with a specific focus on tracking targets down below in support of ground operations. Though details about this project are still very limited, there are clear parallels to what the U.S. Space Force has previously said about a highly classified <a href="https://c.im/tags/space" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#space</a>-<a href="https://c.im/tags/based" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#based</a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/radar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#radar</a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/surveillance" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#surveillance</a> program, which it first publicly disclosed around the same time SpaceX is said to have gotten its NRO contract. If this program is the one we think it is, it could bring about a revolution in both tactical and strategic space-based sensing<a href="https://c.im/tags/Starshield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starshield</a>, SpaceX's government-sales-focused business unit, has been working on the new low Earth orbit (LEO) spy satellites under a $1.8 billion contract it received in 2021 from NRO, according to a report from Reuters this past weekendThe Wall Street Journal had previously published a story about the existence of the contract in February, but did not name NRO as being involved or provide specific details about the deal's scope of work<a href="https://www.twz.com/space/if-spacexs-secret-constellation-is-what-we-think-it-is-its-game-changing" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank">https://www.twz.com/space/if-spacexs-secret-constellation-is-what-we-think-it-is-its-game-changing</a>

Not SimonReuters says that SpaceX is building a network of hundreds of spy satellites under a classified contract with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), under a $1.8 billion contract signed in 2021. “hundreds of satellites bearing Earth-imaging capabilities that can operate as a swarm in low orbits” ... “‘No one can hide,’ one of the sources said of the system’s potential capability, when describing the network's reach.” 🔗 <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/musks-spacex-is-building-spy-satellite-network-us-intelligence-agency-sources-2024-03-16/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank">https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/musks-spacex-is-building-spy-satellite-network-us-intelligence-agency-sources-2024-03-16/</a><a href="https://infosec.exchange/tags/intelligence" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#intelligence</a> <a href="https://infosec.exchange/tags/news" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#news</a> <a href="https://infosec.exchange/tags/spacex" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#spacex</a> <a href="https://infosec.exchange/tags/NRO" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#NRO</a> <a href="https://infosec.exchange/tags/Starshield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starshield</a>

Manish Vij‘powerful new spy system with hundreds of satellites… swarm in low orbits… built by <a href="https://sfba.social/tags/SpaceX" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#SpaceX</a>'s <a href="https://sfba.social/tags/Starshield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starshield</a>… under a $1.8 billion contract… with the National Reconnaissance Office’ <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/musks-spacex-is-building-spy-satellite-network-us-intelligence-agency-sources-2024-03-16/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank">https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/musks-spacex-is-building-spy-satellite-network-us-intelligence-agency-sources-2024-03-16/</a>

NonilexThe network is being built by <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SpaceX" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#SpaceX</a>'s <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Starshield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Starshield</a> business unit under a $1.8B contract signed in 2021 w/the National Reconnaissance Office (<a href="https://masto.ai/tags/NRO" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#NRO</a>), an <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/intelligence" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#intelligence</a> agency that manages <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/SpySatellites" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#SpySatellites</a>, the sources said.The plans show the extent of SpaceX's involvement in <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/UnitedStates" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#UnitedStates</a> intelligence & <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/military" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#military</a> projects & illustrate a deeper <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/Pentagon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Pentagon</a> investment into vast, low-Earth orbiting <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/satellite" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#satellite</a> systems aimed at supporting ground forces.<a href="https://masto.ai/tags/NationalSecurity" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#NationalSecurity</a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/geopolitics" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#geopolitics</a> <a href="https://masto.ai/tags/ElonMusk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#ElonMusk</a>

Rich Stein (he/him)"<a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Taiwan" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Taiwan</a> continues to be wary of Musk’s deep business ties with <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/China" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#China</a> and irked by his pro-Beijing comments. About 20% of <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Tesla" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Tesla</a>’s revenue comes from China, and more than half of its vehicles were built at its Shanghai gigafactory in 2022. When <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/Musk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#Musk</a> said last September that Taiwan was an 'integral part of China', Taiwanese foreign minister Joseph Wu publicly rebuked him...[:] '…Taiwan is not part of the PRC & certainly not for sale!'” <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidjeans/2024/02/24/elon-musk-taiwan-spacex-starshield/" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank">https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidjeans/2024/02/24/elon-musk-taiwan-spacex-starshield/</a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/StarShield" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#StarShield</a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/StarLink" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#StarLink</a> <a href="https://mastodon.social/tags/SpaceX" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#SpaceX</a>

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