Alphabet’s Google is reportedly in talks with the US Defense Department to help protect the data behind Golden Dome. Golden Dome is President Donald Trump’s plan to shield the US from foreign attack with layers of defences, from the ground to space. In March, the Pentagon reportedly added $10bn to its cost, bringing the estimate to $185bn.
What is the Golden Dome programme?
The Pentagon is setting up a new industry group to secure the data that feeds Golden Dome’s military software which several companies are likely to join.
Their task would be to keep data flowing into the programme’s new command-and-control software even under attack. This could possibly include attempts to cut off landlines, cell towers and other communications links.
The talks with Google have focused on its data storage, networking and cybersecurity work, one person said. They are at an early stage, and plans could change. Aalyria, a networking company spun out of Google, is part of the group, sources added.
A Pentagon official told Bloomberg that the office may explore early concepts. No final decision has been made on a new group or which companies would join it, the official said. Google and Aalyria declined to comment to Bloomberg.
A separate group that includes Anduril, Palantir and SpaceX is building the command-and-control software itself. SpaceX also won a $2.29bn Space Force contract in May for the Golden Dome backbone.
A role would be Google’s first publicly known work on Golden Dome, Bloomberg reported. In 2018, thousands of Google employees protested against Project Maven, a Pentagon AI contract, and Google did not renew it.
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