US Army Signs Up Band Of Tech Bros With A Suitably Nerdy Name

Several of Silicon Valley's top techies are joining the Army Reserve as part of a newly created unit that will be trying to accelerate the use of AI in military planning and operations.

Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar, Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth, OpenAI Chief Product Officer Kevin Weil, and former OpenAI Chief Revenue Officer Bob McGrew have all signed up for Detachment 201: Executive Innovation Corps. They are being appointed as lieutenant colonels in the Army Reserve.

"Det. 201 is an effort to recruit senior tech executives to serve part-time in the Army Reserve as senior advisors. In this role they will work on targeted projects to help guide rapid and scalable tech solutions to complex problems," the official statement said. "By bringing private-sector know-how into uniform, Det. 201 is supercharging efforts like the Army Transformation Initiative, which aims to make the force leaner, smarter, and more lethal."

The sources of the new recruits are hardly surprising. Palantir has worked with the US Army since 2008 and last year won a $480 million contract to take over the army's Maven project. This is trying to integrate AI into every aspect of warfare, allowing the software to take disparate information sources and coordinate a response.

Only last month Meta announced that it is partnering with former employee Palmer Luckey's Anduril Industries to sell extended reality eyewear to the US military. Meta's Bosworth said that he was "honored" to accept his new rank.

"Our primary role will be to serve as technical experts advising the Army’s modernization efforts," he said on X. "I have accepted this commission in a personal capacity because I am deeply invested in helping advance American technological innovation. Nerdsnipe: Anyone care to venture a guess on why we called our detachment '201'?"

While he has yet to confirm, it's 99.999 percent certain that the last line was a reference to the HTTP code 201, which is used to create a resource. This unit sounds like the few, the proud, the geeky already.

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As for Open AI's involvement, the company has been building its ties with the military-technology complex for some years now. Like Meta, OpenAI is working with Anduril on military ideas and last year scandalized some by watering down its past commitment to developing non-military products only.

The Army wasn't answering questions on Friday but an article referenced by Weil indicated that the four will have to serve a minimum of 120 hours a year, can work remotely, and won't have to pass basic training - probably not a problem for a marathon runner like Weil.

"America wins when we unite the dynamism of American innovation with the military’s vital missions," sankar said on X. "This was the key to our triumphs in the 20th century. It can help us win again. I’m humbled by this new opportunity to serve my country, my home, America." ®