Silicon Valley tech innovator Palmer Luckey, who sold his company Oculus to Facebook for more than $2 billion as a teenager, has become central to discussions about next-generation military technology. After being dismissed from Facebook following a $9,000 donation to Donald Trump in the 2016 election, Luckey founded Anduril, a defense contractor specializing in cost-effective advanced weaponry.

According to recent claims, much of the military technology deployed during the Venezuelan raid targeting Nicolás Maduro’s regime was developed by Anduril under Luckey’s leadership. The company has been working with the U.S. Army on systems that are projected to be significantly cheaper than current military equipment while maintaining high performance capabilities.

In a podcast interview, Luckey outlined his vision for defense robotics, stating that humanoid robots would soon assist in military operations but not as frontline combatants. Instead, they would handle tasks such as operating existing missile defense systems and other platforms, reducing the need for human personnel to perform repetitive duties.

Additionally, Anduril has recently acquired Microsoft’s mixed reality division, including a $22 billion contract for the Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS), a next-generation soldier tech that provides heads-up displays and augmented reality capabilities. Luckey noted that this system could be deployed within six months instead of the typical eight-year timeline for similar projects.