At a Breitbart News policy event in Washington, DC, Emil Michael—identified by the event as “Under Secretary of War”—argued that having only a small number of large defense contractors limits competition and innovation. Michael spoke with host Matthew Boyle during “AI is Here: What to Fear, What to Embrace” on Tuesday, August 25, 2026.
“Five or six” primes—and what he says it costs
Michael said post–Cold War mergers left the U.S. with “five or six primary defense contractors,” contending that too little competition leads to “cost overruns” and “delays in schedule.” He contrasted that landscape with an earlier era he described as having “50 different big defense contractors,” naming McDonnell Douglas and Lockheed among legacy firms.
Cost-plus complaints and a bid to add new giants
Criticizing cost-plus development, Michael said, “They were charging us cost plus… So, what’s your incentive if you’re getting paid cost plus? Takes a long time. Costs a lot.” He added that when he took the job, “I said, well, I want to create five more new prime contractors in my tenure.”
As an example of barriers for newcomers, Michael asserted that SpaceX, Palantir, and Anduril “all had to sue the government for their first big contract because the rules were written in a complex way to defend the incumbents.” He said his team has been working to remove such barriers “so there’s a lot more competition.”
After a single-provider stumble, a pledge on AI
Extending his argument to artificial intelligence, Michael said a previous move to “choose one provider” left the department needing to “switch out” because “that provider wasn’t providing us what we needed.” He added, “The Department of War, at least under our leadership, that will never happen again. We’ll never be solely dependent on any one provider.”
Breitbart News hosted the event and published the discussion with Michael and Boyle. The source materials include video from the program.
