So here's what happens when you get the defense industry, a former president, and some urgent military needs in the same room: production targets get ambitious. Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT) just announced it's going to quadruple its munitions output after meeting with former President Donald Trump and other defense leaders.
The company made the announcement on Friday, saying the decision came "following talks with former President Trump and other defense industry leaders." But here's the interesting part—Lockheed says this expansion actually started several months ago, in collaboration with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Deputy Secretary Stephen Feinberg. So the meeting wasn't the starting gun; it was more like a mid-race pep talk.
The announcement came via an X post that highlighted Trump's own Truth Social post, where he praised defense CEOs for their commitment to increasing production of what he called "Exquisite Class" weaponry. Trump also noted that the expansion had already been underway for three months before their meeting, with production facilities for these weapons already in progress.
In a separate post, the defense and aerospace manufacturer doubled down on its commitment, saying it's focused on "enhancing the U.S. military's capabilities with the world's best munitions" and expressing "a sense of urgency and determination to deliver."
Timing matters here. This push to accelerate munitions production comes while the U.S., alongside Israel, is actively engaged in conflict with Iran. It's one of those moments where geopolitical reality meets industrial capacity planning.
But wait, there's more alignment with presidential direction. Lockheed Martin also said it's pledging to remove Anthropic's Claude AI tools from its operations, stating it will follow "the president's and the Department of Defense's direction." So it's not just about making more weapons—it's about following specific technology guidance too.
