Reports: Musk to get briefed on top secret China war plan

Elon Musk and Chinese officials inaugurate Tesla factory in Shanghai

(Image credit: Qilai Shen / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

published 21 March 2025

What happened

Elon Musk was scheduled to have a briefing at the Defense Department Friday on the Pentagon's top secret war plans for China, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

Giving Musk access to "some of the nation's most closely guarded military secrets would be a dramatic expansion" of his "already extensive" footprint in President Donald Trump's administration, the Times said. It would also give Musk, "as the head of Tesla, which relies on China for car production, and SpaceX, a U.S. defense contractor, access to sensitive military secrets unavailable to business competitors," the Journal said.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.