Golden Dome’s Gamble: Can Industry Move Fast Enough to Matter?

The Pentagon's Golden Dome initiative aims to create a space-based shield of interceptors and sensors to counter advanced hypersonic missiles from China and Russia. This ambitious plan faces enormous technical, organizational, and financial challenges, with cost estimates ranging from $175 billion to over $800 billion. The U.S. approach has historically prioritized high-performance, expensive materials, leading to slow and costly production. In contrast, adversaries like China are reportedly developing methods to mass-produce hypersonic weapons affordably, creating a strategic imperative for the United States to innovate its industrial base for speed and scale.