Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon overhaul: What to know about officer cuts and autonomous warfare

Our earlier coverage of the Pentagon data breach addressed exposed personnel information, also described in TIME’s account. Wednesday’s announcements concern a separate question: how Hegseth wants to change the department’s leadership and plans for future weapons.

What the officer cuts would change

The new target extends an effort Hegseth began in May 2025, when he directed a minimum 10% reduction in general and flag officer positions, along with other cuts affecting four-star officers and National Guard leadership. The available reporting does not establish how many of those earlier reductions were completed before Wednesday’s announcement.

The distinction between officers and positions matters. Removing a person from a job is not the same as eliminating the job itself; a position can also be left unfilled or removed from the military’s leadership structure. Hegseth has not laid out a service-by-service accounting that would show how his two stated measures add up to the overall target.

CBS reported that at least 20 generals, admirals and civilian military leaders had been fired or resigned since Hegseth became secretary. PBS News reported a different measure: President Donald Trump or Hegseth had fired or pushed more than two dozen military leaders to retire. Neither tally establishes how many general and admiral positions have been eliminated; they describe different groups and types of departure.

Hegseth presents the reductions as accountability and a way to focus the military on warfighting. “I call it accountability, and long overdue, and frankly, the bare minimum,” he said, as TIME reported.

The case for a leaner leadership structure is that too many senior layers can slow decisions. Republican Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota said a reduction might be justified if the military is too top-heavy, but he wanted to see Hegseth’s reasoning. Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona opposed the cuts, warning that losing experienced leaders could take a generation to remedy.

Peter Feaver, a Duke University political science professor who studies civil-military relations, said a carefully managed 20% reduction could be absorbed. He warned that speed, limited explanation and the loss of capable officers would raise doubts about the process. For service members, the consequences depend in part on which experienced leaders and positions remain—not just the size of the announced target.

The Associated Press reported Jan. 1, 2027, as a deadline for completing the reductions. TIME noted that Hegseth did not specify a timeline in his speech. The reporting does not yet show which positions would be eliminated, downgraded or left vacant by that date.

A proposed command and a study with outside co-directors

Hegseth also announced plans for an Autonomous Warfare Command, a proposed four-star organization intended to expand autonomous and robotic capabilities across the military. The command would have authorities resembling those of a military service, according to his announcement. It is a proposal, not an operating command.

A Pentagon memo reported by Stars and Stripes says Congress must pass legislation to establish it. The memo sets Oct. 1, 2027, as the target date. Hegseth can advocate for the structure, but lawmakers have a formal decision over whether and how it is created. Its final responsibilities, budget and oversight arrangements remain unclear.

A separate initiative, Project Meridian, will study future warfare. Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Emil Michael is to lead it, with Elon Musk, Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich named as co-directors. Stars and Stripes reported that the project is expected to produce findings within 120 days.

Their announced role is to co-direct the study, not to buy or deploy weapons. The available reporting does not say what Project Meridian will conclude or how its findings will shape military decisions. It also does not establish that its co-directors will make procurement or operational decisions.

The proposed command presents a distinct decision for Congress: whether to create an organization for capabilities now being developed across the military. Hegseth’s announcement describes the ambition, but it does not settle which decisions the command would make or how those decisions would be reviewed.

Religious affairs, military education and a new base

Hegseth announced an Office of Religious Affairs that would report directly to him and future defense secretaries, Stars and Stripes reported. That reporting line places the office close to the department’s top civilian decision-maker, although its staffing, mandate and safeguards have not been detailed.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State criticized the move. Its president and CEO, Rachel Laser, raised concerns about religious freedom and Christianity’s influence on military policy. The announcement does not establish that any formal military rule has changed or that the office has adopted a policy favoring a particular faith.

The move sits alongside Hegseth’s broader effort to reshape military culture. His moves against diversity initiatives and his emphasis on a warfighting ethos. Reuters reported that on Tuesday he signed a memo directing the military service academies to stop appointing civilians to tenured faculty positions.

Hegseth also announced an initiative for Corps of Cadets programs at Louisiana State University, Liberty University, Tuskegee University, Mississippi State University and Hillsdale College. The available reporting does not establish the programs’ funding or implementation terms, making it too early to say how officer-training opportunities or resources would be distributed among the schools.

He invited states to propose sites for a new military base that he said could house 15,000 to 25,000 troops. No selection process or site has been established in the reporting. The proposed autonomous warfare command has a specified institutional hurdle: Congress must pass legislation before the planned four-star organization can be established.