Mark Zuckerberg's Meta Reunites With Palmer Luckey To Equip US Soldiers With EagleEye — An AI-Powered Combat Headset That Can Detect Drones - Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)

Years after a controversial split, Mark Zuckerberg's Meta Platforms, Inc. META and Palmer Luckey are teaming up again—this time to equip U.S. soldiers with next-gen combat headsets.

What Happened: On Thursday, Meta and Luckey-led defense tech startup Anduril Industries announced a partnership to develop rugged VR/AR headsets for the U.S. Army.

The new system, called EagleEye, is designed to enhance soldiers' senses using AI, allowing for advanced capabilities like drone detection and target identification, reported the Wall Street Journal.

The devices will combine Anduril's autonomous software with Meta's AI models. "I finally got all my toys back," said Luckey, referring to the partnership giving him access to VR designs he helped pioneer before being fired by Facebook, now Meta, in 2017.

Meta and Anduril have jointly submitted a bid for an Army contract worth up to $100 million, the report said. The deal would mark Meta's most significant collaboration with the Pentagon and is part of a larger $22 billion Army initiative to modernize military wearables.

Notably, the companies say development is continuing regardless of whether they win the bid. "This is way too important of a capability for the United States military to let the last vestiges of a decade-old pissing contest get in the way," said Luckey.

In a statement, Zuckerberg said the EagleEye technology would support U.S. soldiers in protecting "our interests" both domestically and internationally.

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Why It's Important: In 2014, Facebook acquired Luckey's virtual reality startup Oculus for $2.2 billion. However, just two years later, the relationship fractured when Luckey faced backlash over a political donation, ultimately leading to his departure in 2017.

Last year, Luckey visited Meta's headquarters to test its Orion AR glasses. Following the visit, Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth issued a public apology for past comments, which Luckey accepted, noting Meta had undergone major leadership changes.

Zuckerberg also praised Luckey, saying he respects his contributions to VR and success beyond Oculus. Luckey responded positively, signaling openness to working with Meta again.

Luckey's Anduril was valued at $28 billion earlier this month, while Meta currently has a market cap of $1.6 trillion.

Price Action: Meta shares slipped 0.70% in after-hours trading, closing at $640.52, per Benzinga Pro data.

According to Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings, META maintained a strong price trend across short-, medium-, and long-term timeframes. The stock ranked 86.82% for momentum, while its value score stood at 35.17%. More details are available here.