Defense contractor Anduril and chipmaker Qualcomm say the laptop they are building together will have at least 65% of its components made in the United States when it launches in 2027 — a commitment the companies did not make when they first announced the partnership earlier this week.
Anduril founder Palmer Luckey held a call with reporters on Monday to unveil the BlueChip laptop, describing a "long-term goal" of pushing the broader computer industry toward a fully domestic supply chain and a technical roadmap to eventually reach 100% domestic production. But when asked directly what percentage of the first laptop's components would be made in the US, his answer was simply "TBD."
Why the Number Matters
The 65% threshold matters because it is the current bar set by the Buy American Act, a 1933 law updated under the Biden administration to require that at least 65% of a product's component costs be domestic for the federal government to treat it as an American-made product; that threshold rises to 75% in 2029. Luckey argued on Monday's call that many federal agencies are legally required to buy American-made computers but routinely use waivers to get around the requirement because no major laptop maker — not Apple, not Dell, not HP, not Microsoft — actually builds laptops domestically today.
"We are not just barely meeting the bar for Made in America. We are going hard to make this an all-American play, and not even the Buy American Act requires what we're trying," Luckey said.
A Pattern of Vague Promises
Anduril's initial reluctance to commit to a specific figure echoes a pattern other companies have followed when promoting US manufacturing claims that don't hold up to scrutiny: some firms have briefly assembled products domestically to appease the Trump administration, others have promised American jobs without following through, and at least one company has been accused of falsely claiming domestic production. Anduril's own press materials specify that its first laptop will be "designed and assembled" in the US, not necessarily fully "manufactured" there, a distinction that mirrors a sticking point in a separate dispute involving router maker TP-Link.
Anduril communications executive Shannon Prior ultimately confirmed the 65% figure after two days of questioning, giving the partnership a concrete benchmark against which its 2027 launch can be measured — and giving outside observers a number to check it against once the laptop actually ships.