The Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital awarded Vulcan Elements the largest loan in the office's history — $620 million — to scale domestic production of rare-earth permanent magnets critical for drone motors, missile guidance systems, and military electronics. The Department of Commerce added $50 million in federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act, with $550 million in additional private capital.
Vulcan Elements is backed by Donald Trump Jr.'s venture capital firm 1789 Capital, creating a direct financial connection between the president's son and what became the OSC's single largest funding commitment. The company, founded in 2023 by former Navy officer John Maslin and Piotr Kulik, manufactures rare-earth magnets in Durham, North Carolina, positioning itself as an alternative to Chinese-dominated supply chains.
Supply Chain Significance
The loan places Vulcan Elements at the base of the Trump family's vertically integrated drone supply chain documented by Riggleman:
1. Vulcan Elements (1789 Capital/Trump Jr.) — rare-earth magnets → feeds into 2. Unusual Machines (Trump Jr. advisory board) — drone motors, controllers → feeds into 3. Powerus (Eric Trump + Trump Jr.) — complete drone platforms → integrated with 4. Xtend (Eric Trump) — AI operating system for autonomous coordination → scaled by 5. Anduril (1789 Capital/Trump Jr.) — full autonomous weapons systems
The $620 million Pentagon loan to the first link in this chain means taxpayer funds are flowing to a company backed by the president's son to produce components that ultimately feed into other companies backed by the president's sons, all procured by a military commanded by their father. The self-dealing is structural and systemic rather than transactional.