If you’re focused on all the discourse around AI, companies like Palantir and Nvidia, and a potential bubble, you may be missing out on one of the biggest investment booms of our lifetimes…
The boom in defense technology.
U.S. defense spending has hit a record high in each of the past five years — a trend that will almost certainly continue through the end of President Trump’s second term, and likely beyond.
Probably through the next decade, in fact.
I’ll get to that in a minute, but first let’s revisit what President Trump did in his first term.
The U.S. defense budget rose an astonishing 37% from 2016–2020, climbing from $534 billion to $733 billion. Defense spending as a percentage of GDP also increased, going from 3.1% to 3.4% in that time.
Hence my confidence that the defense budget will continue to rise — and rise substantially — through 2028.
To that point, President Trump issued his first defense budget request of his second term — for FY26 — earlier this year.
It totaled $848.3 billion, up from $831 billion in FY25.
But that’s not all.
Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill added an additional $156.2 billion boost to defense initiatives like his Golden Dome.
So the total figure for FY26 is actually over $1 trillion.
And in fact, it’s still growing.
That’s because Congress typically adds to the president’s defense spending proposal when it comes time to allocate funding.
For example, President Biden’s FY25 budget request totaled $831 billion — but Congress ended up authorizing $895 billion.
And that’s also been the case here.
Over the weekend, U.S. lawmakers unveiled an annual defense policy bill authorizing a record $901 billion in national security spending next year — far exceeding President Trump’s initial $848 billion request.
And again, this trend is poised to continue, or even accelerate, through the remainder of Trump’s term and likely beyond.
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Speaking at the Reagan National Defense Forum on Saturday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth assured attendees that President Trump is indeed committed to firmly increasing America’s defense budget.
“The president has said, and continues to say, he's committed to rebuilding the military, and that requires spending, and substantial spending,” Hegseth said. “Just this week, and I was with some of you, I was there in the Oval having these very discussions about FY26 and FY27. And all I can say today is the president is committed to ensuring that our services, our great companies, our industries have what is needed.”
More than that, Hegseth asserted that Trump would “supercharge” the defense industry to advance technological capability and expand the defense industrial base.
“And so, resource-wise, I think this room will be encouraged by what we'll see soon — but I don't want to get too ahead,” Hegseth added.
On top of all that, the Trump administration is also considering another boost through a separate reconciliation bill, akin to the $156 billion supplement that came from the Big Beautiful Bill this past summer.
So defense spending is rising — and rising rapidly.
Historically, even.
And there’s no real countervailing pressure to change that.
That’s because lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are looking at the threats posed by Russia and China, instability throughout the Middle East and Latin America, and the economic value of having defense-related infrastructure like manufacturing plants, transport hubs, military bases, research labs, and testing facilities in their states and districts.
And finally, it’s worth noting that this isn’t just a local phenomenon. Defense budgets are soaring worldwide.
Europe in particular is racing to rebuild its own defense capabilities and manufacturing base in light of Russia’s aggression and American withdrawal.
The bottom line: A renaissance in defense spending is providing a massive opportunity for defense majors, tech upstarts, and investors.
And if you want to make the most of it, I highly recommend that you check out my premium investment service Secret Stock Files.
We’ve made a small fortune from these companies over the past few years, and there’s plenty more to be made.
To find out more, just check out my latest mind-blowing report right here.
Fight on,
Jason Simpkins
Simpkins is the founder and editor of Secret Stock Files, an investment service that focuses on companies with assets — tangible resources and products that can hold and appreciate in value. He covers mining companies, energy companies, defense contractors, dividend payers, commodities, staples, legacies and more… He also serves as editor of The Crow’s Nest where he analyzes investments beyond the scope of the defense sector.
For more on Jason, check out his editor’s page.
Be sure to visit our Angel Investment Research channel on YouTube and tune into Jason’s podcasts.
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