Trajectory Daily Brief: 12 February 2026
Europe races to match Mach 6 while $2M Navy missiles chase $20K drones, and AI spies dwell undetected for 200 days inside defences built for human-speed threats.
Europe's hypersonic missile gap: A race it cannot win toward a finish line that is moving
Europe's hypersonic startups cannot close the missile gap with Russia and China—but they still matter
A German startup just flew a vehicle at Mach 6. Russia and China have deployed operational hypersonic arsenals. Europe's attempt to close a generational missile gap with venture capital and fragmented procurement faces brutal constraints of physics, finance, and time.
Trajectory Daily Brief: 11 February 2026
AUKUS parks nuclear subs beyond China's missile reach while the US Navy burns $220M in interceptors swatting $2,000 drones—and AI-powered spies now move too fast for either side's defences to register.
Hmas stirling buys America maintenance time and sells australia a place on China's target list
Does moving US submarines to Western Australia actually deter China—or just create a new target?
AUKUS will rotate nuclear-powered submarines through HMAS Stirling from 2027, betting that distance from Chinese missiles buys strategic advantage. But dispersal without defence, logistics, and diplomacy is only half a strategy.
Why $13 billion carriers are mission-killed by $20,000 drones before firing a shot
Why carrier strike groups cannot affordably stop cheap drones — and what it means for American naval dominance
The US Navy's Red Sea campaign proved it can intercept Iranian-designed drones. It also proved that each successful intercept costs a hundred times more than the weapon it destroys. This cost-exchange crisis threatens the sustainability of carrier-based power projection worldwide.
Trajectory Daily Brief: 10 February 2026
China's blockade calculus assumes Taiwan starves before fighting back. US defense systems still hunt yesterday's hackers while AI writes tomorrow's exploits.
Why current cyber espionage detection systems cannot catch AI-powered reconnaissance
Why cyber espionage detection keeps failing—and how AI is making it worse
Most cyber intrusions are discovered by outsiders, not defenders. As AI gives attackers the ability to automate reconnaissance and mimic legitimate behaviour, the detection gap is widening from a problem into a structural crisis.
