US-based global arms companies such as Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, Boeing and the British BAE Systems are introducing mathematics, engineering, artificial intelligence, robotics and cyber security programs into classrooms with discourses of scientific development and equal opportunity. However, the main revenues of the same companies come from warplanes, missiles, bombs and military electronic systems. According to anti-war organizations, these projects not only obscure the images of companies associated with wars, but also create a new labor pool for the defense industry from an early age.
FROM MATHEMATICS TO WEAPONS INDUSTRY
RTX (formerly Raytheon) has been a key supporter of the MATHCOUNTS National Mathematics Competition for middle school students in the United States since 2009. The sponsorship of the program, which has been extended until 2025, is also associated with the development of the talent pool that will meet the future needs of defense technologies. The company also engages in programming and cybersecurity activities for girls through projects such as MathMovesU. In the “Think Like a Programmer” project conducted by Raytheon with Girl Scouts, areas such as artificial intelligence, robotics, data science and cyber security were highlighted. Although the company explains these studies with the aim of increasing girls’ participation in science and technology fields, critics state that the consequences of Raytheon weapons in wars are not explained in the training programs.
CYBER WARFARE COMPETITION IN HIGH SCHOOLS
The CYBERQUEST competition, organized annually by Lockheed Martin, competes with high school students on subjects such as military engineering, open source intelligence, cryptography, infiltration of computer systems and digital forensic investigation. The company explains the purpose of the program as “to direct students to cyber security professions”. Lockheed Martin has also opened nine-week internship programs on “defense technologies” for high school students. The company’s 2026 CYBERQUEST event was also held at company facilities in Canada, England, Poland and Australia, as well as the United States. The tasks used in the competitions are prepared directly by the company’s cyber security engineers. According to the reports of anti-war organizations in the USA, public education Young people are included in the corporate and technical network of one of the world’s largest military contractors as early as high school.
BOEING ALLOCATED 50 MILLION DOLLARS
Boeing has also infiltrated science, technology, engineering and mathematics education through programs it runs with schools, right-wing community organizations and industry partners. The company announced that it spent $50.8 million on these studies in 2025 alone. It has been reported that Boeing’s own education platform Future U has reached millions of students since 2019. British arms manufacturer BAE Systems follows a similar path with school trips, robotics competitions, science camps and educational content for children. Campaign Against Arms Trade defines the activities of arms companies in educational institutions as a “military-industrial-academic complex”. According to the organization, corporate financing of schools and universities serves to spread war technologies and direct education according to the needs of military production.
FAIRY TALE ON ONE SIDE, BOMB ON THE OTHER SIDE
There is a huge gap between the image of gun companies promising science, opportunity and the future to children, and the actual results of the weapons they produce. The United States provided at least $21.7 billion in military aid to Israel between October 2023 and September 2025, according to Brown University’s Costs of War Project. A significant portion of the missiles, planes and bombs used by the United States and its allies are produced by the same companies that run math and technology programs in classrooms. Anti-war circles consider the educational support of arms monopolies not as a neutral charitable activity, but as a strategy for capital to clean up its own reputation and train the engineers it will need in the future.
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