Space Business Podcast

Reusable satellites are our topic this week. Why they make sense, what the economics are, and other related questions. Our guest is Brian Taylor, CEO & founder of Lux Aeterna, a Colorado-based startup working on exactly this. Enjoy! TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 — Podcast Intro 1:01 — Elevator Pitch 3:18 — Brian's Background & Origin Story 8:43 — The Satellite: Design & Technology 13:57 — Heat Shield & Unique Subsystems 15:57 — Reusability & Refurbishment 22:36 — Market: Use Cases for Reusable Satellites 20:53 — Regulatory Environment 29:41 — Business Model: Space as a Service 35:00 — First Mission & Roadmap 37:28 — Lessons from SpaceX, Kuiper & Loft 40:03 — Founder vs. Employee Mindset 41:20 — What's Exciting in Space + Sci-Fi Picks 🔗 Lux Aeterna 🏠Website: https://www.luxaeterna.com/ 🔗 Follow us: 🏠Website : https://www.e2mc.space/ 🤝🏻LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-business-podcast/ 🌐Socials: https://linktr.ee/spacebusinesspodcast 🔗 Follow Raphael: ◇ Twitter/X - https://x.com/RaphaelE2MC 🔷LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raphaelroettgen 🌐Instagram - https://instagram.com/raphael_space/ To Learn more about Space & the Space Economy: "To Infinity" – Raphael’s Revised Introduction to the Space EconomyThis book provides an insightful look into the space economy, its current trends, and future opportunities.📚 https://a.co/d/6jIQ2LO edX/EPFL's Space Economy MOOCThis course offers a detailed understanding of the New Space Economy, covering key concepts and market developments.🎓 https://www.edx.org/course/new-space- Space Founder NewsletterA new newsletter with opportunities for space startup founders. Sign up here: https://forms.gle/JCUq92vERtxsuYnF8 Space Business Newsletter📬 https://spacebusiness.substack.com/

Space lasers again! Odysseus Space from Luxembourg focuses on providing optical communications solutions between Space and Earth as a service. If you seem to notice that is not the first episode on optical communications, you’re right – I think this will be a potentially very big theme going forward. Our guest this week is Odysseus’ CEO & Co-Founder Jordan Vannitsen. Enjoy! 🕰️ Timestamps: 0:00 Podcast Intro 01:14 Elevator Pitch02:44 Optical Communications07:02 Business Model13:09 Interoperability and Integration15:17 Space-to-Ground Communication Architectures18:41 Security and Geopolitical Considerations22:18 Future of Optical and RF Coexistence24:10 Challenges in Optical and Radio Communication26:44 Satellite Requirements32:05 Marketing and Business Development34:05 Commercial Operations and Ground Stations38:57 Future Plans40:20 Luxembourg's Space Ecosystem42:35 Origin Story44:59 Closing: What else in Space? & Favorite Science-Fiction 🔗 Odysseus Space 🏠Website : https://www.odysseus.space/home 🔗 Follow us: 🏠Website : https://www.e2mc.space/ 🤝🏻LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-business-podcast/ 🌐Socials: https://linktr.ee/spacebusinesspodcast 🔗 Follow Raphael: ◇ Twitter/X - https://x.com/RaphaelE2MC 🔷LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raphaelroettgen 🌐Instagram - https://instagram.com/raphael_space/ To Learn more about Space & the Space Economy: "To Infinity" – Raphael’s Revised Introduction to the Space EconomyThis book provides an insightful look into the space economy, its current trends, and future opportunities.📚 https://a.co/d/6jIQ2LO edX/EPFL's Space Economy MOOCThis course offers a detailed understanding of the New Space Economy, covering key concepts and market developments.🎓 https://www.edx.org/course/new-space- Space Founder NewsletterA new newsletter with opportunities for space startup founders. Sign up here: https://forms.gle/JCUq92vERtxsuYnF8 Space Business Newsletter📬 https://spacebusiness.substack.com/

Pixxel is a prominent earth observation startup originally from India and now present in the U.S., too. They are focused on so-called hyperspectral imaging. CEO & Co-Founder Awais Ahmed is our guest. 🕰️ Timestamps: 0:00 Podcast Intro 01:23 Elevator Pitch03:32 Origin Story07:51 Hyperspectral Imaging09:54 Market Demand and Use Cases18:25 Hyperspectral vs. Multispectral22:07 Pixxel's Satellites31:28 Data Cube and Onboard Processing34:38 Machine Learning in Orbit36:06 Current and Future Satellite Deployments38:40 Beyond Hyperspectral39:34 Future of Earth Observation46:43 Entrepreneurial Lessons and Industry Insights50:32 The Indian Space Ecosystem52:19 Science Fiction Favorites 🔗 Pixxel 🏠Website : https://www.pixxel.space/ 🔗 Follow us: 🏠Website : https://www.e2mc.space/ 🤝🏻LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-business-podcast/ 🌐Socials: https://linktr.ee/spacebusinesspodcast 🔗 Follow Raphael: ◇ Twitter/X - https://x.com/RaphaelE2MC 🔷LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raphaelroettgen 🌐Instagram - https://instagram.com/raphael_space/ To Learn more about Space & the Space Economy: "To Infinity" – Raphael’s Revised Introduction to the Space EconomyThis book provides an insightful look into the space economy, its current trends, and future opportunities.📚 https://a.co/d/6jIQ2LO edX/EPFL's Space Economy MOOCThis course offers a detailed understanding of the New Space Economy, covering key concepts and market developments.🎓 https://www.edx.org/course/new-space- Space Business Newsletter📬 https://spacebusiness.substack.com/

Cailabs is a French laser company and one thing they are doing are optical communications between Earth to Space. This has a number of advantages over radio frequency communications, which is why it is being adopted by customers, for example in defense. The company also just raised EUR57M. Founder & CEO JF Morizur is our guest. 🕰️ Timestamps: 00:00 Podcast Introduction 01:08 Intro & Elevator Pitch 02:32 Advantages of Optical Communication 10:31 Solving Atmospheric Interference 24:13 Market Demand 26:38 Future of Optical Architecture 26:51 Spectrum Scarcity 28:31 Optical vs. Radio: A Hybrid Future 29:50 In-Flight Connectivity 31:12 Optical Comms and Constellations 37:37 Risk and Industrialization of Optical Comms 41:04 Supply Chain and Scalability 44:03 Future Plans and Expansion 46:56 Safety of Lasers 48:36 Extraterrestrials & Science Fiction 🔗 Cailabs 🏠Website : https://www.cailabs.com/ 🔗 Follow us: 🏠Website : https://www.e2mc.space/ 🤝🏻LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-business-podcast/ 🌐Socials: https://linktr.ee/spacebusinesspodcast 🔗 Follow Raphael: ◇ Twitter/X - https://x.com/RaphaelE2MC 🔷LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raphaelroettgen 🌐Instagram - https://instagram.com/raphael_space/ To Learn more about Space & the Space Economy: "To Infinity" – Raphael’s Revised Introduction to the Space EconomyThis book provides an insightful look into the space economy, its current trends, and future opportunities.📚 https://a.co/d/6jIQ2LO edX/EPFL's Space Economy MOOCThis course offers a detailed understanding of the New Space Economy, covering key concepts and market developments.🎓 https://www.edx.org/course/new-space- Space Business Newsletter📬 https://spacebusiness.substack.com/

SPACE ROBOTS! We are are talking about this exciting topic again in this episode. Icarus Robotics is a NY-based space robotics start up that just raised its $6M seed financing round. Co-founders Ethan Barajas and Jamie Palmer are our guests. 🕰️ Timestamps: 00:00 Podcast introduction 01:33 Elevator Pitch 02:56 Role of Robots in Space Stations 05:42 Challenges and Innovations in Space Robotics 12:22 Future of Space Robotics and Competition 24:16 Training for Space Missions 24:42 Robots in Space Exploration 25:38 Business Opportunities in Space 26:43 Low Earth Orbit Innovations 32:10 Prototyping and Testing Robots 36:05 Future of Robotic Labor in Space 38:41 Founders' Backgrounds and Inspirations 42:56 Favorite Robots in Science Fiction 🔗 Icarus Robotics 🏠Website : https://www.icarusrobotics.com/ 🔗 Follow us: 🏠Website : https://www.e2mc.space/ 🤝🏻LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-business-podcast/ 🌐Socials: https://linktr.ee/spacebusinesspodcast 🔗 Follow Raphael: ◇ Twitter/X - https://x.com/RaphaelE2MC 🔷LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raphaelroettgen 🌐Instagram - https://instagram.com/raphael_space/ To Learn more about Space & the Space Economy: "To Infinity" – Raphael’s Revised Introduction to the Space EconomyThis book provides an insightful look into the space economy, its current trends, and future opportunities.📚 https://a.co/d/6jIQ2LO edX/EPFL's Space Economy MOOCThis course offers a detailed understanding of the New Space Economy, covering key concepts and market developments.🎓 https://www.edx.org/course/new-space- Space Business Newsletter📬 https://spacebusiness.substack.com/

Monitoring greenhouse gases, including from Space. That’s our topic this week. We therefore have another earth observation startup on the show as our guests: Airmo from Germany. They’re developing an innovative instrument including LiDAR to track greenhouse gases. Founder-CEO Daria Stepanova joins me to explain their technology and market in more detail. Enjoy! 🕰️ Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction01:20 Elevator Pitch and Daria's Background04:20 Airmo's Technology07:12 Comparison with Existing Solutions09:38 Customer Benefits11:51 From Drones to Satellites14:44 Potential Additional Applications20:17 Evolution of Remote Sensing Technologies20:32 LIDAR as a New Commercial Remote Sensing Instrument22:06 Regulations as a Demand Driver25:53 Use Cases and Target Customers29:44 Business Model and Vision35:13 Vision for the Future of Remote Sensing40:20 Science Fiction 🔗 Airmo 🏠Website : https://www.airmo.io 🔗 Follow us: 🏠Website : https://www.e2mc.space/ 🤝🏻LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-business-podcast/ 🌐Socials: https://linktr.ee/spacebusinesspodcast 🔗 Follow Raphael: 🔷LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raphaelroettgen 🌐Instagram - https://instagram.com/raphael_space/ ◇ Twitter/X - https://x.com/RaphaelE2MC To Learn more about Space & the Space Economy: "To Infinity" – Raphael’s Revised Introduction to the Space EconomyThis book provides an insightful look into the space economy, its current trends, and future opportunities.📚 https://a.co/d/6jIQ2LO edX/EPFL's Space Economy MOOCThis course offers a detailed understanding of the New Space Economy, covering key concepts and market developments.🎓 https://www.edx.org/course/new-space- Space Business Newsletter📬 https://spacebusiness.substack.com/

How can we make operating in space safe & sustainable for everyone? Given the risks we face up there, like space debris and adversarial actors. This is where a company like Slingshot Aerospace comes in with its sensors, data, and insights derived from that data. My guest this week is their CEO, Tim Solms. Enjoy! 🕰️ Timestamps: 00:00 Intro01:44 Elevator Pitch01:53 Founders and Mission of Slingshot Aerospace03:28 Challenges in Space Operations04:18 Situational Awareness in Space05:41 Slingshot's Sensor Network and Data Collection14:21 Data Sharing and International Collaboration19:50 Autonomous Operations and Future Prospects24:23 Avoiding Contact in Space25:26 Understanding Space Traffic Management25:46 Global Space Traffic Management26:41 The Role of the Office of Space Commerce30:28 Challenges of Space Debris31:33 In-Orbit Refueling and Space Operations35:40 Slingshot's Future40:02 Tim's Background42:48 Future of Commercial Space44:22 Science Fiction 🔗 Slingshot Aerospace 🏠Website : https://www.slingshot.space/ 🔗 Follow us: 🏠Website : https://www.e2mc.space/ 🤝🏻LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-business-podcast/ 🌐Socials: https://linktr.ee/spacebusinesspodcast 🔗 Follow Raphael: 🔷LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raphaelroettgen 🌐Instagram - https://instagram.com/raphael_space/ ◇ Twitter/X - https://x.com/RaphaelE2MC To Learn more about Space & the Space Economy: "To Infinity" – Raphael’s Revised Introduction to the Space EconomyThis book provides an insightful look into the space economy, its current trends, and future opportunities.📚 https://a.co/d/6jIQ2LO edX/EPFL's Space Economy MOOCThis course offers a detailed understanding of the New Space Economy, covering key concepts and market developments.🎓 https://www.edx.org/course/new-space- Space Business Newsletter📬 https://spacebusiness.substack.com/

Is the space sector actually financed in the right way? That’s probably the main question I’m discussing with my guest Justin Stevens, founder and CEO of the investment firm Overlap Holdings. He spent 18 years at Apollo Global Management, a very prominent private equity firm. So he’s a Wall Street guy like me and, I think, qualified to voice an opinion on this questions which we may not ask enough. Enjoy! 🕰️ Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:08 - Guest Intro 02:31 - Overlap Holdings Name Origin and Activities 03:43 - Capital Solutions and Government Solutions 06:24 - The Role of Debt in Frontier Tech 12:08 - Types of Debt and Their Applications 21:21 - Government Contracts and Lending 23:30 - Navigating Government Lending Challenges 24:00 - Leveraging a Detailed Lender Database 27:05 - The Importance of Government Financing 30:12 - The Evolution of Space Investing 33:57 - Investor Perspectives on Space 36:09 - Founding Overlap and Investing in Frontier Technology 39:17 - Future of Space and Investment Strategies 43:29 - Hypothetical Space Startup Ideas 46:09 - Science Fiction 📍 About the Guest: Justin is a seasoned investor and operator with over 18 years as a Senior Partner at Apollo Global Management, where he developed deep expertise in financial structuring and investment management. He has invested in, built, advised, and overseen organizations ranging from early-stage frontier tech startups to large, publicly traded companies. With a strong network across finance, industry, and government, Justin brings a multidisciplinary approach to navigating complex markets and driving long-term value across sectors. 🔗 Connect with Justin: 🤝 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinstevensny/ 🔗 Follow us: 🏠Website : https://www.e2mc.space/ 🤝🏻LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-business-podcast/ 🌐Socials: https://linktr.ee/spacebusinesspodcast 🔗 Follow Raphael: 🔷LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raphaelroettgen 🌐Instagram - https://instagram.com/raphael_space/ ◇ Twitter/X - https://x.com/RaphaelE2MC To Learn more about Space & the Space Economy: "To Infinity" – Raphael’s Revised Introduction to the Space EconomyThis book provides an insightful look into the space economy, its current trends, and future opportunities.📚 https://a.co/d/6jIQ2LO edX/EPFL's Space Economy MOOCThis course offers a detailed understanding of the New Space Economy, covering key concepts and market developments.🎓 https://www.edx.org/course/new-space- Space Business Newsletter📬 https://spacebusiness.substack.com/