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Charting Space's Course: The Exit Polls
An Imagining Forward Newsletter, Edition #4
Imagining Forward
November 07, 2024 • Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes
initializing Satellite Spotlight…
/ / i’m a connector of the space tech & adjacent community with a weekly space tech newsletter
/ / purpose is to build and foster collaboration in a curated space tech ecosystem
/ / new subscribers raised the payload to 990+ stargazers
space brew
/ / fascinating topics to discuss this weekend
deals & m&a
Apple invests $1.1B in globalstar for 20% stake in consumer satellite services.
/ / why it’s important - expands network capacity to apple’s off-grid connectivity. In contrast, Google’s fortifies competition with Skylo.
Redoxblox secures $31 million series a for industrial heat storage.
/ / why it’s important - cost-competitive fossil fuel alternative for high-temperature industrial applications like cement or food processing, addressing renewable energy integration challenges on dynamic commercial demand and fluctuating supply generation.
Beta aerospace raises $300M in series c for electric aircraft and battery charging systems.
/ / why it’s important - accelerates commercialization of short-haul transportation and logistics while lowering hurdles to build eVTOL charging infrastructure..
Andium raised $21.7M series b led by aramco ventures on remote-field monitoring tech.
/ / why it’s important - improving operational efficiency through AI-powered IIoT solutions for real-time emissions monitoring and industrial automation for energy sectors.
science & ip
Nvidia released dexmimicgen, robotic training with 90% success in humanoid tasks.
/ / why it’s important - potential to advance tough-to-manufacture biomedicine and computing in space.
Physical intelligence raises $400M for robot AI from Bezos and lux capital.
/ / why it’s important - expands AI-driven automation potential and humanoid robots for manufacturing.
Meta’s llama opens to US defense.
/ / why it’s important - accelerates AI x space defense for satellite and debris monitoring, and autonomous systems. positions US open-source AI as a global strategic asset.
headlines
US manufacturing activity hits 15m low.
/ / why it’s important - output contraction from Boeing strike estimated to cost ~$100 million daily, signalling potential disruptions in supply chains and broader industrial stability.
Oxford launches human tissue to iss for longevity research.
/ / why it’s important - investigate microgravity’s effects on human aging and develop age-related disease treatments.
Thrustme, onera, airbus explore iodine propulsion.
/ / why it’s important - reduce europe’s reliance on xenon replaced with iodine as a cost-effective propellant to enhance competitive autonomy in space.
community spotlight
today, 11/07
friday, 11/08
Founders friday : founder & ceo of haven (finances on autopilot) (NYC).
saturday 11/09,
Founders running club (LA).
monday 11/11,
GenAI meetup w/ qualcomm (LA).
tuesday, 11/12,
Founders & funders (SF).
wednesday, 11/13
Data & dumplings: cleantech (NYC)
upcoming, 12/01
NextEra energy seed competition up to $1 million on technologies within cybersecurity, data & AI, decarbonization and energy transition.
cosmic mixtape
weekly aphorism
The sky is not the limit,
it's the beginning.
content & opinions top hits
Life on europa : finding alien life.
20VC: what startups will be steamrolled by openAI and where is opportunity?
Marc zuckerberg on 1GW data centres.
navigating space - an election exit audit
the dust has settled on an unprecedented election, with a base case republican victory crystallizing across presidency, house and senate. the republican wave brings both certainty and ambiguity leaving the space ecosystem to ruminate, how will this power shift redefine the sector's priorities and prospects?
the power play
while a republican wave suggests a lucid path to realize the gop agenda, sweeping reforms may be tempered. a likely narrow house majority suggests nuanced legislative dynamics and complex cross-aisle negotiations. juxtaposed against a vulnerable senate landscape lays an easter egg for congressional musical chairs in 2026.
policy continuity vs. change
what may stay:
Curve steepener fuelled from augmented fiscal deficits.
Chips and science act fundamentals with marginal changes to funding allocations and priorities.
Core national security and space defense initiatives.
Space privatization and commercial space partnerships.
what may change:
Budget recalibration of potentially $2T in efficiency cuts.
Possible personnel shifts at key agencies (ftc, dod, noaa, nasa).
Rolling back inflation reduction act & climate-centric space r&d.
Federal reserve dynamics with powell's future uncertain.
what remains a wild card:
heightened trade & international relations
trump may unilaterally impose tariffs without congressional blessings advancing the spectre of trade wars. in any scenario there are two possible outcomes - negotiations or tensions. a trade war with mexico and with europe is likely to result in negotiations. a trade war with china may pose a risk for tensions. which posits, in trump’s nixon 2.0 era, is there a need for a 2025 kissinger to navigate the delicate american-chinese geopolitical relations?
space tech’s rank in the gop agenda
on another note, elon musk’s ties to victorious campaign may be pivotal for the space ecosystem. how will he leverage his influence to shape the cooperation between government space agencies and corporate “space” america?
ultimately, space tech’s strategic importance offers insulation from severe cutbacks. the next question looms: who is positioned to win the space race under the incoming administration?
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