Skip to main content

Lt. Gen. John Thompson explains how startups can interact with the Space Force

Space Force’s Lt. Gen. John Thompson spoke at TC Sessions: Space earlier this week. Throughout the wide-ranging interview, General Thompson explained the various ways and means for how private companies like startups should interact with Space Force.

Gen. Thompson knows what he’s talking about. As the commander of the Space and Missiles Systems Center, he oversees research, design, development and acquisition of satellites and their associated command and control systems for the U.S. Space Force. His role puts him in direct contact with some of the most ambitious and innovative startups.

Watch Space Force’s Lt. Gen. John Thompson speak on sourcing tech to secure space

He pointed to three things when asked what’s a good first step for interfacing with the Space Force:

1) Join the Space Enterprise Consortium (SpEC). He describes it as “a purpose-built consortium that values partnerships between government, traditional industry partners, and non-traditional partners like academia, small businesses and startups” that’s grown to more than 440 members in three years.

At the end of the interview, Gen. Thompson notes that he’s working on expanding the deployment of SpEC’s funds to reach more “game-changing technologies that those non-traditional small businesses and startups are bringing to SpEC.

2) Watch for Space Pitch Days. The next event is in the spring of 2021. These pitch days give startups an inside track to government contracts. Apparently, after the first event held with the Air Force, which Gen. Thompson hosted, contracts were offered within three minutes of the pitches.

3) Look into SpaceWERX; a program launched this December to help Space Force work with private sector companies to field new technology for military applications. Like its Air Force counterpart, this “werx” center is a key component for Space Force’s acquisition strategy.

“Dr. Roper just announced it last week at the Space and Missile System Center,” Gen. Thompson said, “[This] is an integral part of the acquisition enterprise of the United States. Space Force is a full partner in the SpaceWERX endeavor. And using the WERX model, we hope to inject more small businesses and startups into our innovation ecosystem.”



from Startups – TechCrunch https://ift.tt/38eeHZz
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Axeleo Capital raises $51 million fund

Axeleo Capital has raised a $51 million fund (€45 million). Axeleo first started with an accelerator focused on enterprise startups. The firm is now all grown up with an acceleration program and a full-fledged VC fund. The accelerator is now called Axeleo Scale , while the fund is called Axeleo Capital . And it’s important to mention both parts of the business as they work hand in hand. Axeleo picks up around 10 startups per year and help them reach the Series A stage. If they’re doing well over the 12 to 18 months of the program, Axeleo funds those startups using its VC fund. Limited partners behind the company’s first fund include Bpifrance through the French Tech Accélération program, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Vinci Energies, Crédit Agricole, BNP Paribas, Caisse d’Épargne Rhône-Alpes as well as various business angels and family offices. The firm is also partnering with Hi Inov, the holding company of the Dentressangle family. Axeleo will take care of the early stage in...
Post a Comment
Read more

TikTok’s rivals in India struggle to cash in on its ban

For years, India has served as the largest open battleground for Silicon Valley and Chinese firms searching for their next billion users. With more than 400 million WhatsApp users , India is already the largest market for the Facebook-owned service. The social juggernaut’s big blue app also reaches more than 300 million users in the country. Google is estimated to reach just as many users in India, with YouTube closely rivaling WhatsApp for the most popular smartphone app in the country. Several major giants from China, like Alibaba and Tencent (which a decade ago shut doors for most foreign firms), also count India as their largest overseas market. At its peak, Alibaba’s UC Web gave Google’s Chrome a run for its money. And then there is TikTok, which also identified India as its biggest market outside of China . Though the aggressive arrival of foreign firms in India helped accelerate the growth of the local ecosystem, their capital and expertise also created a level of competit...
Post a Comment
Read more