Eric Anderson is President of And One Technologies and a startup investor, director and advisor across multiple business areas. He emphasizes delivery of data and services via new technologies, channels and business models including facilitating government access and use of emerging commercial space products and services. Eric contributed to dozens of space systems, missions and programs as Chief Technologist for Space at Moog, at CSA Engineering, where he served several years as President, and at JPL. He earned degrees in Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT.

Mr. Joe Anderson is the vice president of SpaceLogistics, a Northrop Grumman company. Mr. Anderson also serves on the Board of Directors for CONFERS (the international satellite servicing industry association), and on the Steering Committee of the USG sponsored Consortium for Space Mobility and ISAM Capabilities (COSMIC).

In this role as Vice President, Mr. Anderson is responsible for managing the technical, operational, licensing and insurance aspects of SpaceLogistics’ satellite-servicing fleet, and business development for commercial and government satellite servicing customers.

Mr. Anderson has been with SpaceLogistics for over thirteen years. Previous to his current position, he served as chief engineer and director of mission extension vehicle services.

Prior to joining SpaceLogistics, Anderson spent 20 years at Intelsat where he served in a variety of technical, managerial, strategy and leadership roles.

Mr. Anderson possesses more than 36 years of satellite industry experience including control system design for launch vehicles, telecommunications satellites, the Space Station Freedom, and satellite operations including more than 25 launch missions.

Mr. Anderson holds a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Minnesota, a master’s degree in engineering from Stanford University, and an MBA from George Washington University.

Frank Backes is the Chief Executive Officer at Capella Space, with 30+ years in the satellite launch, command, control, and communications industries. Previously, Mr. Backes served as Senior Vice President for Kratos Space Federal and Commercial Cyber. He is a technology pioneer in the systematic and continuous application of cyber security solutions for space systems. Mr. Backes is the former Chief Executive Officer for Braxton Technologies LLC and Braxton Science and Technology Group, LLC, leading manufacturers of launch, command and control software for intelligence, military and commercial applications.

He was recognized with the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2009 for achievements in the aerospace industry. Mr. Backes is the founder and president of the Space ISAC and serves on the board of directors for Modern Technology Solutions Inc. (MTSI). He received a BSEE in Semiconductor Physics from the University of California at San Diego along with minors in communications/marketing and computer hardware.

Mr. Chris Badgett is Vice President of Technology for Kratos Federal Space. He has been instrumental in designing the capability for the military to take advantage of virtual ground solutions and the ability to securely leverage the power of cloud computing and global antenna networks. Prior to Kratos, Mr. Badgett served in the Air Force as a weapons engineer in the Air Force Research Lab. Chris has also worked in the Space Development and Test Wing as a program manager for a satellite system developed by Ball Aerospace. Mr. Badgett holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from University of Tennessee and an MS in Space Systems from the Air Force Institute of Technology.

Stewart Bain is CEO and founder of NorthStar Earth & Space. He recognizes the need for a lasting space economy and the importance that big data analytics, machine learning, and AI plays in the security & safety of the space environment.

Stewart combines a unique set of technical and business intelligence to create & commercialize disruptive technologies for aero and space applications from large scale hardware and specialized systems to sophisticated algorithms and products for advanced analytics and big data services.

At NorthStar, Stewart has focused on the benefits of a system of systems approach that combines complex hardware systems with machine learning systems using data driven algorithms to deliver high quality commercial services to precisely monitor activity in space. This is achieved with a patented Concept of Operations (CONOPS) that sets NorthStar apart as a leader in satellite image processing and big data analytics to provide a meaningful and reliable commercial contribution to space domain awareness.

Stewart leverages over thirty years of technical and business aerospace experience. Stewart contributed to the design of the coarse pointing mechanism for the original Artemis SILEX demonstration, the first in-orbit Optical Intersatellite Link system for spacecraft. Stewart led engineering design, integration, and test teams for the breakthrough 15m RadarSat 1 (passive SAR) and 2 antennas (active SAR) and deployment systems as well as the touch & control sensitivity systems for robotic arms and the in-orbit replaceable power conditioner systems for the International Space Station (ISS). He designed and delivered numerous optical systems for various space science applications that monitored the aurora borealis and the Earth’s upper atmosphere.

In his pivot to business development, Stewart established a space optics systems centre of excellence at CAL Corporation (now Honeywell) that provided breakthrough commercial Star Tracker Attitude and Orbit Control System products for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) spacecraft. Stewart led an international collaboration between NASA Langley and UBE Industries of Japan and was recognized with a NASA R&D 100 award for his distinguished contributions to the advancement of high temperature polyimide composite systems for dual-use aircraft applications.

Stewart is a founding member of the Board of Space Canada and has previously served as the President of the Board Advisory Committee of the AQA (Quebec Aerospace Association). Stewart has an MBA from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario and a Master of Engineering from Carleton University in Ottawa.

Dr. Michael Bartholomeusz is a technology executive with over 25 years of global leadership across aerospace, advanced materials, electronics, and energy. He began his career contributing to NASA’s Space Shuttle program, where he supported development of the Super Lightweight Tank, improving performance and payload capacity.

He has since built and led high-growth technology companies across commercial sectors, with recent focus on defense and space-based intelligence. His leadership spans international operations, complex manufacturing, and the productization of advanced systems across the U.S., Europe, and Asia. He brings deep experience in scaling businesses, forming strategic partnerships, and translating innovation into real-world deployment.

In addition to his executive roles, Dr. Bartholomeusz has served on several boards, including SEMI, including SEMI, formerly a publicly listed company focused on the global semiconductor and microelectronics supply chain, which was later acquired..

He currently serves as CEO of NOVI Space, a space infrastructure company enabling real-time compute and AI processing in orbit. NOVI is now launching its own dual-use constellation—an open-access platform delivering space-based intelligence-as-a-service.

Tom Barton is the CEO and Co-Founder of Antaris™. Prior to Antaris™, Tom served as the COO at PlanetLabs. He oversaw organizational development including the hiring of CTO Karthik Govindhasamy as well as the CFO, SVP of Marketing, and Chief Revenue Officer. During his tenure, the company launched the first large-scale imaging constellations and acquired the high-resolution satellite business from Google/TerraBella/Skybox. Tom has held multiple CEO roles, including Rackable Systems (ultimately acquired by HPE). Rackable delivered server and storage solutions to hyperscalers, including the first implementations of AWS EC2 and S3 cloud offerings. He took Rackable public in 2005, which was one of the technology industry’s most successful IPOs that year. Tom also held senior leadership roles at open-source pioneers Cygnus Solutions and Red Hat.

Jeff Bell is the Deputy Director for NGA Commercial Operations, where he leads a group in solving national security mission challenges with innovative commercial GEOINT solutions while leveraging the power of commercial capabilities to achieve GEOINT supremacy, diplomacy, and sustainability.

Previously, Jeff served as the Deputy Director for Analysis Plans and Business Operations (AP), leading the Analysis directorate’s strategic and business activities, budget planning and execution, and resource management. Jeff served as the Foundation GEOINT National System for Geospatial-Intelligence Executive (FG NOX). He was responsible for leading the coordination and prioritization of community requirements for Foundation GEOINT products, data, and services. He co-chaired the Foundation Data Requirements Subcommittee (FRSCOM) co-chair under the National Geospatial Intelligence Committee

Jeff served as the deputy director to the Office of Geography in the Source Directorate. He was responsible for leading the day-to-day operations of topographic, political geography and human geography missions in support of the Warfighter as well as the national security objectives of the US Government. Jeff deployed to Afghanistan in 2018 as the Senior Intelligence Officer (SIO), responsible for all GEOINT Analysts across the Combined Joint Operations Area – Afghanistan (CJOA-A). He ensured NGA products and intelligence analysis was timely and accurate for briefings to senior military officials at Resolute Headquarters, Kabul Afghanistan. From 2016 to 2017 Jeff was the Senior GEOINT Authority (SGA) for GEOINT Standards, chairing the National System for Geospatial Intelligence (NSG) GEOINT Standards Working Group (GWG) on behalf of the Director of National Intelligence, and established the GEOINT Functional Manager’s Standards Assessment (GFSMA) program. He led the Enterprise Architecture and Standards Office in the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) and later CIO-T from 2013 to 2016. Prior, Jeff held various Division Chief, Branch Chief and Subject Matter Expertise positions in Office of Geospatial Management (OGM), OCIO, and the Office of Strategic Transformation (OST) focused on agency transformation efforts.

Jeff began his NGA career in 2003 as an Aeronautical Analyst in the Eastern Europe Division. Before NGA, Jeff was a pilot for Trans World Airlines, and held various civilian pilot jobs during and after college. He received his Bachelors of Science in Professional Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He enjoys trail running and competes in multiple ultramarathons each year.

• Former US Department of Defense PA&E Director

• Served in Bush and Obama Admins

• Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Logistics and Materiel Readiness

• Former McKinsey Partner • Director of Boeing Defense, Space & Security

• Chair National Defense Business Institute

• Harvard MBA

Curt Blake is Senior Of Counsel in the Seattle office of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, where he is a member of the corporate practice. Curt is an attorney and senior executive with more than 25 years of experience leading organizations in high-growth industries—and over 10 years as CEO of Spaceflight, Inc.—at the forefront of the NewSpace revolution. He has extensive expertise in strategic planning, financial analysis, legal strategy, M&A, and space commercialization, with deep knowledge about the unique challenges of NewSpace growth and the roadmap to success in the that ecosystem. He has forged relationships with key commercial, civilian, and defense-related customers. Milestones include opening the Indian PSLV to U.S. commercial customers, the first dedicated rideshare Falcon 9 launch vehicle mission deploying a then-record 64 satellites, and launching the first non-governmental mission to the moon (SpaceIL), as well as developing, launching, and orbiting several flavors of Sherpa, the Spaceflight OTV.

Brad Bode brings over 23 years of software development experience in the aerospace industry to the ATLAS team. He has designed, developed, tested, and deployed satellite command and control, mission planning, and data management applications throughout his career – to include multiple patents. As the architect and visionary behind Freedom Ground Software as a Service, Brad is responsible for hundreds of thousands of successful satellite passes and terabytes of data collected. Bode’s technology and innovative acumen has resulted in the following recognition: Most Promising Technology Solutions Provider for the Telecom Industry (CIO Review ), Top Satellite Solutions Provider (Aerospace Defense and Review), and an official nomination for Satellite Technology of the Year (Via Satellite).

Bode has led ATLAS’ initiative to fully integrate our Freedom Software with both ViaSat Real-Time Earth (RTE) and AWS Ground Station. This integration led to the expansion of the ATLAS federated global ground network to 50+ antennas, at 34+ ground sites, in 20 countries. He obtained his Master of Science (MS) in Computer Science from Northern Illinois University.

Timothy (“Tim”) Bransford provides guidance to clients on satellite, space, and wireless regulatory issues before the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee (IRAC), National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), as well as other domestic and international regulators. For over twenty years, Tim has represented and advised publicly traded and privately held companies on a multitude of regulatory issues to secure government approvals in the satellite, space, and wireless industries. He has also assisted private equity entities in evaluating space and satellite companies for investment purposes.

Working with geostationary and non-geostationary satellite operators and cutting-edge space technology companies, Tim has obtained launch authority, market access authorization, special temporary authority, and experimental licenses from the FCC. On behalf of his clients, Tim has also successfully coordinated through the IRAC advisory body bespoke and complex space-based networks employing frequencies allocated on a primary basis for federal use. Among others, such clients include operators of Direct-to-Device satellite constellations, lunar landers, synthetic aperture radar imaging spacecraft, satellite relay networks, and conventional “bent-pipe” communications satellites. Tim assists clients in coordinating and obtaining approval to operate satellite ground stations. Tim enjoys longstanding relationships with international regulators, and assists clients in obtaining market access for their space networks in foreign jurisdictions.

Outside of the space and satellite arena, Tim guides clients that manufacture radiofrequency hardware through the FCC equipment authorization process to allow the sales and marketing of such devices in the domestic market, and provides advice on the international homologation of a broad range of wireless hardware and apparatus. Tim advocates before the FCC, NTIA, IRAC and other agencies on changes to radiofrequency allocations and technical service rules that will better enable the shared use of finite spectrum between the federal government and commercial users, and has been heavily involved in numerous proceedings involving geolocation fencing and other technologies to accommodate more intense use of frequencies with underlying incumbent users that require interference protection.

Dr. Joseph S. Bravman joined Lynk in 2018 and serves as its Chief Engineer. Lynk is a pioneer in developing, building, launching and operating D2D pLEO satellites that serve as “cell towers in space” to connect unmodified cellular devices.
In 2012 he co-founded Omnispace, LLC, and until 2016 served as its CEO. He is also the founder of Omnisat, LLC, a satellite data transmission services and consulting company that leased satellite capacity to deliver high value digital content over most of Europe, Asia, and Africa.
Dr. Bravman previously held several positions at Orbital Science Corporation (now Northrop Grumman). During his career at Orbital he served as SVP/Corporate Development, Corporate Chief Engineer, Senior Vice President of Orbital’s Advanced Systems Group, and Senior Vice President, Engineering and Operations. In these roles Dr. Bravman executed several remote sensing and communications satellite programs and managed the redesign and construction of the ORBCOMM satellite constellation.
Prior to Orbital’s acquisition of Fairchild Space and Defence Corporation in 1994, Dr. Bravman was Corporate Executive Vice President of Fairchild, and President of its Defense Electronics and Communications division.
Dr. Bravman received his B.S. degree in electrical engineering from MIT and his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from Cornell University. He was granted 3 US patents.
Dr. Bravman serves on several advisory Boards including NDIA, and has been an advisor to Cornell’s student nano-satellite projects, and a member of the Maryland High-Technology Council Board, the Maryland Angels Council investment group, NSTAC IES, and a US representative to the ITU’s WRC. He has lectured and published on numerous technical and business topics.

Owen serves as the VP of Solutions Development at Scientific Systems, where he oversee new concept and solutions development of AI-powered autonomous systems in the space and maritime domains. A former nuclear submarine officer, he was employed for several years a spacecraft engineer at Space Systems/Loral in Palo Alto and also a researcher at NASA Ames. He later served as Program Manager at DARPA/TTO, where is directed MiTEx and created the fractionated satellite architecture and associated System F6 program. He has been the author of multiple space-related reports for Congress, including leading the original study on Space Traffic Management. He holds a MS and PhD in Aero/Astro from Stanford.

Alan Campbell is a Principal Space Specialist Solutions Architect at Amazon Web Services (AWS). His focus is on empowering customers with innovative new Cloud-based scalable solutions for the Aerospace & Satellite segment. Alan specializes in Data Analytics and AI / ML enabling key insights in Satellite Communications, Earth Observation, and IoT platforms.

Prior to joining AWS, Alan directed the Panasonic Avionics Satellite Engineering team, delivering premium QoE to Inflight passengers. He led a major Cloud & Data migration of 100+ applications resulting in $50M cost savings and SLA improvements.

Alan’s experience ranges from a Fellowship award at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, to authoring a book on Embedded Systems at Texas Instruments. He is a Founding Member of the Satcom WAVE consortium, and holds multiple Cloud certifications, satellite credentials and patents.

Phil Carrai is President of the Space, Training and Cybersecurity division for Kratos Defense and Security Solutions, Inc. As President, he is responsible for all aspects of business operations, business development/sales, mergers, and acquisitions. Throughout his career, Phil has led numerous acquisitions along with major software and hardware development initiatives to transform the group to be a premier provider of products and related solutions for the global aerospace and defense market. Previously, he was the CEO of Ai Metrix, a telecommunications software company focused on the defense and commercial markets, which was sold to Kratos Defense in 2006. He is a former Managing Director for the Morino Group and Special Advisor to General Atlantic, Inc. During that period, he served as the Executive Chairman for US mobile media leader , Ztango, until its sale to Widerthan.com, and an active board member for Internosis, a commercial and federal services provider, until its sale to EMC.

Phil also was the CEO of McCabe and Associates, a testing and analysis software company, and remained with the company as Chairman until its sale to a private equity firm. Between 1989 and 1996, Phil held a number of executive positions at Legent, including Vice President and General Manager of its $200 million Resource Management business unit. In this, he managed or was directly involved in numerous product launches, channel and international expansions, new product developments, and mergers and acquisitions—including the merger with Computer Associates. Phil began his career as a systems analyst/programmer for Alcoa after graduating in 1983 with a Bachelor of Science in Information Science and Accounting from Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). He is the President of the Alumni Board for IUP, where he is also a University Distinguished Alumni and a member of the Eberly Business Hall of Distinction. He also received his MBA from Carnegie Mellon University in 1989 and currently serves as a board member for Network Alliance.

Mersad Cavcic joined Globalstar in 2024 as Chief Product Officer and leads the product management and global marketing teams. Prior to Globalstar, Mersad served as VP of Product Management at Pivotal Commware from 2018 to 2024, where he played a leading role in the development and commercialization of mmWave 5G technologies and products.

Before his tenure at Pivotal, Mersad was the Principal Solutions Architect at Kymeta Corporation from 2014 to 2018. He was instrumental in developing ground terminals for mobility Ku/Ka band satellite services and establishing global satellite network in an MVNO format. Mersad began his career at The Boeing Company, focusing on tactical communications systems within the Boeing Research and Technology division.

Mersad’s expertise is in developing product and go-to-market strategies for emerging connectivity technologies, with an emphasis on unit economics and industry ecosystem establishment.

Holding BSEE and MSEE degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Washington, Mersad combines technical acumen with strategic business insights to lead and innovate in the tech landscape.

Jeff Chiow is Co-Chair of Greenberg Traurig’s Government Contracts Group and has deep experience in space, aerospace, defense, and national security matters. His prior service as a U.S. Marine Corps weapons and sensors officer in the F/A-18D Hornet informs Jeff’s work with cutting-edge technology: aerospace systems, cloud computing, drones, satellites, defense platforms, IT and AI/ML systems and more. His practice is a mix of litigation, investigations and regulatory and transactional advice. On complex and time-sensitive matters, Jeff communicates directly and efficiently with clients to achieve cost-effective solutions. His analysis and guidance are based upon substantial experience supporting “can’t fail” missions.

Jeff helps companies to understand and navigate federally funded research and development opportunities as well as Space Act Agreements and other transaction agreements with Department of Defense agencies and NASA, among others. His work is often cross-disciplinary allowing him to work with space-knowledgeable colleagues who specialize in intellectual property, export controls, licensing and policy. Jeff is an elected member of the International Institute of Space Law.

Kevin Cohen serves as Commercial Director of the direct-to-device business at Viasat, Inc. He
is responsible for the Company’s direct-to-device initiative, which will utilize Viasat’s L-band
capabilities as well as partner satellite operator networks. This initiative is designed to
provide consumers, enterprises and the automotive industry with connectivity options in
cellular dead zones, utilizing standards based cellular solutions over satellite.
During his 16-year tenure, he has held multiple positions from engineering to project and
product management, business development and general manager for Viasat’s government
systems and consumer services. In 2016, Kevin successfully launched Viasat’s Community
Internet service across unserved and underserved communities across Nigeria, Mexico,
Guatemala, and Brazil. Today, Viasat’s residential, business internet and Prepaid Internet
offerings connect thousands of Latin American consumers and help close the region’s digital
gap.
Kevin studied Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan and earned a Master of
Business Administration (MBA) degree from San Diego State University. He is fluent in
Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese and speaks Turkish, Russian and French.

Mike Collett is Founder and Managing Partner of Promus Ventures, a DeepTech venture capital firm with offices in the US and Europe, investing in AI, space, robotics and other DeepTech early-stage startups. Mike has been a venture capital investor in software and hardware for more than 20 years. Mike has served on numerous Boards of Directors, including Rocket Lab, Spire Global, ICEYE, Halter, Lunar Outpost, Chef Robotics, Gauss Surgical, Recycleye, and others.
Prior to Promus Ventures, Mike was Founder and Managing Partner of Masters Capital
Nanotechnology Fund, a venture capital firm. While working at Masters Capital, a hedge fund,
Mike invested in early-stage DeepTech startups. Prior to venture capital,
Mike was a Vice President in Merrill Lynch’s Mergers & Acquisitions group.
Mike holds a BA in Math and BA in English from Vanderbilt University. He also holds a MBA in
Finance from Washington University in St. Louis.
Mike and his wife Paige have four children and live in Chicago.

James is the founder of Orbital Insight. Since 2013 the company has been pursuing the mission
of processing geospatial data at petabyte scale to help commercial and government customers
understand what we are doing on and to the Earth. In 2024 the company was acquired by
Privateer Space and has since operated as a fully owned subsidiary. In addition to being the
founder of Orbital Insight, James also works as Chief Strategy Officer for the combined
company.

Previously he was SVP of Science and Engineering at the Climate Corporation through its $1B
acquisition by Monsanto. Before his time at Climate he was CTO and Software Architect at
Moon Express — a company with the goal of putting the first commercial robot on the Moon.
Previous to that he was engineering Director of Google Book Search where he was in charge of
Google’s project to scan, index, and make searchable the world’s books.

James holds PhD and Master’s degrees in Computer Science from the University of Texas at
Austin, and a BA in Math and Computer Science from Rice University.

Kim Crider is a Founding Partner of Elara Nova. She brings more than 35 years of experience managing multibillion-dollar global operations and technology programs in space, aerospace, cybersecurity, IT, data, and AI to the core team.

A recently retired U.S. Air Force (USAF) Major General, Crider was the first Chief Technology and Innovation Officer for the newly established U. S. Space Force (USSF) where she oversaw a $2.5B Space Science & Technology portfolio and directed a $750M digital services and cybersecurity portfolio to advance the $15B global military space enterprise for 16,000 personnel. Prior to that, Crider was the Air Force Chief Data Officer, a first in the DoD, where she led the implementation of a $100M enterprise data management portfolio to assure availability of operational and business data to over 850,000 military, civilian and contract users across the Department of the Air Force’s $126B enterprise, and established a strategy for enterprise data management that has seminally influenced other DoD level data strategies and initiatives.

Crider regularly advises US Political Appointees, Service Secretaries, Military Service Chiefs, and Civil Agency leaders, as well as international military, civilian and industry leaders, on the strategic use of technology to achieve competitive advantage. She has extensive international experience having served in Europe, Australia, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, and has been a seminal leader in global space, air and cyberspace operations, coalition and NATO command, control, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, and international information sharing. She built and led two multimillion-dollar specialty consulting firms focused on IT/data strategy, cybersecurity, and digital services in the education, architecture & engineering, financial services and health technology sectors. A senior engineer at the MITRE Corporation for over 15 years, Crider led the engineering for global enterprise networks, cybersecurity, and advanced surveillance radar systems across the DoD and Homeland Security.

Crider earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Duke University, an M.B.A. from Western New England University, and a Graduate certificate degree in Organizational Behavior from Harvard University. She graduated with distinction from the USAF Air Command and Staff College and the National Defense University Industrial College of the Armed Forces and has been an executive fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and the University of Tennessee.

Servando Cuellar is the Director of U.S. Government. Program Management at Astranis Space Technologies Corp.

His primary focus is to execute and deliver MicroGEO technologies to our U.S. Government customers.

Servando has over 17 years of experience in Missiles & Space Systems Development, Electronics & RF hardware,

Advanced Manufacturing and Materials, and Program Management. Prior to Astranis, Servando was the

Hypersonics Director of Programs at Lockheed Martin Space leading portfolio operations, new business strategy, and mergers and acquisitions.

Servando holds a B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California Davis

Scot Currie is vice president of BlackSky’s Geospatial Solutions Division where he oversees execution of all BlackSky development contracts supporting the U.S. government and international partners. Scot also served as BlackSky’s chief solutions architect, in the office of the CTO, where he was responsible for providing technical solutions and oversight for BlackSky’s space and ground R&D initiatives in support of customer requirements.
Before joining BlackSky, Scot was the director of the Source Operations Group at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). In this capacity Scot was the senior executive responsible for all U.S. national and commercial GEOINT satellite operations serving the defense and intelligence community. During this time, he managed the engineering and integration of new U.S. and foreign satellite systems into the National GEOINT enterprise and introduced the first automated tasking models to meet emerging requirements for tactical ISR missions. He performed several tours at the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) developing next-generation defense and intelligence community requirements for national satellite programs and ground operations.
Scot served three years in the United Kingdom implementing novel GEOINT technical capabilities to the U.K. Ministry of Defence and was the first program manager for the NGA’s $10 billion, 10-year EnhancedView contract. The EnhancedView program was designed to integrate commercial electro-optical capabilities into the larger defense and intelligence community enterprise and was the largest contract ever awarded by the Agency.
Scot received a Bachelor of Arts degree in business administration from Lynchburg University and a Master of Science degree in systems engineering from George Washington University.

Dr. Tom Cwik is Chief Technologist for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. In this role he provides strategic leadership for research in advanced technology and serves as the focal point for technology interactions with NASA, companies, universities and the external research community. He is responsible for guiding the infusion of new technology into the Laboratory mission portfolio.

Tom has been a co-founder of a star-up company, consults and is an Adjunct Professor at University of Washington. He was named a distinguished alum at the University of Illinois, is an Associate Fellow of the AIAA and a Fellow of the IEEE.

Giovanni D’Aliesio is a Senior Director of Business Development with over 25 years of experience at MDA Space. He joined MDA Space in 1999 as an Electronics Engineer and was involved in the end-to-end electronics design cycle from design and qualification to testing and in-orbit operations on many of Canada’s flagship space programs such as Canadarm2 and Dextre. Over the last 15 years he has worked in various management and leadership roles such as Product Development Manager, Program Manager, Director of New Business and currently as the Senior Director of Business Development.

Simone D’Amico is Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AA), W.M. Keck Faculty Scholar in the School of Engineering, Associate Professor of Geophysics (by Courtesy), Science Fellow at the Hoover Institution and Chief Science Officer at EraDrive Inc. He is the Founding Director of the Stanford Space Rendezvous Laboratory, Founding Co-Director of the Center for AEroSpace Autonomy Research (CAESAR), and Director of the Undergraduate Program in Aerospace Engineering at Stanford. He has 20+ years of experience in research and development of autonomous spacecraft and distributed space systems. He developed and deployed the distributed Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) system of several formation-flying, rendezvous and proximity operations missions. Currently, he is the institutional PI of four autonomous satellite swarms funded by NASA (STARLING, STARI) and by NSF (VISORS, SWARM-EX). Dr. D’Amico is in the Advisory Board of four space start-ups focusing on distributed space systems for future applications in SAR remote sensing, orbital lifetime prolongation, and space-based solar power. He was the recipient of several awards, most recently the 2024 NASA Ames Honor Award for the Starling mission, Best Paper Awards at IAF (2022), IEEE (2021), AIAA (2021), AAS (2019) conferences, and the M. Barry Carlton Award by IEEE (2020). He received the B.S. and M.S. degrees from Politecnico di Milano (2003) and the Ph.D. degree from Delft University of Technology (2010).

Mark Dankberg is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Viasat, Inc. He co-founded the company in 1986. Under his leadership, Viasat has consistently been one of America’s fastest growing technology companies, and has been recognized multiple times by leading business and industry publications including BusinessWeek, Fast Company, Forbes, Fortune, DefenseNews, SpaceNews, and Washington Technology for its leadership.

Mark is a leading expert in aerospace, defense, and satellite systems and participates in both national and international organizations involved in delivering, defining, and governing space systems and services, including:

The US National Academy of Engineering, a part of the National Academies of Science, Engineering & Medicine
The President’s National Security Telecom Advisory Committee
As a commissioner-elect of the United Nations ITU/UNESCO Broadband Commission for sustainable development
Founding Chairman of the Mobile Satellite Services Association
Board of Directors of the Global Satellite Operators Association

He is globally recognized for leadership in defining, researching, and measuring safe, sustainable, and equitable access to scarce space orbital and spectrum resources as well as technologies and regulations that support achieving the benefits of space integration into national infrastructures while preserving the space and earth environment. He has co-authored and published research papers has been an invited speaker on these and other topics in numerous technical, industry, and governance venues.

Mark has received numerous awards for his industry and business leadership:

San Diego Business Journal’s SD500 Leaders
2022 Asia-Pacific Satellite Communications Council (APSCC) Lifetime Achievement Award
2018 UC San Diego CONNECT Entrepreneur Hall of Fame
2017 LEAD San Diego Economic Opportunity Award
2016 Director of the Year Honoree by San Diego-based Corporate Directors Forum
2015 Society of Satellite Professionals Hall of Fame
2013 Arthur C. Clarke Foundation Industry Innovator
2013 San Diego Business Journal Most Admired CEO Founders Award
2012 Visionary Executive of the Year, Satellite Markets and Research
2008 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Aerospace International Communications Award
2003 Satellite Industry Executive of the Year
2000 Entrepreneur of the Year in San Diego in 2000

Prior to founding Viasat, Mark was Assistant Vice President of M/A-COM Linkabit, a manufacturer of satellite telecommunications equipment, from 1979 to 1986, and Communications Engineer for Rockwell International Corporation from 1977 to 1979.

He earned B.S. EE and M.S. EE degrees from Rice University and is a member of the Rice University Electrical and Computer Engineering Hall of Fame.

Guy de Carufel is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Cognitive Space, a Texas based startup which is redefining how space assets are orchestrated through AI for national security in the US and abroad. Guy has two decades of experience in the space industry, including award-winning work on the NASA Orion program with safety critical communication software, building advanced simulation environments for astronaut training, guidance software for launch vehicles and automation systems. Guy grew up in Canada, where he gained his private pilot license at 17, was a top 100 astronaut candidate and completed his master’s degree in aerospace engineering at the University of Toronto.

Dr. David Denhard is the Chief Scientist and Technical Advisor, Headquarters United States Space Command, Schriever Space Force Base, Colorado.

A Senior Technical (ST) Executive, he serves as the Director of the Space Command Technical Analysis Group and principal advisor to the United States Space Command Deputy Commander over the planning, conduct, and coordination of space-related science and technology.

Dr. Denhard has over 35 years of experience in the Department of Defense as an acquisition and research and development program manager and operational analyst.

William Dickson serves as Chief Revenue Officer for Canopy Aerospace & Defense, a platform advancing signature-reduction solutions via high-temperature materials for space, hypersonic and defense systems. In his role he leads commercialization, strategic partnerships across government and industry, and the scaling of mission-critical technologies into space and defense applications. Canopy A&D is a critical supplier and innovator for customers in commercial launch, rocket motor manufacturing, maritime surface warfare vessels, NASA, and USAF among other high-performance mission operators.
Prior to joining Canopy Aerospace (acquired and merged into Canopy Aerospace & Defense in August 2025) as the first employee in 2023, Will’s career had encompassed roles in engineering, product development, corporate innovation, technology transfer, federal contracting, and entrepreneurship. He holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the University of California, Berkeley, respectively.

Preston Dunlap has over 20 years of executive leadership experience across technology, national security, and private investment. He is the founder of Arkenstone Ventures and Arkenstone Capital, serves on Boards and as Lead Preferred Director of Pixxel Space Technologies, and advises Fortune 100 companies, startups, private equity, venture capital firms, and RAND. He is a Senior External Advisor at Bain & Company.

He led the Department of Defense Nuclear Enterprise Review with the Department of Energy and National Nuclear Security Agency. He also led the Investment Committee strategy, analysis, and diligence for the Secretary of Defense – allocating and deploying $750B+ annually in industry sectors supporting national security, such as infrastructure, services, space, cybersecurity and software, AI, communications, transportation and logistics, ships, aircraft, vehicles, and weapons.

Mr. Dunlap started $250B+ of new programs with 4 Secretaries of Defense, including the newly unveiled B-21 bomber, Hypersonic Prompt Strike,
classified space and intelligence, and Joint All-Domain Command and Control programs.

He led initiatives with the Vice President of the United States and Cabinet on the future of commercial, civil, and national security space, transformed federal Venture Capital investment, was the first Chief Technology Officer of the Space Force and Air Force with $75B of products, and served on the ground floor of successful software and infrastructure companies.

He holds a Master of Science in Operations Research and Management Science from George Mason University, a Bachelor’s degree in both Computer Science and Political Science from Duke University, and was a Harvard National Security Executive Fellow.

Mr. Dunlap is frequently cited as an authority in international media and as an expert witness for the United States Congress. His awards include the Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service, Secretary of the Air Force Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service, and Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Civilian Service.

Jonny Dyer is Co-Founder & CEO of Muon Space, with a remarkable career spanning aerospace, geospatial technology, and complex systems engineering across industry-shaping companies. As Chief Engineer at Skybox Imaging, he led development of the largest high-resolution satellite constellation ever deployed before the company’s $500M acquisition by Google in 2014. At Google, he headed Maps’ data collection team developing Street View cars and aircraft platforms, then served as Senior Director at Lyft’s Level 5 Autonomous Vehicle group leading vehicle platform design and deployment. Currently an Operating Partner at Space Capital and advisor to Ubiquity.vc, Jonny also serves as a founding member of EDF’s MethaneSat Technical Advisory Group and contributed to the National Academy’s APOSS study on commercial SmallSat opportunities. He holds MS and BS degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University and has authored widely-cited research spanning thermodynamics, radiation effects, and imaging systems.

Sandra Erwin is a senior staff writer at SpaceNews, a trusted and independent source of news and analysis of the companies, agencies, technologies and trends shaping the global space industry.
Based in Arlington, Virginia, Erwin specializes in Defense Department and Intelligence
Community space programs, policy, budgets, technology and the industry that supports
this sector.
In addition to reporting breaking news, Erwin writes a monthly column “On National
Security” that appears monthly in the SpaceNews magazine and edits SpaceNews
Military.Space, a weekly news-and-insights newsletter.
Erwin joined SpaceNews in October 2017. Before that, she covered the U.S. military, the
Pentagon, Congress and the defense industry for over two decades as editor of the
National Defense Industrial Association’s National Defense Magazine and as Pentagon
correspondent for Real Clear Defense.

Chris Faletra has more than 35 years of experience in the satellite communications industry. Born in Boston, MA, Chris’s satcom career began at GTE Telecom International Systems, Waltham, MA in 1986, starting as a Co-Op student from Northeastern University and moving up to Senior Project Engineer. Chris currently continues to expand the services available at the COMSAT and Goonhilly Teleports. The long time WTA Tier 4 certification of both the COMSAT Southbury and Santa Paula and the UK Teleport Certifications at Goonhilly put them in a unique position to support Ground Segment Infrastructure for the GEO/MEO/LEO Services and well as CIS Lunar, Deep Space and Space Domain Awareness Services.

Inspired by Knight Rider and Star Trek, Shahin grew up with a passion to endow superpowers to humanity through feats of engineering. He learned BASIC on an IBM PC XT clone he built at his aunt’s computer store and used to dial into Bulletin Board Systems when he was in the 4th grade. He learned about engines by taking apart an Alfa Romeo at his Uncle’s repair shop a few years later. He aspired to design microchips, software, and systems that could someday amount to the fictional K.I.T.T., and build warp drives that could propel humanity to far corners of the galaxy.

Shahin has had the privilege of partnering with amazing founding teams for over two decades. After working for several software startups, he built his first startup in 2004 building upon his PhD research designing chips, systems, and software to capture and interpret brain signals. He later had the pleasure of meeting Lux’s founding team, who invited him to partner with them in 2006, where he has cofounded and led Lux’s investments into companies that have gone on to become publicly traded (e.g., NYSE:AEVA and NYSE:PL), and acquired by the likes of Intel (Nervana), Amazon (Zoox), Silicon Laboratories (Silicon Clocks), and Lattice Semiconductor (SiBeam).

Damon Feltman is the Chief Operating Officer of the Space Force Association, a 501c3 non- profit and recognized national military association supporting the U.S. Space Force.  In this capacity, he is responsible for creation and execution of the Association’s long-range strategy, synchronizing ongoing activities, and managing growth of chapters and memberships. He is also the founder of OXR Consulting, LLC, specializing in defense and commercial space advisement, strategic planning and change, and leadership development.

A retired U.S. Air Force Brigadier General, Feltman brings more than 32

years of managing multibillion-dollar space, aviation, and defense global

operations to his customers. Prior to his retirement, he served as the

Deputy Chief Strategy and Resources Officer for the U.S. Space Force,

where he oversaw its $30B budget development, space systems

requirements, strategy creation, and international partnerships for the

service’s 14,000 members and global operations. In addition, he served

on the senior staff at United States Space Command where he led

operations and exercises for the newly formed organization, served as

Vice Commander overseeing 18 nation-wide units, 17,000 personnel, and

150 aircraft, and was a two-time commander in charge of multiple space

missions including GPS, weather, and missile warning.

Damon was also an accomplished Federal Civil Servant, and most

recently was the Chief, Transport Cell, at the Space Force’s Space

Development Agency. Here, he was answerable for the technical

strategy, advanced technology maturation, and human capital for the

$8B, 450-satellite Transport program. In addition, he was the Deputy

Director of Strategic Plans, Programs, and Requirements for the Air Force

Reserve, creating the $6B annual budget for its 70,000 military members

and 37 air, space, cyber, and intelligence missions.

Damon also serves as Board Chair for the Association of Commercial

Space Professionals and is a mentor to Vanderbilt University’s Space

Edge Accelerator program.

Damon holds multiple advanced degrees in space leadership, strategic

studies, and business management, along with executive training from

Harvard and National Defense University. His expertise in strategic growth,

global partnerships, and operational excellence continues to shape the

future of space enterprise, empowering organizations to leverage space-

derived data and capabilities to seize new market opportunities and

maintain a competitive advantage.

Trip Ferguson has served as our President of Space, Cyber and Directed Energy since May 2025.

Prior to joining AV, Trip served as Chief Operating Officer at BlueHalo, where he oversaw program management and ensured performance excellence across all business sectors. He led the delivery of critical customer missions and spearheaded the development of advanced, nationwide production and manufacturing systems. Prior to joining BlueHalo, Trip served in operational leadership roles across multidisciplinary industries with experience in defense, medical, energy, firearms, and non-profit sectors. He brings an extensive background in strategy, operational excellence, merger & acquisition, start-up, and business integrations–most recently leading the successful integration of a privately-owned technical solutions entity into the portfolio of a Fortune 500 operation.

A veteran of the United States Marine Corps, Trip was commissioned as an officer and attained the rank of Captain while completing three overseas tours. He deployed twice to Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, including the 2004 Battle of Fallujah, and served as the battalion landing team intelligence officer for the evacuation of American citizens from Lebanon in 2006 as a member of the 24th Marine expeditionary unit.

Trip holds a bachelor’s degree in economics with merit from the United States Naval Academy and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. He serves on the board of directors for The Catalyst Center for Business and Entrepreneurship and is a graduate of Leadership Greater Huntsville’s flagship program, Class 30.

Chad Fish was named president and general manager of Arcfield’s Orion Space Solutions (Orion) sector following its acquisition by Arcfield in November 2023. As president and general manager, Chad leads an expert team of scientists and engineers who develop novel technologies in support of our nation’s space security and environmental monitoring objectives, specifically focused on the design, integration, and assembly of SmallSats and CubeSats, as well as the development of sensors, computational models and data products for the space and ground network domains.

Chad joined Orion in 2017 and served as its chief operating officer for six years. In this role he led program and business operations and strategy across the company before it’s successful sale in 2023. Prior to joining Orion, Chad served as chief technical officer and then chief operating officer at OmniEarth Analytics. Earlier in his career, he held a variety of roles including branch manager, principal investigator, program manager, and systems engineer within Space Dynamics Laboratory’s civil and military space divisions, as well as held the role of director of space instrumentation in the Center for Space Engineering at Utah State University (USU).

Chad holds both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering from USU and has been a research professor at the university since 2014.

Marino Fragnito has joined AVIO in September 2024 as Chief Commercial Officer, he also manages the new Launch Service division of the company, taking over responsibility from Arianespace for the exploitation of the Vega family launchers.
Between March 2016 and September 2024, he was Senior Vice President at Arianespace and member of the Executive Committee. As head of Vega Business Unit he managed the overall Vega activities and controlled its associated Profit & Loss.
From January 2009 until March 2016 he served at the European Organization for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) as Launch Services Manager. He previously covered different positions in industry, he began his career in Cannes, at Alcatel Space Industries, as mechanical engineer on telecom satellite projects and then joined ELV (European Launch Vehicle, an AVIO and Italian Space Agency company) in 2003 where he was later appointed Head of Mechanical Systems Development in the frame of the Vega development program. Before joining EUMETSAT he was also Head of the launcher design department at AVIO.

Marino Fragnito is an Aeronautical Engineer and holds a Ph.D. in Aerospace Science and Technology.

Fletcher Franklin is the Deputy Director of Analytics at BryceTech, driving business development and client engagement. BryceTech provides industry-leading research, data analytics, and forecasting of space industry developments and trends. He also worked at Blue Origin, developing strategy for the company’s Blue Ring platform and national security portfolio. Prior to those roles, Mr. Franklin was a government affairs consultant representing companies before Congress and the executive branch on space policy issues. Mr. Franklin holds extensive experience analyzing the intersection of the government and commercial space sectors, and has demonstrated expertise in the federal budget and procurement processes. He holds a BA from Kenyon College and an MA in Global Security Studies from Johns Hopkins University.

Richard French leads business development and strategy for Rocket Lab’s space systems division, providing end-to-end mission services and on-orbit operations with the company’s Photon family of small spacecraft and high-end satellite components including propulsion, reaction wheels, star trackers, avionics, solar arrays, and more.

Richard spent over a decade at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he led development of the Techstars Starburst Space Accelerator program and managed technology partnerships with industry in the Office of Space Technology. He also spent two years on detail to NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. as a Staff Technologist in the Space Technology Mission Directorate, leading development of the Tipping Point and Announcement of Collaborative Opportunity solicitations. Richard’s earlier career includes service as an engineer on various NASA missions, including being awarded the NASA Honors Early Career Public Achievement Medal for his work as a lead mechanical systems engineer on the Soil Moisture Active Passive mission, and helping to land the Curiosity Rover on Mars as a member of the Mars Science Laboratory entry, descent, and landing systems engineering team.

Richard holds a Masters degree in Space Systems Engineering and a Bachelors degree in Aerospace Engineering, both from the University of Michigan.

Pablo Gallego Sanmiguel is PLD Space Senior Vice President. Pablo brings extensive knowledge and experience in the aerospace market, specifically in the sector of Commercial Launch Services.
Since March 2019, the former SpaceX employee has been working in the commercial and customer management of the Spanish company, representing PLD Space.
Before joining PLD Space, Pablo developed his professional career from California (United States) working as Mission Manager of Launching Services with SpaceX as well as providing aerospace consulting services.
Previously, Pablo had participated actively in several other rocket launch operations, such as Ariane 4, Ariane 5, Soyuz, Dnepr, Vega, Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy.
Pablo has participated in more than forty launch campaigns with different clients and launch bases such as Kourou (French Guiana), Yasny (Russia), Vandenberg (California) and Cape Canaveral (Florida).
Currently, Pablo coordinates his activities between the United States and Europe where he directly addresses the needs of customers.
In addition, Pablo is registered with the U.S Department of State Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), to be able to interact with different types of customers and suppliers, both in the commercial field and in other more restrictive areas, such as defense whose activities may be subject to ITAR regulation.

Declan is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Rivada Networks and Rivada Space. Across three decades in business, Declan has pioneered technology in wireless communications and public safety, where he is the co-inventor of 48 patented technologies.

Rayfe Gaspar-Asaoka is a Partner at Geodesic’s Alliance Fund, focused on leading early-stage companies in AI, space, cybersecurity, autonomy, and dual-use deep technologies. He was previously a partner at Canaan, where he led investments in AI, robotics, space, and enterprise software. Rayfe began his career as an electrical engineer at Raytheon, and a management consultant at Keystone Strategy.

He holds a B.S. and M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California, and Stanford University, respectively, where his research focused on signal processing and chip design.

Mr. Gelerman, President and Chief Executive Officer of SpaceBridge Inc, is a visionary engineer, innovator and businessman with over 40 years of experience in the telecommunications industry.

Prior to founding SpaceBridge, Mr. Gelerman held various management and design engineering positions at Nortel Networks, where he oversaw the development of several multibillion-dollar microwave terrestrial radio systems. In 1988, Mr. Gelerman founded Advantech Wireless Inc. At the helm of Advantech Wireless as President and Chief Executive Officer, he steered the company from humble start-up to dominant global player in the satellite ground communication business, both in radio frequency and networking.

In 2018, following the acquisition of Advantech’s radio frequency division by a third party, Advantech Wireless continued its VSAT and modems business, rebranding to SpaceBridge Inc. Through organic growth and acquisition, the company has today become one of the largest exporters in Quebec. Forging ahead in the Satellite Networking industry, Mr. Gelerman keeps in tradition with continued strength as a best-in-class industry leader, pushing the pace of innovation with one of the most advanced VSAT satellite network platforms.

Mr. Gelerman holds a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering (MSEE), specializing in Wireless Communications and Broadcasting.

Lieutenant Colonel George earned his commission through Baylor University, Air Force ROTC in 2008. He has held a variety of global strike and space assignments at the squadron, wing, and HQ staff levels, including serving as an ICBM Instructor Combat Crew Commander at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana, the Senior Instructor and Operations Flight commander for the 2nd Space Operations Squadron at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado, Aide-de-Camp for the Commander of Air Force Space Command at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, and Director of Operations for the 2nd Space Warning Squadron, 460th Space Wing, Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado. He is a distinguished graduate of Air Command and Staff College and a graduate of the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, Montgomery, AL.

Prior to his current assignment as the 53d Space Operations Squadron Commander, Lieutenant Colonel George was the Chief of Strategy and Plans Division, Space Forces Space, Schriever Space Force Base, CO.

Lt Col George is married to his wife Debbie.

President of Mynaric USA where she led the company’s efforts to position Mynaric as the preferred laser communication provider for aerospace application for both government and commercial markets. ​

In 2022, Tina’s contribution to the aerospace industry was recognized by both the public and industry peers alike when she was voted Via Satellite’s “Satellite Executive of the Year”, accepting her award in front of a select audience at the industry’s leading annual conference ‘Satellite 2022’. ​

Before Mynaric, she was the Executive Vice President of Inflight Connectivity Solutions at Yahsat, a leading UAE Satellite Operator, where she was responsible for the overall strategy and execution ​of enabling the organization to launch into the Mobility Satcom Services business. ​

In 2007, she founded The EKKAM Group, a strategic management consulting firm focused on serving clients in the aerospace/aviation and telecom industries. Key clients included Airbus, Panasonic and Thales. Tina held multiple leadership roles at Panasonic Avionics Corporation, where she was instrumental in efforts to launch the Panasonics Global Communications Services business, currently serving over 80+ airlines globally. She was also charged to establish the strategy and grow the software, applications and media business, serving the In-Flight Entertainment and Communications industry. Tina began her career at The Boeing Company’s Satellite Systems business unit. She was integral to the building and launch of Connexion by Boeing (CBB) business, the first-of-its-kind true broadband communications services for commercial airlines.
​
As part of the business development organization, she participated in the early pursuits of the Teledesic (LEO) and Ellipso (MEO) satellite programs. She was also a key member of the due diligence team efforts, resulting in the acquisition of Hughes Space and Communications. Tina received her Bachelor of Honors Degree in Aerospace Engineering from Kingston University in the U.K. She is also a graduate of the International Space University.​

Tom Gillespie is a Partner and Head of the Alliance Fund at Geodesic Capital, focused on investing in early-stage Deep Tech companies in areas such as space, maritime, power and energy, and autonomous systems. Prior to joining Geodesic, he served for a number of years as a Managing Partner on In-Q-Tel’s Investment Team and Investment Lead for In-Tel’s Deep Tech practice, investing in commercial, venture capital-backed technologies with the potential to address challenges faced by the U.S. national security community.

He has had a particular focus on commercial space technology and has led investments in over twenty space technology ventures, including launch vehicles, remote sensing constellations, space situational awareness, in-space logistics, and satellite componentry investments. In addition to space deals, he has led investments in the areas of robotics, materials, power sources, and autonomous systems, as well as several analytics ventures.

Prior to In-Q-Tel, Tom was a strategy consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton, serving clients in the aerospace, financial services, and government (national security and defense) sectors. Earlier experience includes positions in international privatization and the United States Congress, where he focused on telecommunications, space, financial services, and foreign affairs issue areas.

Tom earned a B.A. in Economics from Stanford University, and an M.B.A. in Finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Holding a Master’s Degree in Space and Astronautical Engineering, Mr Flavio Giudice has spent his whole career in the Space business, starting in national industry, then at the European Space Agency, and lastly working for NATO, in both military headquarters and at NCIA. Mr Giudice has been one of the pioneers of the NATO Space Domain, contributing to the development of NATO’s Space policies and working on the standing up of NATO’s Space operational capabilities. In his current role of deputy head of NCIA’s Space branch, named Space Technology Adoption and Resilience (STAR), he manages a wide series of activities, ranging from capability development to direct support to military operations with Space products and services. His portfolio includes the standing up and management of multinational initiatives such as the Alliance Persistent Surveillance from Space programme, and integrating technology advancements in NATO’s architecture.

Steve Good has held an array of executive level roles with leading systems and service providers in the space industry. Steve is currently Vice President, Sales and Business Development, for Gilat Wavestream, the market leader in next generation high power solid state amplifiers for the Defense, In Flight Connectivity (IFC) and Gateway markets. Prior to joining Gilat Wavestream, Steve led commercial and civil business development efforts for CesiumAstro and was Chief Business Officer for Ramon.Space. He has also led strategic business development efforts for Thales Alenia Space throughout North America as VP, Business Development and has held additional leadership positions as Senior Vice President, Market and Business Development at Comtech EF Data and as Vice President, Network Services at Intelsat.

Having gained experience from creating and implementing product and commercial strategies across the satellite communications value chain, Steve has acquired a breadth of knowledge on the rapidly changing business drivers throughout the industry. He combines this with a deep understanding of the underlying technology with a focus on business and market development, product life cycle management, marketing, sales engineering and sales management to provide the strategic vision required to grow market share and penetrate new markets.

Ralph Grundler is leading the US Space BD and R&D at Aitech Systems, the leading supplier of rad-hard and rugged embedded electronic systems.

An experienced professional, Ralph has a long history in the engineering, business development and marketing of semiconductors, IP, SoCs, FPGAs, computers and embedded systems. Before joining Aitech Systems, he worked at Flex Logix, the leading supplier of rad-hard eFPGA technology and Synopsys, working with Space and AI ASIC developers, and IP prototyping hardware as well as business development.
He has done many video and live presentations on a wide variety of technical subjects. He has 30 years of computer, semiconductor, space, and AI industry experience.

Tarun Gupta is Chief Product Officer and Co-Founder of Skylo Technologies, the world’s most ubiquitous non-terrestrial network (NTN). Skylo is the only solution that can cost-effectively provide 100% coverage across the globe – from space – allowing customers to connect to any part of their business anywhere, at any time, all the time.

At Skylo, Tarun sets the vision for product development, innovation, and design. He manages the product management, product marketing, business development, marketing efforts and other strategic initiatives across the organization.

Prior to joining Skylo, Tarun worked for Google in various roles. Notably, he was the Head of Strategy and Operations for the Google Assistant, and helped bring the Gigabit Fiber to thousands of residences across the US. Tarun has 20+ years of experience in engineering and development of telecommunications networks. He advises several companies regarding market fit, product enhancements, and overall strategic direction.

Tarun earned his BSEE in Electrical Engineering from the University of Virginia and his MS degree in Management as a Fellow from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Ward Hanson analyzes the economics and marketing of new technology. Other areas of interest include the role of competition, policy issues involving the evolving role of interactivity, optimal product line pricing, and the emergence of the commercial space industry. As a pioneer in studying the commercialization and impact of the Internet, he has published research articles, a leading text, and created online courses on Internet marketing. He has served as an expert witness in areas of patent validity, e-commerce, Internet advertising, and industry analysis. He has recently published a number of articles on the economics of new space and serves on the editorial board of the New Space journal.

Dr. Hanson has taught at Stanford since 1995, first at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, then at the Department of Economics and the Public Policy program as part of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR). Previous faculty positions include Purdue University and the University of Chicago. He has a Ph.D. in Economics from Stanford University.

Alex Haro is the co-founder and CEO of Hubble Network. Before founding Hubble, he co-founded Life360, which he successfully took from an early-stage idea all the way through to its IPO. Life360 now boasts over 88 million monthly active users (MAUs) worldwide and generates over $300 million in annual revenue. In 2015, Forbes recognized him in the ’30 Under 30′ list for Consumer Technology. Additionally, he holds more than 12 patents in the fields of location and Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT). Alex studied computer science at Pomona College and Harvey Mudd College.

Robert Hauge is president of SpaceLogistics, a Northrop Grumman company. In this role, Hauge leads the development of current and next-generation in-space satellite servicing products for government and commercial customers.
Prior to this appointment, Hauge served as strategy director for Space Mobility and Logistics for Northrop Grumman Space Systems.
Before joining Northrop Grumman, Hauge served for nearly 30 years in various roles across the department of defense and intelligence community including as a senior intelligence service officer, ground station commander, program manager with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, and as an Air Force officer.
Hauge was awarded the national intelligence distinguished service medal from the United States Intelligence Community, exceptional public service medal from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and gold, silver and bronze medals from the National Reconnaissance Office. Hauge is also a graduate of the Walt Disney World College Program where he worked as a custodial host in the Magic Kingdom.
Hauge holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Massachusetts and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Michigan.
SpaceLogistics, a Northrop Grumman company, is the global leader in the development and deployment of in-space satellite servicing systems and the first and only company performing in-space servicing for commercial satellites in geosynchronous orbit. Our planned series of vehicles will extend service life, provide enhanced capabilities and enable future missions for a variety of customers.

Maj Hessler is the Spark Branch Lead at SpaceWERX. SpaceWERX executes the Small Business Innovative Research Funds and Tech Transfer budget for the Space Force.

Dr. Lucy Hoag is the Founder and CEO of Violet Labs, a San Francisco-based startup seeking to revolutionize how complex hardware is designed and built through Violet — the first data orchestration platform engineered specifically for complex hardware development. Prior to Violet, Lucy worked on satellite, drone and self-driving car projects at DARPA, Google, Waymo, Lyft and Amazon. Lucy holds a BS and PhD from the University of Southern California in Astronautical Engineering.

Dr. Max Holliday is an industry leader in small spacecraft development, well known for his vertically integrated approach towards hardware/firmware/software systems and rapid mission timelines.

Max is the CEO and Co-Founder of EarthTraq Corporation. Prior to EarthTraq, Max was a subject matter expert at NASA Ames Research Center specializing in small spacecraft electronic systems. He received his PhD from Stanford University and his BS from New Mexico Institute for Mining and Technology, both in materials science and engineering. Prior to NASA, he was a principal investigator in the Remote Sensing Department at Sandia National Laboratories.

Jeff Huggins is an aerospace and defense sector expert, growth leader and President of the U.S. arm of Cailabs, a global company and leading player in laser communications.

After leaving behind a distinguished career as a Naval Intelligence Officer, during which he focused on national overhead and intelligence systems, Jeff moved into the private sector, where he held senior roles at several major companies, including Israel Aerospace Industries North America and Raytheon. He led the expansion of an established $24 million company, driving it to more than $40 million in value between 2016 and 2020, and served as the CEO and Chairman of the Board of the U.S. classified aerospace wing of Safran. Safran, a major French aviation company, is the second-largest aircraft equipment manufacturer in the world.

Jeff, who also worked as a presidential appointee in the State Department, holds a Bachelor of Science in engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy and an MBA from the Darden School of business at the University of Virginia with additional graduate studies at the Naval War College and the Naval Postgraduate School.

He is considered an expert in combining the creative applications of tech, people and solutions to grow companies. At Cailabs, he is driving growth in the U.S. to meet rising demand from the defense and commercial sectors.

Clint Hunt, Colonel, USAF (Retired), is the senior director and deputy of Government
Operations for United Launch Alliance (ULA). In this role, he leads ULA’s team responsible for
shaping critical policies and decisions related to ULA’s business.

Clint previously served 27 years as an operator and acquisition officer in the United States
Air Force, focusing largely on space control, intelligence and space launch systems. In his
final assignment, he was the director, Office of Space Launch at the National
Reconnaissance Office (NRO). In this role, Clint led several hundred government and
industry team members at five locations, executing a multi-billion dollar budget across the
future year’s defense plan. He was also responsible for the technical and operational
planning and execution of the NRO’s launch requirements.

Prior to this assignment, Clint served as the chief, Space Control and Advanced Technology
Division at headquarters Air Force, representing an eight-billion dollar portfolio that
encompassed 28 space control-related programs, and advocating for Space Control
requirements with the other services, Congress, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Joint
Staff, Intelligence Community and the White House. He held numerous other leadership
assignments during his career, serving as the chief of the Space Professional Management
Office at Headquarters Air Force Space Command and commanded the 1st Air and Space
Test Squadron at Vandenberg Air Force Base. He also held positions in the NRO’s Signals
Intelligence Directorate, as the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Program Element
Monitor and duties at the Squadron and program office level.

Clint holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and
Master of Science degrees from the Air Force Institute of Technology and Lesley University
and is Level III certified program manager.

Col Nathan L. Iven is the Interim Deputy Chief of Space Operations for Cyber and Data and the Acting Chief Technology and Innovation Officer, United States Space Force, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia. He is responsible for developing strategy and policy to advance Science and Technology and Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation; employing cutting edge technologies to digitally transform the USSF; assuring USSF information technology needs are met; effectively managing USSF data; and conducting analysis supporting all USSF staff elements.

Col Iven is a graduate of Cornell University and was commissioned in 1996. He has served in a variety of operational space, missile, intelligence, and cyber assignments including Minuteman III Combat Crew, Satellite Operations, and 614th Air Operations Center Combat Operations. Col Iven directed foundational intelligence analysis, served as an Air Force Major Command staff officer, and Wing Chief of Safety. He supported theater space operations as the Liaison Officer to Joint Functional Component Commander for Space and served as the Director of Strategy and Plans, securing, operating, and defending the Department of Defense Information Network.

Col Iven commanded the Counter Space Analysis Squadron at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Prior to his current position, Col Iven was the Military Deputy, Science, Technology and Research, Headquarters United States Space Force.

Scott Jacobs is Vice President of U.S. Government Programs at Astranis. His primary focus is leveraging Astranis small spacecraft and digital payload technologies for national security and civil space customers. Prior to joining Astranis in 2021, he was the National Security Sales Director at Blue Origin. Scott served 26 years in the Air Force with assignments in space and nuclear operations, acquisition, and strategic planning culminating as the Deputy Director of Mission Operations at the National Reconnaissance Office.

Talbot Jaeger is founder and chief technologist of NovaWurks™ Inc., the vanguard developer and provider of SLEGO™ products and services. Jaeger is both visionary and inventor within NovaWurks’ team of pioneering engineers, software architects and technicians that deliver next generation technology for space.

Jaeger’s vision of “cellularized” conformal and reconfigurable satellites has led to the development of SLEGO™ Building Blocks and Universal Device Adapters (UDAs). This biologically inspired hardware and software supports aggregation of resources to enhance the space industry by drastically decreasing the time and cost of creating spacecraft that inherently support ISAM, security, and dynamic logistics and environments.

Jaeger has been actively involved from womb to tomb on over a dozen large and small space programs and their flight operations.  Throughout his 30-plus years in the aerospace industry, he has successfully managed and directed project concepts, systems engineering, ground and mission control operations. In addition, he led the Applied Minds development of the Mayflower CubeSat, one of the payloads launched onboard SpaceX’s first Falcon 9 rocket. Mayflower was a highly-integrated building block, delivering product from initial design to the launch integrator in just six months.

Jaeger began as a draftsman, then grew from engineer to Director at TRW and Northrop Grumman with assignments as the lead of vehicle design and concept developments at Scaled Composites, and Chief Architect for the seedling study and following phase of the System F6 program.  Jaeger has multiple degrees and certificates focused in biochemistry, information computer science, electrical engineering, and optical sciences.   He enjoys teaching, deep discussions with colleagues, continuously dating his wife, the challenges of children, the joys of grandchildren, and the constant forgiveness from God, friends, family, and his dog.

Mr. Jeffrey Janicik is the distinguished Founder and Chairman of Innoflight. Innoflight is a fast growing innovative company leading the market in secure, high performance and low size, weight and power space electronics. With an incredible career spanning approximately three decades, Mr. Janicik has consistently exhibited an unwavering dedication to advancing critical space systems for national security.
Mr. Janicik’s journey as a space industry trailblazer began early in his career with the Air Force, where he served 33 years combined active and reserves. He was a pioneer in unmanned X-vehicle technology, led numerous space programs of record and culminated his career by aiding in the establishment of today’s Space Force. He founded Innoflight just over 20 years ago after successfully leading a small team to design and launch the first Internet-based satellite into space for NASA. Under his astute leadership, Innoflight has flourished into a renowned aerospace technology company known for its cutting-edge solutions.
As a visionary entrepreneur, exceptional leader and highly skilled engineer, his contribution extends to pioneering advancements in reusable space vehicles, small satellites, cyber, communications including RF systems, and space networking and processing; all making significant strides in transforming the space industry.

Allyson Jenkins serves as Vice President of Public Sector at Pixxel, where she spearheads strategic initiatives to bring the company’s revolutionary hyperspectral satellite technology to government and defense markets. Drawing on more than 15 years of distinguished experience in geospatial intelligence and emerging technologies, Allyson has built a career marked by global impact and innovative leadership.
Her career spans critical roles, beginning with a foundation as an imagery analyst at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, serving as an international liaison in the Middle East, and most recently as Vice President of Strategic Capture at BlackSky. This diverse experience has given her unique insights into both operational intelligence needs and commercial space opportunities.
Allyson specializes in architecting strategic partnerships and accelerating breakthrough technology adoption in Earth observation. Her passion for leveraging disruptive technologies to solve complex government challenges has established her as a trusted advisor in the geospatial intelligence and space community.

Steve Jurvetson is an early-stage venture capitalist with a focus on founder-led, mission-driven companies at the cutting edge of disruptive technology and new industry formation. Steve led founding investments in several companies that had successful IPOs and others that were billion-dollar acquisitions, representing $800 billion of aggregate value creation. Some of those early VC investments include Planet Labs, SpaceX, XONA Space, and Tesla..

Before co-founding Future Ventures and Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Steve was an R&D Engineer at Hewlett-Packard, where seven of his chip designs were fabricated. He also worked in product marketing at Apple and NeXT and management consulting with Bain & Company. He completed his undergraduate Electrical Engineering degree at Stanford in 2.5 years, graduating #1 in his class, and went on to earn a MSEE and MBA from Stanford.

In 2016, President Barack Obama appointed Steve as a Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship. Steve has also been honored as one of “Tech’s Best Venture Investors” by Forbes, and as the “Venture Capitalist of the Year” by Deloitte. Here is a recent podcast interview on 20VC.

Mr. Nackieb (“Nick”) Kamin serves as the Technical Director for the U.S. Space Force’s Task Force Futures in Washington, DC. In this role, he develops long-term military requirements for the Space Force and interacts with other principals, operational commanders, combatant commands, acquisition, and international communities to address cross-organizational science and technical issues and solutions. He represents U.S. Space Force science and technology on decisions, high-level planning, and policy, building coalitions and alliances throughout the U.S. government, industry, academia, the international community, and other scientific and technology organizations. He also advises Space Force’s Chief Science Officer in space research and development strategies. Mr. Kamin also served as the AFRL/AFOSR Space Science Architect during 2024-25; and Space Force Chief Science Officer (Acting) during December 2023 – June 2024.

Mr. Kamin joined the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center as research scientist in 1997. During the last twenty-seven years Mr. Kamin held several positions including management and execution of research and development, information technology, systems engineering, acquisition programs, business development, and supervisory and management. He also served as a member to the U. S. Indo-Pacific Command Science and Technology Advisory Board.

Prior to his current position, he served as a Technical Manager at the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, Department of Defense Chief Information Officer; and as a Program Officer at the Office of Naval Research where he was responsible for managing artificial intelligence research and development programs. Mr. Kamin holds twenty-two awarded patents and published over thirty technical papers.

Mr. Amir Kashanizadeh has spent the past 20 years at the forefront of high-tech, serving as a system architect, project manager, and business developer in satellite communications, telecommunications and networking arenas, as well as Satellite Service Provision.

Amir Joined SpaceBridge in 2009, and since then, he has achieved numerous Milestones including:

• Introducing the Estella multiservice hub solution to the market, the new generation of SpaceBridge Ground segment.
• Designing SpaceBridge Multi-orbit 5G Ground System with AI/ML Resource Management.
• Designing and business development of the first HTS baseband system in Canada.
• Inventing award winning WaveSwitchTM , an AI Powered Satellite multi-waveform utilization technology.
• Designing Unified satellite and Ground segment solution for SDSN.
Most of these projects have been selected by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and other governmental Scientific innovation funding programs.

Prior to joining SpaceBridge, Mr. Kashanizadeh served as a designer and project manager of Terrestrial infrastructures, Campus LAN, WAN and Metro Ethernet networks in the National projects, where he received the Award of Excellence for leading and implementing the best project of the year in Industry (2006).

Dan Katz is the CEO and Co-Founder of Orbital Sidekick, whose constellation of 5 GHOSt satellites provides persistent monitoring solutions powered by Hyperspectral Imaging. This unique chemical fingerprinting capability enables unparalleled target monitoring services for Energy, Mining, and National Security on a global scale. Prior to starting Orbital Sidekick in 2016, Dan spent 5 years at SSL (now Maxar) and previously worked on multi-billion dollar civil infrastructure programs. His educational background is in Physics and Aerospace Engineering.

Steve Kaufman has been a satellite lawyer for more than 20 years. A corporate partner and space practice co-head at international law firm Hogan Lovells, Steve uses his space industry knowledge to negotiate and close many types of space deals globally.

For 18 of his 30 years at the firm, Steve served as outside general counsel for space clients, leading strategic joint ventures, “bet-the-company” contracts, complex financings, and M&A deals.

What Steve does best: understanding complex business issues for space clients and translating them into legal documents. If a client can describe something, Steve can draft it. Working from complicated to simple, he has many times reduced a lengthy contract into a few pages of bullet points, showing the client what it needs and how to obtain it. Many clients comment that the business guidance from Steve is as valuable as the legal advice.

Steve relies on his familiarity with issues common to space and communications companies to give him an edge in advising space clients, particularly in negotiations. This experience produces extra benefits when Steve deals with specialized satellite, launch or ground system contracts, creative terms, use of insurance to close gaps, license and spectrum issues, and even finance and accounting matters. According to Chambers Steve Kaufman is “a real authority and somebody who will always know the answer.”

In advising clients, Steve emphasizes practicality, striving to achieve the client’s business objectives for the transaction, whether economic, risk reduction, regulatory/compliance, or transaction speed. This carries over into deal management as well as negotiations, where he willingly takes the lead. Steve is a regular at the satellite conferences, making connections among clients and even adverse parties. He is listed in Chambers, Super Lawyers, and Legal 500.

Dr. Behzad Koosha has over 14 years of experience in aerospace and terrestrial communications. He holds a PhD in Electrical & Computer Engineering from The George Washington University, focusing on satellite communications. Dr. Koosha’s multifaceted career spans technical development, business strategy, and commercialization. His early roles at T-Mobile (formerly Sprint) involved work on wireless terrestrial networks. He has since gained extensive experience at Intelsat, Hughes Network Systems, SpaceLink and Terran Orbital (a Lockheed Martin company), where he contributed to the development of satellite communications systems while also honing his skills in business development, sales, and marketing. Dr. Koosha has a proven track record in commercializing technologies, developing go-to-market strategies, and driving revenue growth in the aerospace sector. Throughout his career, he has worked on commercial and government proposals, successfully winning contracts as prime for the aerospace and defense industry. His blend of technical expertise and business acumen makes him a valuable asset in bridging engineering innovations with market opportunities. Dr. Koosha is also an adjunct professor at The George Washington University, where he shares his industry insights with the next generation of engineers.

Peter Krauss is the Chief Executive Officer of Terran Orbital, a leading aerospace manufacturer specializing in satellite solutions for government and commercial clients. With over 30 years of global leadership experience, Krauss brings extensive expertise in operational strategy, M&A, and international manufacturing. As former COO of Terran Orbital, he improved business operations and increased efficiency across the organization. Now as CEO, Krauss is advancing the company’s innovation efforts, expanding manufacturing capabilities, and promoting a culture based on transparency and performance.

Following Terran Orbital’s strategic merger with Lockheed Martin, Krauss has led key integration initiatives, strengthened defense-sector partnerships, and reinforced the company’s role in delivering next-generation national security space systems. Under his leadership, Terran Orbital continues to support mission-critical programs through cutting-edge technology and responsive manufacturing.

Krauss’s leadership continues to strengthen Terran Orbital’s role as a trusted partner to the U.S. government, delivering resilient space systems that improve tactical advantage and global stability.

Dr. Kundtz, CEO of Rendered.ai, is a physicist, engineer, entrepreneur, and investor. Dr. Kundtz has numerous awards for tech leadership including being one of LinkedIn’s top 10 tech professionals under 40, Goldman Sachs’ 100 most intriguing entrepreneurs. He holds over 40 patents and is the former CEO of Kymeta which was based on his award-winning research.

Andy has 46 years with NGC/TRW and a total of 48 years working in advanced space programs specializing in, advanced manufacturing, spacecraft design, micro-electronics, nuclear products, space logistics, and astrophysics projects. As a NG Fellow 2, he supports NGC’s key space customers including NASA, USSF, AFRL, NRO, DARPA, Army/SMDC, Space RCO, USMC, and the Navy. He is considered one of the prominent advanced manufacturing (AM) experts in the country and has produced over fifty papers in AM, in-space manufacturing, lunar and planetary sciences, hypersonics, and miniaturization of spacecraft components. He brings his innovative approach to problems and has won several Corporate awards for innovation.
Andy is an appointed Research Professor at the University of New Mexico and is on the faculty in the Electrical and Computing Engineering Department, supporting satellite and space research. He is on the Technical Advisory Boards for Virginia Tech, U of Michigan, Cornell, UTEP, and U of New Mexico. Andy Kwas graduated from the University of Michigan in 1978 with two degrees in Aerospace Engineering and Applied Mechanics, and received a Masters degree in 1980 from the University of Missouri Science and Technology in Astrophysics.

Joe Landon is a senior space industry executive and entrepreneur. He is Co-Founder and President of Rendezvous Robotics, a breakthrough space infrastructure company pioneering modular, autonomous systems that are redefining how spacecraft are built and assembled in orbit.

Previously, Joe was CEO of Crescent Space, a Lockheed Martin subsidiary building commercial communications and navigation services to support lunar missions. He also served as Vice President of Advanced Programs Development at Lockheed Martin Space, where he led strategy, business development, and R&D for the company’s multibillion-dollar Commercial Civil Space portfolio. Earlier in his career, he was CFO of Planetary Resources, a pioneering commercial space company that helped catalyze private-sector interest in asteroid mining and space resources.

Joe is Special Advisor to the President of the International Astronautical Federation on Sustainability, Investment, and Security; a member of the International Academy of Astronautics; and an Associate Fellow of AIAA. He holds an undergraduate degree in Engineering Physics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, a master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Southern California, and an MBA from Harvard Business School

Janna joined Astroscale U.S. in May 2024 as Senior Vice President of Policy and General Counsel to provide strategic policy and legal direction to support the company’s growth and compliance with evolving regulations for commercial and national security initiatives. She also serves as Secretary of the Astroscale U.S. Board of Directors.

Prior to joining Astroscale, she was a senior attorney and technology strategist with BAE Systems Inc., focused on legal and policy matters in defense, intelligence, and commercial space. She has unique, cross-sector expertise in advising programs and technology development for U.S. government and commercial initiatives, including satellite integration and launch, on-orbit communications and sensing, space and missile defense, microelectronics, and cybersecurity.

Janna began her career in private legal practice, where she served as counsel to U.S. and international clients in the aerospace and defense, commercial space, and telecommunications industries. She then worked for Facebook, where she helped frame industry partnerships to catalyze the delivery of space-based and high-altitude global connectivity solutions. From there, she facilitated innovation under U.S. government contracts at Northrop Grumman’s Missions Systems Sector before joining BAE Systems.

Janna is a registered patent attorney. She also is a member of the International Institute of Space Lawyers and serves on the AIA Space Council. Janna frequently speaks publicly about the rapidly evolving laws and policies affecting defense and commercial space. She is committed to workforce education and development in the space industry, and she is a strong advocate for new space professionals.

Tammy Lucas leads Terma’s US Commercial Development organization in identification of technology investments, product improvements, as well as strategy development for the Space, Electronic Warfare and Radar business units.  Tammy joined Terma’s US organization in 2021 as VP of Engineering, expanding in 2022 to a global VP position for joint Danish and US Electronic Warfare Engineering team.  In support of increasing growth for Terma in the US, Tammy now leads Customer Development and Strategy, working with Business Development and Engineering organizations in the Self Protection System / Electronic Warfare, Radar and Space Business Units where a key focus area is growth of Terma’s Space portfolio in the US commercial and defense market.

With more than 25 years of technical development and leadership experience in the aerospace and defense business, Tammy has extensive experience supporting DoD and industry defense OEMs in support of USAF, US Army, US Navy, USMC, and various US allied nation missions.  Tammy spent 20 years at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics starting as an avionics engineer and progressing through positions of increasing responsibility including Deputy Chief Engineer for C-5 aircraft programs and Deputy Program Director for FAA certification of the C-130J aircraft.  Additionally, Tammy worked at L3 Harris and Raytheon Intelligence and Space with a focus on P&L management and technical leadership in new product development and ISR aircraft programs.

Tammy holds a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from University of South Florida.

Tim is the Vice President of Mission Strategy and Advanced Capabili􏰀es for Space Security Missions at Lockheed Mar􏰀n Space. In this role, Tim works with the U.S. Government and its allies to develop space solu􏰀ons with a par􏰀cular focus on these mission areas. Tim leads Lockheed Mar􏰀n’s developmental efforts from architectural design through research & development and ul􏰀mately defining opera􏰀onal warfigh􏰀ng capabili􏰀es. He also oversees the coordina􏰀on of investments in future capabili􏰀es with those of teammates in industry, academia, research labs, and the U.S. Government to establish new architectures responsive to emerging threats to space and missions.
Prior to his current role, Tim served as Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) of Frontgrade Technologies, where he was responsible for defining product roadmaps, market strategies, business development ini􏰀a􏰀ves, opera􏰀onal priori􏰀es, and technology investment strategies to drive growth and innova􏰀on. This expanded scope included aligning opera􏰀onal execu􏰀on with strategic objec􏰀ves and fostering partnerships to enhance organiza􏰀onal capabili􏰀es.
Prior to Frontgrade Technologies, Tim held the posi􏰀on of Vice President of the Mul􏰀-Domain Architecture Group for the Space and Airborne Segment at L3Harris. In addi􏰀on, Tim held the roles of General Manager of Mission Solu􏰀ons Group, Director of Advanced Programs, and Engineering Manager. These posi􏰀ons required deep knowledge in mission areas such as Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance, Electronic Warfare, and Communica􏰀ons. This combina􏰀on of skills allowed Tim to play pivotal roles in driving mission architectures, strategy, and innova􏰀on within dynamic and complex warfighter environments.
Tim holds both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Florida State University, along with an execu􏰀ve business strategy cer􏰀fica􏰀on from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Matt Magaña, President, Defense & National Security at Voyager, is a seasoned aerospace
executive with a distinguished background spanning both commercial and defense sectors. Known for his strategic vision and impactful leadership, Matt has consistently driven growth, fostered innovation, and enhanced national security capabilities. His expertise encompasses a broad spectrum of defense domains, including nuclear defense, air dominance, naval and undersea warfare, and space. His technical acumen extends across all-domain integrated battle
management and a wide array of advanced technologies, including RF systems, signals intelligence (SIGINT), electronic warfare (EW), electro-optical and infrared sensors, making him a versatile leader in the evolving defense industry. Before joining Voyager, Matt served as President & CEO of Blue Canyon Technologies, where he led groundbreaking advancements in small satellite components and mission operations, expanding the company’s influence in both governmental and commercial space initiatives. Prior to that, he held multiple Executive Vice President roles at Raytheon, overseeing billion-dollar portfolios in space and missile defense, while spearheading mergers and acquisitions to drive strategic growth. His hands-on experience in P&L management, coupled with his role in two major acquisitions, underscores his strong business acumen and operational expertise.
With established relationships across key defense agencies, including the Department of Defense, Intelligence Community, and civil space organizations, Matt is known for his collaborative approach and deep sector knowledge. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Corporate Communications, as well as a master’s in Business Administration with a focus on Corporate Finance and International Business. This unique combination of technical and business education further strengthens his ability to navigate complex challenges and guide Voyager’s national security efforts toward a secure and innovative future.

Mr. Adam Maher serves as Founder & CEO of Ursa Space Systems Inc (Ursa), whose services enable users to research, monitor, search, and discover changes in physical objects around the globe, from the perspective of space. Ursa Space’s platform orchestrates the collection, analytics, and fusion of data from a virtual constellation of radar, optical, and RF satellites to automate and abstract the complicated process of gaining access to, processing, and fusing satellite data with terrestrial data sources.
Adam’s vision is to improve the satellite Earth observation user experience by bringing the community of traditional and new space members together to illuminate how our physical world impacts daily actions by creating a virtual mosaic of the world that anyone can access. He founded Ursa in 2014 to develop this vision of connecting people to information rich data derived from synthetic aperture radar, seeing an obvious frustration and disconnect between the technology and those who could take full advantage of the capabilities. Today Ursa’s mission is to enable a community of developers to build applications that can illuminate how our physical world impacts daily actions, to understand how changes in the economy,
supply chains, and the geopolitical landscape impact daily decisions, and reveal those changes in our ever-evolving world to leaders, professionals, and, one day, all people.

Prior to founding Ursa Space, Adam worked at MAXAR (Space Systems Loral). There, he served as a system engineer from paper to launch for complete satellite builds and multiple successful commercial satellite proposals. In addition to broadband satellite communications work, he also worked on efforts in space robotics, electric propulsion, Earth observation, and government programs.

Adam holds a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering and Master of Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, from Cornell University. At Ursa Space Systems Inc., he uses his knowledge of the satellite industry to fuel his vision of a living world map, where the connection between satellites and users is no longer complicated or difficult, and users are empowered to make better decisions with better data.

Gabe is a Director of System Architecture at Vantor Technologies with over 20 years of professional experience spanning the space and ground domains.

Gabe has focused on developing system architectures that utilize edge processing capabilities and reduce collection-to-decision latency in support of Vantor’s mission to deliver critical insights to our users. His work has helped position Vantor to continue to lead in an era where space systems must be both more capable and more rapidly adaptable than ever before.

Mohammad was appointed SVP, Future Business &
Innovation in June 2024 and is spearheading innovation and exploring new business opportunities in D2D, QKD and other emerging areas.
Before that Mohammad oversaw Product & Strategy across multiple network segments including Aero, Maritime, Fixed Data, Government and Cloud, with a particular focus on SES-17 Very High Throughput Satellite (VHTS) and SES’s second generation of MEO satellites, O3b mPOWER.

Prior to joining SES in 2020, Mohammad held numerous executive roles at Intelsat in Product Strategy, Product Development, and Innovation. Amongst the key achievements was the development of advanced space segment offerings using onboard processing technology on High Throughput Satellites (HTS) and Software Defined Satellites (SDS).
Mohammad holds both a BS & MS in Electrical Engineering from
Boston University and an MBA from Columbia.

Patrick Markus, vice president and general manager at Hughes, leads the team responsible for delivering Hughes commercial communications technologies (3GPP NTN/D2D, 5G ORAN, SATCOM, and managed network services) to the defense, intelligence, and federal/civilian sectors.

With more than 25 years of government contracting, technical, and executive management experience, Patrick has garnered extensive DoD and Intelligence Community industry knowledge while supporting mission success of the National Reconnaissance Office, US Air Force, Army, and Navy, as well as various three-letter agencies and international partners.

He spent 17 years at Northrop Grumman, entering as an engineer, then progressing through various leadership roles in business development, strategy, project, and portfolio management with profit and loss responsibilities. During his tenure, Patrick supported customers across the IC and defined and executed strategies that expanded his work across many DoD service branches, research agencies, and international partners.

Following his time at Northrop Grumman, Patrick transitioned to providing leadership at several small/mid-sized companies in the DoD, IC, and federal/civilian spaces. Most recently he served as Corporate Executive Vice President and Sector President at the defense technology company, BlueHalo. There he built and oversaw the cyber and intelligence portfolio to provide products and services in support of national security. These offerings included capabilities in government and commercial satellite-based communications, sensing and data processing, and offensive/defensive cyber operations.

Patrick earned Bachelor of Science degrees in Applied Mathematics and Electrical Engineering from Southern Methodist University and a Master of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He is also a PMI certified Project Management Professional and completed executive education in Strategy Development at the University of Chicago, Booth School of Business.

Dr. Martin joined Astroscale U.S. in August 2019 as Executive Vice President. She brings many years of experience in space technology management, operations, and engineering to support the foundation and growth of Astroscale U.S.

Dr. Martin previously held the position of the Director, Orbital Solutions at General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS). She was responsible for the management and technical performance of the engineering staff and delivery of projects, including planning and managing technical and programmatic solutions to ensure quality, business, and financial objectives were met.

Prior to joining GA-EMS, Dr. Martin was the Chief Operating Officer at Surrey Satellite Technology US, where she led the Surrey project management and engineering teams. As a member of the Surrey Satellite US Executive Team, Dr. Martin managed the bidding, negotiation, and execution of projects, and was responsible for ensuring the company’s cost-effective methods were appropriately applied to the execution of programs.

Dr. Martin transferred to Surrey Satellite US from Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. in the United Kingdom, where she held several positions including the Head of Telecommunications and Navigation business unit, encompassing the Galileo payload programme. Prior to Surrey, Dr. Martin was a Project Manager and Scientist at QinetiQ.
Dr. Martin earned a Master of Science in astrophysics and a Doctorate in mathematics and computational sciences from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. She loves to explore and adventure the mountains in Colorado.

Chris McLain founded AscendArc make satellite communications cheaper than fiber. As AscendArc’s CEO he has built a world class technical team, developed and prototyped key payload technologies and signed AscendArc’s first commercial customer. Prior to AscendArc, Chris was a principal engineer RF engineer at SpaceX on a government satellite program and worked on the commercialization of Starlink. At SpaceX he saw first-hand the potential of manufacturing satellites in volume like consumer electronics. Chris was also a principal engineer and technical lead on projects at Panasonic, Lockheed and Boeing to develop highly efficient geostationary satellites to serve the aeronautical and other mobile applications. At these projects, he developed a passion for communications payload design and satellite economics that are at the heart of AscendArc. Chris has Aerospace Engineering degrees from University of Washington and MIT.

Jason B. Mello is the President and Co-Founder of The KMC Group, LLC, a strategic consulting firm specializing in the Defense, Intelligence, and Space sectors. With over two decades of leadership experience, Jason advises companies on U.S. Government engagement, business development, proposal strategies, and due diligence to help them establish and expand their footprint in the U.S. and allied markets. His expertise spans responsive space capabilities, hypersonics, propulsion technologies, and commercial satellite applications, positioning him as a trusted partner to government, industry, and investors.

Prior to founding The KMC Group, Jason served as President of Firefly STS and successfully led government relations, capture, business development, marketing and proposal teams for Firefly Aerospace Inc. Under his leadership, Firefly secured major contracts with the U.S. Space Force, including their first launch contract, VictusNOX, and built key industry partnerships, establishing the company as a competitive player in the national security space launch sector and within the launch vehicle and in-space transporation industry.

Jason retired from the United States Air Force, following a distinguished 23-year career culminating as a Colonel. He held multiple executive roles overseeing satellite programs, launch vehicle development, research and development initiatives, and space policy integration. His assignments included leadership positions that shaped national security space strategy and advanced technology integration for the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community.

Craig Miller serves as President, Viasat Government, a global defense business, leading the organization’s strategic vision and positioning Viasat Government to deliver transformational, multi-domain, sensor-to-shooter network orchestration and data integration capabilities for the next era of Cloud and AI-enabled defense operations.

Known for solving difficult military communications challenges by applying customer-focused technical and business model innovation, Craig is the driving force behind Viasat Government’s commitment to delivering better user experiences and safer, more effective mission outcomes for US service members and our allies.

With a focus on game-changing value creation and scalable execution, he leads the organization to deliver innovative solutions for challenging defense requirements in satellite networks, wireless and software-defined tactical edge networking, assured space-based communications, information assurance, and cybersecurity.

With 30 years of experience at Viasat, Craig has served in a variety of strategic, operational, and technical leadership roles. Most recently, he served as President, Strategic Initiatives, with a focus on strategic programs and operational transformation, including the integration of Inmarsat. Prior to that, Craig was President, Engineering at Viasat, transforming technology development and operations to launch the company’s next generation of innovation. He also served as Chief Product Officer, spearheading the company’s transformation for product-driven growth.

Previously, Craig served as President, Viasat Government Systems, leading a multi-faceted organization with diverse range of defense products and services, including satellite connectivity, tactical networks, cyber/network security, and cloud-enabled C5ISR communications. Craig also oversaw the divestiture of Viasat’s Link-16 Tactical Data Links business, which was a part of the Government Systems portfolio and sold to L3Harris for nearly $2 billion.

Prior to that he served as the segment’s Chief Technology Officer and launched the Viasat Government Systems Resilient Space Missions business, which pioneered multi-network, multi-orbit, multi-band satellite communications with Viasat’s Hybrid Adaptive Network architecture.

Prior to Viasat, Craig worked at Hughes Missile Systems Group, advancing electronic countermeasures for radar systems. He also serves on the EvoNexus Board of Directors. Craig holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, with emphasis on Communications and Signal Processing from the University of Arizona.

Rob Mitrevski is President, Golden Dome Strategy and Integration at L3Harris Technologies. In this role, Mitrevski aligns strategy, technology, programs, and business development across all segments and functions of L3Harris for Golden Dome, a next-generation air and missile defense initiative led by the U.S. Department of Defense. He is responsible for leading cohesive capture efforts, coordinating technical development, prioritizing resources, and ensuring unified leadership visibility to advance pursuit milestones for Golden Dome.

Mitrevski brings more than 35 years of experience in general management, operations, and engineering, with a deep background in missile defense systems and complex program captures. Prior to this appointment, he served as VP and General Manager, of the Spectral Solutions division within L3Harris Technologies’ multi-billion-dollar Space Systems business sector.

Under his leadership, the division secured critical wins such as the Missile Defense Agency’s Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor (HBTSS) program and Tranche 0, 1, and 2 of the Space Development Agency’s Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture Tracking Layer—contributing to more than 300% business growth and a significant facilities expansion.

L3Harris Technologies is the Trusted Disruptor in the defense industry. With customers’ mission-critical needs always in mind, our employees deliver end-to-end technology solutions connecting the space, air, land, sea and cyber domains in the interest of national security. Visit L3Harris.com for more information.

John Christopher “Chris” Moran is the Executive Director and General Manager of Lockheed Martin Ventures; the venture capital investment arm of Lockheed Martin Corporation. In this capacity, he is responsible for leading the Corporation’s investments in small technology companies which support Lockheed Martin’s strategic business objectives.

Prior to joining Lockheed Martin, Chris served in a variety of increasingly responsible positions at Applied Materials, Inc., Santa Clara, CA. He served most recently as the head of the Business Systems and Analytics group in the Applied Global Services Organization. Chris was with Applied for over 32 years. Prior to his most recent role, Chris was head of Corporate Strategy and General Manager of Applied Ventures LLC; the strategic investing arm of Applied Materials.

Chris is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he obtained both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering.

Ahsun Murad is the President and CEO of Optimal Satcom, which he co-founded as a spin-off from Lockheed Martin and Comsat in 2002. Over the last 22 years since its founding, Optimal Satcom has grown to support a large segment of the satellite industry with industry-leading enterprise-level software products and systems for resource management, service planning, optimization, and business intelligence. Over 15 satellite operators, 20 of the largest satellite service providers, and major US Government DoD, allied governments, and civilian agencies use Optimal Satcom products and systems today.
As a world expert in satellite communications technology with over 30 years of experience, Mr. Murad advises satellite companies and governments on satellite system design, application of emerging technologies, and formulating policy decisions. Before founding Optimal Satcom, Mr. Murad held management positions at Lockheed Martin and COMSAT Laboratories. In these positions, he headed the development of products for transmission planning and satellite capacity management and was the lead system architect for a number of commercial SATCOM and MILSATCOM projects.
Before joining COMSAT Laboratories, Mr. Murad worked at the NASA Center for Satellite and Hybrid Communications Networks where he was involved in research and development related to hybrid satellite-terrestrial mobile communications systems, and complex multi-satellite systems. Mr. Murad graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, India, with a Bachelor of Technology degree in Electrical Engineering. He holds a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Maryland at College Park.

Jared Newton is a Senior Technology Strategist For Planet Labs, Federal, where he leads capture activities that align and advance Planet’s technology portfolio and future systems roadmap.

Prior to joining Planet, Mr. Newton spent 22 years in the federal government serving in a variety of geospatial intelligence roles. Most recently serving as the Technical Executive for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) Commercial Operations group where he led efforts relating to commercial data acquisition, independent data verification and validation, commercial GEOINT Assurance & data integrity, and provided strategic and policy support to commercial remote sensing regulatory activities. Prior to NGA, Mr. Newton led technology transformation efforts within the Overhead Persistent Infrared (OPIR) programs for both the Marine Corps Intelligence Activity (MCIA) and U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM). Mr. Newton is an Army veteran and holds a Masters of Arts in Intelligence Studies from American Military University.

Dara Panahy leads Milbank LLP’s Transportation and Space Group in the Washington, DC office and heads the firm’s Space Business practice globally. He is also Chair and former leader of the firm’s Global Risk & National Security practice.

Mr. Panahy’s practice focuses on the representation of satellite and space infrastructure operators, aerospace manufacturers, launch services providers, communications companies, banks, private equity firms and hedge funds in debt and equity offerings, project, structured and vendor financings, mergers & acquisitions, financial restructurings and in negotiating commercial contracts. He also co-authors Milbank’s monthly Space Business Review newsletter, a monthly a roundup of space industry developments.

Lieutenant Colonel Vinny V. Pande is the System Program Manager and Deputy Director for SpaceWERX. In this role, he oversees the Space Force’s $500M annual venture investment portfolio across Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3 SBIR investments. Before this, Lt Col Pande was the Branch Chief for Space Systems Command’s (SSC) Persistent Tactical Sensing branch as the Tactical Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Tracking (SRT) Branch chief. In this role, he led a 10-person team overseeing a $25M effort to bring commercial space capabilities to Combatant Commands.

Previously, Lt Col Pande was the Program Manager on the CASINO program office, a collaboration with DARPA to bring proliferated LEO satellite communications to military utility. Further more, Tetra rapid-prototyping satellite program under the Development Corp, Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), headquartered at Los Angeles Air Force Base, California. In this role, he leads a 15-member team overseeing a $300M system which aims to develop a new satellite vehicle baseline and launch it on an annual basis. Furthermore, Maj Pande leads the Space Vision 2030 program, a PEO initiative on sourcing innovative technologies for space architecture maturation.

Lt Col Pande is also a joint-accredited Foreign Area Officer in the INDOPACOM region. In that capacity, he was the Director of Air Force Programs at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi, India. In that role, Lt Col. Pande was the head of a $17B portfolio of the U.S. government’s air & space engagements and military modernization efforts with the Indian government. His duties were directly supportive of COCOM, SECDEF, SECSTATE, and POTUS priorities in the INDOPACOM region. Lt Col Pande was the Embassy lead negotiator for the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement with India: a foundational agreement enabling sharing of NSA cryptographic tools with a foreign partner.

Prior to his overseas service, Lt Col Pande was the program manager on the SBIRS program supporting both the legacy DSP constellation, and the new HEO satellite development.  Lt Col Pande also served as a Program Manager on one of the NSA’s premiere software systems (Real-Time Regional Gateway). There, he led a team of 18 contractors & civilian project managers in identifying and incorporating intelligence requirements into the system’s capabilities. He also led a nine member source selection team for an Acquisition Category 1 program.

Lt Col Pande has also served as the Executive Officer for Andrews Air Force Base’s largest Group. There he led 4 military members in supporting the requirements of the Group Commander and processing annual reports and decorations for over 600 personnel.  His other assignments have included serving as the Officer-In-Charge for the lodging facility for Andrews AFB.

Devon Papandrew is Vice President of Business Development at Stoke Space, where he leads the company’s global growth strategy and customer engagement across commercial and government sectors. He is responsible for driving revenue, market strategy, and strategic partnerships as Stoke develops and deploys fully reusable medium-lift rockets designed for daily flight. Devon has been instrumental in securing major government contracts and anchor commercial partnerships, positioning Stoke as one of the fastest-growing entrants in the launch industry.

Previously, Devon served as Vice President of Business Operations at Spaceflight Inc., where he integrated business development, mission management, and engineering to enable a high-cadence rideshare launch program. He holds a B.S. in Physics and Economics from Georgetown University.

Krupal Patel leverages his more than 25 years of engineering and aerospace sales experience to increase existing and new business within the national security sector. Patel has extensive strategy, business development, and satellite systems engineering experience from previous roles with leading aerospace companies. Before joining Lanteris Space Systems, he was a global account manager with Amazon Web Services. Patel’s career also includes working as a senior manager at Ball Aerospace, a program manager at Boeing’s satellite systems-focused business arm, and a project engineer for Hughes Space and Communications. Patel started his career as a member of the technical staff at Rockwell. He holds both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Southern California and California State University Long Beach, respectively.

Greg Pelton is the Chief Technology Officer at Iridium Communications Inc., the only satellite communications company that offers truly global voice and data services. In this role, he drives innovation and oversees the technical aspects of Iridium’s products and services, while managing the day-to-day activities of the company’s systems teams. This includes technical roadmaps and strategy, system architecture and design, engineering design and process, performance and analysis, new service development programs and system integration and validation.
Pelton joined Iridium from a venture-backed AI company develop Large Language Models for enterprise applications, where he served as Chief Development Officer. Roles prior to that include Avaya, where he managed a $400M portfolio of voice and video collaboration products, CTO at Polycom, and he led Cisco’s corporate Technology Center incubating new technology growth areas including satellite networking.

Ms. Lauren Perry is the principal Engineer with the Information Systems and Cyber Division at The Aerospace Corporation. She is currently the Deputy AI-Integration lead for The Aerospace Corporation where she is responsible for defining, acquiring and developing Enterprise AI capabilities to support Aerospace internal and customer work. She has played a pivotal role in developing Aerospace’s Trusted AI Framework and led the Mission Assurance for AI corporate focus area. With a background in supporting large-scale software acquisition programs and a dedication to enterprise integration, Ms. Perry has earned multiple awards for her technical insights and mission success. She joined Aerospace in 2017, bringing experience from Systems Planning and Analysis Inc and Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company. Ms. Perry holds a Bachelor’s in Mathematics and Statistics from James Madison University and a Master’s in Applied Statistics from The Pennsylvania State University.

Bob Pescatore rejoined Comtech in 2025 as Vice President & General Manager of Comtech Satellite Network Technologies, Inc. (CSNTI). CSNTI designs and manufactures advanced satellite modems and amplifiers at its facilities in Chandler, AZ, and Santa Clara, CA. He previously served as General Manager of CSNTI’s Digital Modem business in 2022. Before returning to Comtech, Bob spent 13 years at Cubic Defense in a variety of leadership roles, including Business Development Director, Senior Program Director, and Vice President & General Manager. Earlier in his career, Bob served 20 years in the United States Marine Corps as an F/A-18C pilot, culminating in his role as Commanding Officer of a Marine Fighter Attack Squadron aboard USS Stennis (CVN 74).

Steve is the co-founder and CEO of oneNav, his fourth technology startup based in Silicon Valley. His second company, SnapTrack, pioneered the integration of GPS technology into mobile phones. SnapTrack was acquired by Qualcomm, and SnapTrack technology is now embedded in billions of smart phones around the world. Over the course of his career, Steve has launched, grown, and sold three technology companies, managed a portfolio of a dozen startups as an SVP at Qualcomm, worked at the highest levels in state and federal government and volunteered for a year as a public high school teacher. He was inducted into the Silicon Valley Engineering Hall of Fame in 2014. Steve holds a BS in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, and an MBA from Stanford.

Erik Pranckh is the Managing Director of Dcubed USA, where he leads the company’s expansion into the U.S. market and its mission to deliver next-generation deployable hardware and in-space manufacturing capabilities. With a background spanning engineering, entrepreneurship, and strategy, he focuses on integrating advanced technologies into responsive U.S. space architectures. Erik collaborates across government, industry, and academia to advance the rapid delivery and manufacture of critical spacecraft subsystems that enable scalable, resilient space infrastructure.

Chris Quilty began making his footprint in the satellite & space sector as a trusted authority, media pundit, and twice-recognized Wall Street Journal “Best on the Street” analyst more than two decades ago while serving as a sell-side analyst for Raymond James. Chris initiated coverage on the space industry in the mid-2000s and has subsequently published hundreds of company-specific, macro, sector, and thematic research reports.
Leveraging his vast space industry knowledge and a commitment to thought-leading research, Chris co-founded Quilty Space (formerly Quilty Analytics) in 2016. He is regarded as a valued source of industry insight across all verticals of the space ecosystem — from manufacturing and launch through satcom, EO, hardware, and downstream analytics. He is a frequent and trusted consultant to the full range of satellite & space investors and stakeholders, from leading prime contractors and government agencies to satellite operators and technology companies.
Chris earned a B.S. in Systems Engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy and an MBA from The University of Chicago.

David Radi is responsible for driving innovation on behalf of Omnispace’s government solutions business. He brings a wealth of defense and space industry expertise to the role having previously served as the Director of Integrated Information Systems within Boeing Defense, Space & Security. Prior to that, he was the CEO of the Boeing-Kestrel business unit, providing analytic and technology solutions to a variety of U.S. government clients.

David’s business experience also includes responsibilities as Vice President for Operations, Chief Operating Officer and President at Kestrel Enterprises. Prior to that, David held a 20-year career as a naval intelligence officer serving on aircraft carriers and fleet command ships, as well as the Naval Aide to the Commander-in-Chief of the Atlantic Fleet. Ashore assignments included duty on the National Security Council Staff in the White House Situation Room, command of the Chief of Naval Operations Intelligence Plot, and service as the Deputy Executive Assistant to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from the U.S. Naval Academy, a master’s degree from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and was a Federal Executive Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Noel Rimalovski is the Managing Partner of GH Partners, an investment bank headquartered in NY with a branch office in London. At GH Partners, Mr. Rimalovski leads the investment banking team providing advisory services to clients including, sales and acquisitions of companies, restructurings, private placements, credit advisory, valuations and fairness opinions. GH’s clients include domestic and international public and private companies and government agencies with a focus in the Space and Defense industries. Prior to joining GH Partners, Mr. Rimalovski was Senior Vice President at Macquarie Capital (USA), 2007-08, focusing on investing in the telecommunications and technology sectors, including $1.8bn of investments in communications infrastructure. Prior to Macquarie, he was Director in the Mergers & Acquisition Group of Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, and its predecessor Wasserstein Perella, where he completed over $20 billion in transactions in the Industrial, Consumer, Technology, Telecommunications and Media sectors. Prior to WP, he gained experience as a banker on government-backed structured financings, securitizations and proprietary investments at Lazard Frères.

In addition to his role at GH Partners, Mr. Rimalovski serves as a Senior Advisor to GapSat, a company that provides in-orbit geostationary communications satellites on an interim basis.

Mr. Rimalovski earned his MBA in Finance from Columbia Business School, where he made the Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society and received the Wall Street Journal Achievement Award for Finance. He holds a BA, Quantitative Economics, from Tufts University.

Dr. Robbie Robertson is the CEO and Co-founder of Sedaro, a cloud software company building scalable, simulation-driven solutions for design, training, and automation in Aerospace, Space, and Defense. His background is rooted at the intersection of hardware and software technology for space, with over 15 years of experience spanning national laboratories, academia, large primes, and early-stage startups. At Sedaro, Dr. Robertson oversees the Growth Team and collaborates directly with prospective customers and users to guide ongoing development of Sedaro’s next-generation digital platform.

Mr. Rood is the Chairman of the Board, President, and CEO of Momentus (NASDAQ: MNTS), a space company offering infrastructure and transportation services. Since joining the company in August 2021, he has overseen the transition of the company to a public company listed on the NASDAQ exchange, production and launch of the company’s first orbital transfer vehicle, and placement of eight customer satellites in orbit.

He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Hitachi Vantara Federal, which provides IT services to U.S. Government customers, and formerly served as Chairman of the Board and Security Director of Radisson Hospitality Inc.

Mr. Rood has held executive positions at two of the world’s largest aerospace and defense companies, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon.

From March 2016 to January 2018, he was Senior Vice President of Lockheed Martin International charged with leading business growth and industrial partnerships in more than 70 countries. He also served as Vice President for Corporate Domestic Business Development at Lockheed Martin. Prior to joining Lockheed Martin, Mr. Rood was Vice President for U.S. Business Development at Raytheon from 2009 to 2014.

Public Sector Experience

Mr. Rood has a broad range of government experience, having served as a senior official at the Defense Department, State Department, White House/National Security Council, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and in Congress as a staffer in the U.S. Senate.

From January 2018 to February 2020, Mr. Rood served as Under Secretary of Defense for Policy where he led formulation and coordination of national security policy within the Department of Defense as the principal advisor to the Secretary of Defense for such matters.

He managed a team of over 2,100 civilians and military service members and was responsible for building partnerships and defense cooperation with U.S. allies, including overseeing the $55B foreign military sales program and export controls.

Mr. Rood managed implementation of strategies, including the National Defense Strategy, resulting in a new focus on addressing the implications of growing competition with the world’s great powers China and Russia. He oversaw development of a new cyber strategy and authorities; a space strategy for the newly- established Space Force; completion of the Missile Defense Review; Nuclear Posture Review; and a counter-terrorism strategy for the defeat of ISIS.

From 2007 to 2009, Mr. Rood served at the State Department as Acting Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security. He also served as Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation.

In two tours at the White House/National Security Council from 2005 to 2006 and 2001 to 2003, he served under President George W. Bush as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Counter- proliferation Strategy, and Director for Proliferation Strategy, Counterproliferation, and Homeland Defense. He played a key role in the President’s decision to deploy missile defenses to protect the United States and to withdraw from the 1972 ABM Treaty.

From 2003 to 2005, Rood served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Forces Policy, where he was responsible for the development and oversight of policy and programs related to U.S. nuclear and conventional strategic forces, missile defenses, and space.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Rood worked as Senior Policy Advisor to Senator Jon Kyl of Arizona and as a Fellow for Senator Thad Cochran of Mississippi on the Senate Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on International Security. From 1988 to 1999, Rood served in a variety of positions as an analyst at the CIA, including following missile programs in foreign countries.

Mr. Rood holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from Arizona State University.

J.D. Russell is an American entrepreneur and spaceflight participant who flew to space aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard missions NS-28 and NS-34. He launched Alpha Funds, a venture capital and mergers and acquisitions firm focused on aerospace and frontier technologies. His spaceflight experiences helped inspire Alpha Funds’ flagship initiative, Alpha Aerospace, which invests in early-stage propulsion and advanced manufacturing startups. Prior to this, Russell founded a property management company and successfully completed a rollup strategy with multiple mergers and acquisitions of real estate management and service firms across the United States, ultimately developing a proprietary software system to scale operations. He also founded the Victoria Russell Foundation, named for his late daughter, to promote children’s literacy through a partnership with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

Alexis Sáinz is the global co-leader of the Hogan Lovells Space and Satellite practice and a member of the Infrastructure, Energy, Resources & Projects group. She regularly represents export credit and multilateral development agencies, satellite operators, aerospace manufacturers, launch services providers, communications companies, financial institutions, project sponsors, private equity firms, hedge funds, and other industry participants on structured, project and vendor financings, in negotiating commercial and corporate transactions, and with commercially strategic regulatory matters. She also provides industry advice in connection with debt and equity offerings, joint ventures, mergers & acquisitions, and financial restructurings.

Alexis works with investors and lenders to understand the underlying issues impacting space projects and companies, at the intersection of commercial, regulatory and financing aspects of a transaction. She works with project parties to focus on key deal points and to identify appropriate industry-based risk mitigants and efficient allocation of risk in order to build consensus and drive closure. She works with companies to build a project and financing strategy from the ground up, anticipating financing issues early in the development of a new project or the growth of a company.

Alexis co-chairs the American Bar Association’s Committee on Space Law. She co-authored the chapter on “Commercial Satellite Programs” in the Routledge Handbook of Space Law. Prior to beginning her legal career in 2007, Alexis spent over 10 years working in internet-based industries, including e-commerce and media. She previously served as a consultant for the World Bank, National Geographic, and domestic non-profit organizations in connection with internet-based technology, and she was an early member of KPMG Peat Marwick’s financial service’s e-commerce consulting practice, where she focused on emerging technologies.

Alex is CEO of GeoOptics, an Earth system satellite data company. He has held several roles at GeoOptics, including managing the deployment, sales and operations of its CICERO satellite constellation and the development of its new radar technology. Before joining GeoOptics, Alex was the Executive Director of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, leading policy development and business operations. He has also been a Legislative Director on Capitol Hill, working on science and technology, space, climate and non-proliferation issues.

Alex holds an AB from Harvard and a PhD from Stanford University, both in Physics, and enjoys playing soccer and reading science fiction.

Eric Salwan is a NewSpace advocate and entrepreneur. As one of the seed investors and first employees of Firefly Space Systems, Eric was a member of the initial team that worked to create an innovative small satellite launch solution. He has since led cross-departmental initiatives, including setting up Firefly’s IT infrastructure. Now as the Director of Commercial Business Development at Firefly Aerospace, Eric is responsible for developing the commercial business pipeline for Firefly’s Alpha launch vehicle.

Dee joined Speedcast in 2022 to elevate the company’s product vision and strategy, accelerate growth and expand the value-added portfolio of services including SIGMA, as well as the integration of key LEO constellations, Starlink and OneWeb into the Speedcast offering. In her +20-year-career, she has worked across the telecom and technology industries, from satellite communications to broadcasting, consulting and sustainability. Prior to joining Speedcast, Dee served as COO of Asia Broadcast Satellite and in multiple management roles at Intelsat and Panamsat. Her experience includes management and sales positions with Asian TV and Ethnic American Broadcasting Company, as well as operations management for OXMAN, a startup founded by Neri Oxman of the MIT Media Lab that creates platforms focused on sustainability. Dee is a graduate of Ruparel College India and Columbia University and has completed executive education in accounting and Finance at Columbia’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.

With 20 years of in-house general counsel experience, Randy Segal brings an individual perspective to every matter she handles, both as your outside counsel and as someone who has walked in your shoes. With a focus on satellite, wireless, drone, and technology transactions, Randy provides commercially practical solutions in industries where technological change is ever-present. Randy’s practice often involves multi-level chess games, where every move needs to be considered from a multitude of angles to be successful.

As a result, Randy’s practice is reflected in three segments. First, as co-leader of the Space and Satellite practice, Randy has handled many types of transactions, from day-to-day matters to the most complex international transactions for industry operators, investors, and technology providers. She has been involved in taking companies public, advising on acquisitions, divestitures, and complex cross-border joint ventures, as well as large satellite system development, deployments and funding.

Second, as an advisor to technology investors and their portfolio companies, Randy has advised on transactions focused on big data analytics, IT, wireless systems, spectrum licenses, environmental analytics, wireless proximity analysis, drone technology, terrestrial positioning, and other innovative technologies.

Third, Randy provides “strand of pearls” advice to global clients, working seamlessly with our international offices to develop familiar, comfortable and “right-sized” solutions. Randy’s extensive cross-border experience has resulted in an extensive tool-kit of resolutions for the most complex of legal regimes. Randy’s transactional and advisory experience is both deep and broad, working throughout North and South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East and on the most complex of international programs and legal issues.

Francesco Sgarbossa is the Sales Director for Launch Services at Avio in Paris, where he leads commercial activities for the Vega C launch system. An aerospace engineer by training, he began his career at Leonardo and held multiple roles in technical sales and management within the industrial sector. Francesco joined Avio following the company’s transfer of Launch Service Provider activities from Arianespace, and today he focuses on strengthening Vega C’s position in the international launch market

Billie Sims has extensive work experience in the satellite and telecommunications industry. She currently leads Gilat Defense team in the US. Previously she served in roles as Vice President, Sales and Business Development for both Gilat Satellite Networks and Wavestream Business Units. Billie previously held the role Vice President of Growth at Comtech Telecommunications Corp. Prior to that, she was the VP of Partner Program Sales at Ursa Space Systems from 2022 to 2023.

From 2011 to 2022, she held the position of Vice President Sales and Business Development, Government Programs at Hunter Communications Inc, where she provided end-to-end support and developed integrated satellite solutions for the US Defense sector.

Billie also has experience in various leadership roles within professional organizations. From 2019 to present, Billie has been a member of the Board of Directors at Space and Satellite Professionals International. She also contributed to the satellite industry as the President of the Society of Satellite Professionals from 2017 to 2018, and as the Vice President from 2016 to 2017.

Before that, Billie worked at SES WORLD SKIES as the Senior Director, Sales from 2010 to 2011, and at SES New Skies as the Senior Director, North America Sales from 2007 to 2010. She also held the position of Account Manager, International Broadcast Services at Verestar from 2000 to 2004.

Billie has a strong background in sales, business development, and leadership within the satellite and telecommunications and US Defense industry.

Billie Sims graduated from George Mason University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Speech Communication between 1992 and 1997. In 2000, Billie obtained a Certificate in Satellite Communications Engineering from The George Washington University. Later, from 2008 to 2010, Billie attended Rutgers University for leadership training, earning a Certificate. Finally, between 2010 and 2012, Billie pursued a degree in Business, specifically an EMBA, from George Mason University’s Costello College of Business.

Mr. Rob Singh has recently joined the MDA Space Executive Team as Vice President of Strategic Solutions, leading customer focused solutions and driving MDA global growth across space geo intelligence, robotics and satellite systems markets.  Rob is also the founder and principal of SPARC Innovations, focused consulting on space architecture solutions and providing advisory services across the space industry.

Previously, Rob was the Co-Founder/CTO of Axta Space established with the goal of delivering optical solutions for space communications, on a mission to offer a revolutionary managed optical network services solution across multi orbit LEO/MEO/GEO domains to the industry.  And prior, was the CTO of SpaceLink, where he architected the SpaceLink hybrid optical and RF communications transport relay services solution realized as a 4+ constellation of Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellites optically interconnected and relaying in RF to ground.

Mr. Singh established a foundation with 25 years as Space Systems Loral and Maxar, initially in operations with responsibility as Executive Director of Communications Systems at SSL, then into strategic and architecture role, as Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Chief Architect at Maxar Technologies.  He has contributed to over 23 publications including writer of the SMAD graduate engineering textbook chapter on communications systems.

Mr. Singh holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Systems Design Engineering and a Master of Applied Science in Electrical Engineering from University of Waterloo, as well as an Executive Leadership Development Certificate from the Wharton School and the Stanford Graduate Business School.

Rob also serves as Executive Chair of the AIAA Communications Systems Technical Committee, and as a committee member of the Los Altos Hills Town Council – Emergency Preparedness and Response Committee.

Shawn Sloan is the Corporate Fellow for Artificial Intelligence at The Aerospace Corporation. He has a strong background in artificial intelligence, data science, and systems engineering, and has been pivotal in advancing AI projects that align with Department of Defense and National Security objectives. His previous roles include serving as the Technical Director of the Digital Applications Center and AI principal engineer for AI Defense Applications. Shawn’s expertise spans deep reinforcement learning, data strategy, and enterprise rollouts of large language models.

Currently, Shawn focuses on rolling out AI tools to the workforce, shaping Aerospace’s AI strategy, fostering strategic partnerships and delivering innovative solutions leveraging AI for the National Security Space enterprise. His leadership and technical expertise continue to drive advancements in AI for space, making him a respected figure in the industry.

Trevor Smith is the Founder and CEO of Atomic-6, committed to revolutionizing the composites industry through innovative solutions. A passionate entrepreneur, he oversees business development, investor relations, technological innovation, and strategic partnerships. Trevor was deeply involved in the research and development of Atomic-6, personally funding the company during its formative years. As a two-time founder, he is recognized for his strategic vision and talent for team building. His past roles include President and Co-founder of Sprout Lighting, an LED lighting company, and Vice President of CRESA Atlanta, a commercial real estate firm. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a focus on real estate finance from the University of Mississippi. Outside of work, Trevor enjoys riding dirt bikes with his two boys, racing on two or four wheels, and the occasional night of stargazing.

Dan Smoot is Chief Executive Officer of Maxar Intelligence, a role he has held since his appointment in November 2023.

He is leading the company’s push to bring the geospatial industry into a new age of intelligence. For over three decades, he has helped scale some of the world’s most innovative software and IT companies and worked closely with the defense and intelligence communities to integrate cutting-edge technologies into national security architectures. Today, Dan is guiding Maxar’s evolution to deliver secure, software-enabled products that use the power of geospatial data and technology to help customers get mission-critical insights, faster.

Prior to joining Maxar, he served as CEO of Riverbed Technology, where he led the IT company’s transformation from a hardware provider to a software-focused business that today serves government and commercial customers, including national security agencies and 95% of the Fortune 100. Dan had also previously served as the company’s Chief Operating Officer and Chief Customer Officer throughout his tenure at the company.

Prior to Riverbed Technology, Dan held several senior roles at Salesforce, including Executive Vice President of Global Partner Sales and Executive Vice President of Market Readiness. There, he optimized the company’s sales and go-to-market processes to grow the sales pipeline and accelerate revenue generation, ultimately helping lay the foundation for one of the fastest periods of growth in Salesforce’s history. Earlier in his career, Dan served as Senior Vice President of Global Customer Operations at VMWare and held a variety of senior sales, operations and finance roles over 13 years at Cisco.

Dan earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from UC Irvine. He was a board member of the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Western Affiliate and was previously the Chairman of the AHA’s Greater Bay Area chapter.

S. Sita Sonty (Sita) is a Partner and Managing Director in the AlixPartners AD&A Americas group. She served as a career Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. State Department, CEO of a space company, Partner at BCG, and Executive at SpaceX and Raytheon.

Prior to AlixPartners, Sita served as the CEO of Space Tango. Before that, she was the global lead for Commercial Space at BCG, where she was also a BCG Federal Core member. Earlier in her career, Sita has also held roles in Sierra Nevada Corporation, SpaceX, Raytheon, and served in senior roles at the Department of State.

She graduated with distinction from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies; studied at Jussieu in Paris (1998) and the Centre des Etudes Maghrebines en Tunisie (CEMAT) (2001); and graduated magna cum laude from Amherst College in Political Science and Economics.

Her native tongue is Telugu; she also speaks Hindi, French, Arabic, Croatian, and Urdu. Sita serves as Executive Board Member for Women in Aerospace, The Johns Hopkins University President’s Alumni Council, and the Washington Leadership Program.

Joe Spytek is Chief Executive Officer of Satport, a satellite ground infrastructure company. With over 30 years of entrepreneurial leadership in satellite telecommunications, Joe previously served as CEO of Speedcast, where he led a complete recapitalization and transformation, integrating 16 businesses into a unified platform and pioneering multi-path, multi-orbit, software-defined services. As Co-Founder and CEO of ITC Global for 17 years, he grew the company from a disaster recovery start-up to a global remote communications leader serving blue-chip customers across 70 countries before its sale to Panasonic. A 2023 inductee into the SSPI Hall of Fame, Joe holds a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from Vanderbilt University and is recognized for setting industry standards in connectivity and transforming satellite businesses for the future.

Paul Struhsaker is a serial entrepreneur, lecturer, technology executive, and author of How The Hell Did We Get Here? A Citizen’s guide to the New Cold War and the Rebuilding of Deterrence

He started his career as an intelligence analyst at the National Security Agency, where his duties included assignments as a US Navy nuclear submarine officer and master diver. At the end of the Cold War, he left the intelligence community. He founded a series of start-ups, including Aironet Wireless, a pioneering Wi-Fi start-up acquired by Cisco, Airspan, a 4G/5G cellular base station innovator acquired by SoftBank, and SatBridge acquired by Thuraya. He went on to hold executive roles, including CTO of Broadband at Texas Instruments, SVP of Engineering at Comcast NBCUniversal, and CTO of Dell Computer. He is currently Managing Director of Arrasar Partners.

Drew is a partner in the Washington, DC office of Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton and a go-to advisor for technology, telecommunications, aerospace, defense and infrastructure companies navigating today’s complex regulatory landscape. With a focus on fostering innovation and growth while ensuring compliance with regulators at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), Drew provides strategic counsel to clients at the forefront of technological advancement, strategic investment and national security.

In particular, Drew specializes in representing space and satellite companies, mobile network operators and cutting-edge technology providers before the FCC, the “Team Telecom” Executive Branch agencies, and CFIUS. His expertise includes FCC compliance, spectrum licensing, and navigating regulatory challenges in telecommunications and satellite communications. Drew’s strategic and practical approach ensures clients stay ahead in dynamic industries defined by rapid innovation and evolving regulatory frameworks.

Dr. Derek Tournear is the Director of the Space Development Agency (SDA). Established in March 2019, SDA is recognized as the Department of Defense’s constructive disruptor for space acquisition. SDA will quickly deliver much needed space-based capabilities to the joint warfighter to support terrestrial missions through development, fielding, and operation of the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture.

Before leading SDA, Dr. Tournear most recently served as Assistant Director of Research and Development for Space within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering where he was responsible for coordinating all DoD efforts in space and initiating programs to address critical gaps.

Dr. Tournear previously held leadership roles in industry, most recently the director for Harris Corporation Space & Intelligence research & development. Prior to industry, Dr. Tournear held program management positions at the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). He has professional experience at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) managing intelligence and defense programs.

Dr. Tournear has a Ph.D. in physics from Stanford University and a B.S. from Purdue University. In 2010 he received an Outstanding Alumnus award from Purdue University and a 2008 DARPA award for Outstanding Accomplishments in a Systems Technology Area. Dr. Tournear is a 2011, and 2020 recipient of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service, and a 2012 recipient of the Office of Director of National Intelligence Award for Exceptional Public Service. Additionally, Dr. Tournear is the recipient of a 2021 Space News award, 2021 Theodore Roosevelt Government Leadership award, 2021 Wash 100 award, as well as the 2022 Aviation Week Laureate. He was selected for the Senior Executive Service in 2019.

Lt. Col. Tim Trimailo is the Director and Senior Materiel Leader for the Commercial Space Office (COMSO), Space Systems Command (SSC), Los Angeles Air Force Base, California. Lt. Col. Trimailo oversees SSC’s integration of commercial capabilities across all United States Space Force (USSF) mission areas. Charged with enacting a “Buy Before Build” paradigm shift, he executes over $1 Billion in investments mitigating critical capability gaps for the warfighter while interacting with senior Department of the Air Force members, Congressional staff, and leaders of industry. Prior to this role, Lt. Col. Trimailo was the Program Manager for Space Development Agency’s Missile Tracking Layer programs and Materiel Leader for SSC’s investments in proliferated-low Earth orbit (pLEO) prototyping efforts, to include managing the joint Blackjack pLEO technology demo program with DARPA.

Lt. Col. Trimailo received his commission in 2005 after graduation from the United States Air Force Academy and began his career in satellite command and control operations at Schriever AFB, CO, culminating as 3rd Space Operations Squadron Senior Crew, 50th Operations Group Standardization and Evaluations Branch. Following this assignment, Lt. Col. Trimailo served at the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC) as the Lead for Wideband Global Satellite Communications Operations and Sustainment. During this assignment, Lt. Col. Trimailo deployed to Southwest Asia in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom and served as the Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM) staff Director, Air Force Program Executive Officer (PEO) for space staff, where he was a key advisor to the PEO on MILSATCOM acquisition and policy issues. After his first SMC assignment, Lt. Col. Trimailo was the Deputy Chief, Multi-Intelligence Analytic Division at the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) in Chantilly, Virginia. In this role, he managed a portfolio of projects developing intelligence analysis software and algorithms used across the Intelligence, DoD, and Law Enforcement communities. Prior to his current assignment, Lt. Col. Trimailo was the Executive Officer to the Director, Air Force Legislative Liaison, Secretary of the Air Force, Pentagon, Washington D.C.

Noémie Vauthelin is US Zone Director for Safran Corporate Ventures. She is responsible for identifying startups and disruptive technologies for the Safran Group in the North American region.
Noemie joined Safran in 2013, where she initially held the position of Safety & Reliability Engineer before advancing to roles as Black Belt and Merging & Acquisition Manager.
Noémie holds an Engineering degree from IMT Atlantique Engineering School, a Master of Science from Virginia Tech and a MBA in International Business Management from IAE Paris. Curious and proactive, she constantly seeks to push her limits and innovate.

Luis Vidal is the Director of Commercial GEO Business Development at Starfish Space, where he focuses on growing the market for life extension and de-orbit services. He joined the company after six years at The Boeing Company and five years as a business development leader at various early stage technology companies. Luis earned a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan, a M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Georgia Tech, and a MBA from Harvard Business School. He is also a founder and Entrepreneur having co-founded a technology company and is active in the local Seattle entrepreneurial community.

Alexandra Vidyuk is a physicist by training and began her career in banking before becoming a deep tech investor. She is the Founder and General Partner at Beyond Earth Ventures, a U.S.-based venture fund investing in breakthrough technologies across space tech, robotics, energy, advanced materials, and future computing.

Alexandra has backed some of the most ambitious companies in the new space economy, including Xona Space Systems, Lunar Outpost, Zeno Power, Transcelestial and Tandem PV. She serves on the board of Space Bridge Partners, an organization that mobilizes support from billionaires and family offices to fund scientific missions and space research.

She is also a mentor at the Creative Destruction Lab’s Space Stream in Canada. Passionate about democratizing access to space innovation, Alexandra founded AngelList’s first space-tech-focused investment community, now with over 650 members globally.

As Chief Editor of the Space Ambition blog, followed by more than 68,000 subscribers, Alexandra is widely recognized as a leading voice in space technology and venture capital.

Her work bridges frontiers—between Earth and orbit, science and capital, and vision and execution.

Brian Weimer is a partner in Sheppard Mullin’s Washington, D.C. office and Leader of the firm’s Telecom Team and Co-Leader of the CFIUS Team. Brian provides regulatory and transactional advice across the entire telecommunications ecosystem. He is perhaps best known as a leading lawyer for the satellite industry, and he leads the firm’s Space & Satellite practice as well.

– Brian obtains market access and FCC licenses for space station operators, both GEO and Non-GEO;

– advises companies on obtaining cable landing licenses and the regulatory issues presented by undersea cable companies;

– advises satellite and wireless companies on regulatory proceedings impacting the value, uses, availability and sharing of spectrum resources;

– lobbies the FCC at the highest levels to achieve optimal outcomes for clients on their most important regulatory proceedings;

– assists telecom companies navigate the myriad regulatory approvals necessary to consummate M&A deals, including Team Telecom and CFIUS;

– secures special temporary authority and experimental licenses for telecom companies of all kinds;

– prepares petitions for declaratory ruling to exceed foreign ownership benchmarks under the Communications Act;

– obtains earth station licenses for satellite networks;

– advises on regulatory aspects of business plans to assist fundraising efforts by start-up companies;

– analyzes feasibility of foreign investment in telecom (and other) companies in light of strictures imposed by the Communications Act, Team Telecom and CFIUS;

– prepares applications for 214 authorization at the FCC and similar initiatives at the State level;

– advises foreign companies on the need for and structuring of proxy companies in the U.S. to assist in obtaining specialized U.S. government contracts;

– serves as a trusted advisor to founders and entrepreneurs in their most important strategic decisions as they relate to FCC, ITU and market access actions around the world;

– negotiates and drafts commercial contracts and M&A agreements for telecom companies.
Advises companies through regulatory enforcement proceedings at the FCC and other federal agencies;

– counsels telecom companies through restructuring efforts, including Chapter 11; and

– advises media and other telecom companies with all manner of regulatory requirements for their businesses.

Sam Wilson is the director for strategy and national security for the Center for Space Policy and Strategy at The Aerospace Corporation. Wilson has authored papers on a breadth of defense and space topics, including missile debates, defense space budgets, comparative and international partnership opportunities, and the nexus of commercial and national security space. His work has appeared or been covered in The Journal of Strategic Studies, Asia Policy, Korea Policy, The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, The Washington Post, The Financial Times, Politico, Defense News, SpaceNews, Breaking Defense, Defense News, Kyodo News, Japan Today, The Diplomat, MilsatMagazine, and SatMagazine, among other outlets.

Wilson is an adjunct fellow with the U.S. German Marshall Fund, a defense fellow with the Truman National Security Project, and a term member with the Council on Foreign Relations.

Wilson received his bachelor’s degree in political theory from the University of Virginia, where he graduated with distinction. He received his master’s degree from the University of Virginia’s Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy.

Yonatan is founder of Aptos Orbital. Aptos Orbital builds space terminals that connect LEO satellites to the cloud, providing resilient, real-time communication while eliminating ground station dependency. This enables warfighters to instantly command and control satellites, and deploy AI – enabling intelligent decisions to be made at the speed of battle.

He previously founded SpaceIL, which in 2019 launched Beresheet, the first ever private spaceship to reach the Moon. SpaceIL is also known for its educational initiatives, which are aimed at promoting STEM education, reaching more than one million students worldwide.

He holds a PhD in biophysics from Stanford University. Prior to Aptos Orbital, Winetraub led system engineering for sensing and perception within Waymo’s weather program, focusing on enabling robo-taxi in various weather conditions.

Chris Winslett is the General Manager of Blue Canyon Technologies (BCT), part of the Space, Imaging and Microelectronics (SIM) leadership under the Advanced Products & Solutions Strategic Business Unit of Raytheon, an RTX business.
With close to 25 years of industry experience, Chris joins BCT from Lockheed Martin where he most recently was the Program Director for SDA Transport Layer Programs. Prior to this role, he was the Director of Programs for OneWeb Satellites, a joint venture between OneWeb and Airbus. In this position, he was responsible not only for completing the design and development of the OneWeb constellation, but also for standing up a factory that was able to produce 10 satellites a week and for developing a strategy to leverage that production to build a wider customer base. Before joining OneWeb, Chris worked with Boeing for 17 years, holding a variety of positions across the company including leading the Platform and Payload Products for the Satellite Vehicles Business Unit.
Chris earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in electrical engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.

Denise Wood is a trusted advisor to technology and communications companies, focusing on commercial and regulatory matters with a particular emphasis on space and satellite issues and subsea and terrestrial digital infrastructure. Her diverse clientele spans the technology and communications sectors, where she provides tailored legal and strategic guidance to help businesses thrive in complex, rapidly evolving industries.

In the space and satellite sector, Denise assists operators in securing critical Federal Communications Commission (FCC) authorizations for the launch and operation of satellite constellations and payloads. Her experience extends to obtaining market access, experimental and special temporary authority for cutting-edge satellite technology, and navigating intricate regulatory challenges, including spectrum usage, foreign ownership, orbital debris mitigation, and coordination with other government agencies. With a deep understanding of the industry, Denise also drafts and negotiates commercial agreements such as launch services agreements, spectrum lease agreements, and commercial agreements to support her clients’ operational needs.

As the Director of Technology of the NorthStar US Enterprise, Will has led the team to deliver key contracts to USG including numerous Darpa’s Space-WATCH programs that served to validate our patented concept of operations (CONOPS).  NorthStar has delivered the onset of an always “on” Space Domain Awareness (SDA) service to the US Space Force.

Will is part of the team that provides 24/7 anomaly detection and space operations support for the US Space Forces’ Joint Commercial Operations (JCO) in the meridian and pacific regions. This team is driving NorthStar’s artificial intelligence and automation technology roadmap to enable near-real-time services to existing clients, including the rapid processing of over 80 million space-based images with the aim of eliminating SDA gaps.

Prior to joining NorthStar’s U.S. team, Will served as the Entrepreneur in Residence at the Menlo Park, California-based venture capital firm Noosphere Ventures.   Will also founded and served as Chief Technology Officer of start-up synthetic aperture radar company Capella Space.  Capella has launched seven functional SAR satellites to date.

While a Ph.D. candidate research assistant to Dr. Ivan Linscott in radar remote sensing at Stanford University, Will supported the New Horizons Mission to Pluto by investigating radio occultation and the effect of interplanetary media upon RF signal propagation. He also generated, analyzed, and simulated data from the radio science experiment (REX) onboard the spacecraft to include Pluto fly-by mission rehearsals performed at John’s Hopkins Applied Physics laboratory.

Will holds a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering obtained while a Ph.D. candidate in

Professor Zebker’s Radar Remote Sensing Group. He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Bucknell University where he concurrently was graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Bachelor of Arts in East Asian Studie.