Speed, risk, and the future of national security space

Time Markers

00:00 – Introduction
01:15 – What “speed” really means
02:17 – SkyFi: How to succeed in national security space
4:40 – Advanced Space: How to succeed in national security space
08:27 – Intuitive Machines: How to succeed in national security space
10:58 – Commercial tech outpacing government
18:09 – Acquisition reform and speed
22:58 – Commercial data, dual use & classification
35:01 – Reverse Industry Days and discovery
36:57 – What success looks like next year

Transcript – Evolving Space Systems in Dual Technology Panel Conversation

This transcript has been edited-for-clarity.

Mike Gruss – Hi everyone. I’m Mike Gruss with SpaceNews. We have a great panel here today, as you just heard, on the evolving space environment and dual-use innovation. So let’s face it—every speaker at this conference is going to talk about speed, right? We have more satellites launching every week. We’ve seen several launch records already fall this year.

We have commercial technology now where leaders and government officials are saying it outpaces traditional military innovation and acquisition cycles, and there are adversaries that are moving particularly quickly. You’ve seen who the panelists are today, and I’m going to ask each of them to introduce themselves and talk a little bit about their company. But as you do that, I’d like you to also explain what traits a company should have to succeed in the national security space.

Luke, why don’t we start with you?

Luke Fischer – Yeah, thanks, Mike. I’m Luke Fischer, CEO and co-founder of SkyFi. SkyFi is an Earth intelligence company. We deliver geospatial imagery and analytics to government customers all over the world and to commercial customers through a web and mobile application.

My background—I spent 20 years in the Army, 16 years active duty, most of that in special operations, then worked in venture capital before co-founding SkyFi about four years ago. When I think about the traits that make companies successful, what we really strive for is speed—but speed of information to warfighters, to the intelligence community, to commercial customers.

For decades we focused on whether we could put metal in space. That problem is largely solved. Now it’s about what customers want. And there’s still too much science focus in this industry—too much focus on pixels, revisit rates, satellite lifespans. Customers don’t care. They want answers. They want to know if they can detect a vessel, an oil and gas leak, or a military formation. That’s the future—speed of information, not speed to launch.

Mike Gruss – Can you elaborate on what you mean by “too much science”?

Luke Fischer – A lot of geospatial companies are founded by geospatial experts, so they talk about what they care about—pixels, sensors, technical specs. But it’s like ordering an Uber and being told how many cylinders the engine has. I don’t care. Can it get me from point A to point B?

That’s how warfighters and intelligence professionals think. They want answers, not science briefings.

Mike Gruss – Brad, how about you? What traits do companies need to succeed?

Bradley Cheetham – Thanks, Mike. I’m Bradley Cheetham, co-founder and CEO of Advanced Space. We’re a nontraditional space company based in Denver. We’re best known for owning and operating the CAPSTONE spacecraft, which has been flying at the Moon for over three years and is now in its third extended mission.

We’re also the prime contractor on AFRL’s ORACLE program for cislunar space domain awareness, and we support NASA’s Artemis program.

For us, success is about delivering capability. There’s a tendency to get enamored with PowerPoint concepts and future systems. But our customers—warfighters, civil leaders—need capability now.

Speed, for us, is a sense of urgency. These are no longer theoretical needs. We can’t deliver “almost good enough.” These capabilities have to work, and they have to work now.

Mike Gruss – There’s often talk that solutions don’t need to be perfect, but they also can’t be bad. That’s a narrow lane.

Bradley Cheetham – Exactly. Five or ten years ago, commercial space was often seen as “nice to have.” Now it’s mission-critical. This is a whole-of-nation requirement—Title 10, Title 50, Title 51, industry, academia. It’s not optional anymore.

Mike Gruss – Bob, what traits do you see in companies that succeed with Space Force?

Bob Pavelko – Thanks, Mike. I’m Bob Pavelko from Intuitive Machines. We’re based in Houston and focused on opening up cislunar access—transportation, data, logistics infrastructure.

What I see is that “perfect” is the enemy of “good enough.” What can I deliver today or tomorrow that has value? A 70 percent solution today is often more valuable than a 90 percent solution years from now.

You need a minimum viable capability that can evolve. Set expectations with customers, deliver something useful, learn from it, and improve.

Mike Gruss – Are customers more willing now to accept that 70 percent solution?

Bob Pavelko – Absolutely. But it has to be done right. Requirements need to be structured so you can deliver in steps. A minimum viable product on orbit today has intrinsic value.

Look at history—the Model T wasn’t perfect. It evolved. That’s how capability development should work.

Mike Gruss – When we talk about dual-use technology—imaging, robotics, communications—where is commercial innovation clearly outpacing government?

Luke Fischer – In Earth observation, without question. Commercial imagery now often outpaces government capabilities in terms of access and speed. Launch is no longer the hard part.

At SkyFi, my teenage daughters can task a satellite from their phones, but soldiers in the field often can’t. That’s a fundamental problem. It’s cultural and bureaucratic, not technical.

Commercial companies like Planet, Umbra, ICEYE—these capabilities exist. The challenge is that government systems still gatekeep access to imagery, and that slows everything down.

Bradley Cheetham – I’d add that industry is much better at experimentation. We can take risks. We can bet the company. Government generally can’t.

The challenge is transitioning successful experiments into operational systems quickly. Too often, companies solve problems before the government knows how to buy the solution, and then the company disappears.

We need faster pathways to adopt proven commercial capability.

Mike Gruss – How fast should that adoption be?

Bradley Cheetham – If a commercial solution already exists for a Space Force problem, it shouldn’t take more than days or weeks to buy it. Not years.

We create legal and policy hurdles that don’t need to exist. This is solvable.

Bob Pavelko – I’d add that sometimes customers are so focused on their predefined solution that they miss alternatives. Industry can look at problems differently.

The key is balancing smart risk, investment, and speed.

Mike Gruss – Even with acquisition reform underway, what’s still holding innovation back?

Luke Fischer – People. Military rotations mean priorities change every two to three years. Industry gets whiplash. Contracts stall. Payroll doesn’t.

The Space Force deserves credit for embracing commercial solutions, but continuity remains a challenge.

Bradley Cheetham – It comes down to authority and accountability. If someone owns a capability and has the authority to solve the problem, things move faster.

We also need to embrace failure. Not reckless failure—but informed risk-taking.

Bob Pavelko – Failure teaches more than success. The question shouldn’t be “Did you fail?” but “Was it a sound bet, and did you learn from it?”

Mike Gruss – Commercial data raises challenges—classification, standards, multiple users. How do you balance that?

Bradley Cheetham – We have to treat this as a team sport. Civil, commercial, and national security users can’t all have bespoke solutions anymore.

Some compromises are necessary. The urgency of the moment demands it.

Bob Pavelko – Classification is policy, not physics. Policy can change. There’s tremendous overlap in data needs across customers.

Luke Fischer – Software solves most of this. The real barrier is policy and culture. Analysts shouldn’t have to jump between systems to build answers for warfighters.

Mike Gruss – Final question: If we come back next year, what does success look like?

Bradley Cheetham – The target will have moved again. But success is keeping pace.

NASA’s upcoming crewed lunar missions will reset expectations. We’re building infrastructure to stay. That has enormous dual-use implications.

Luke Fischer – Success is moving from imagery to answers. Push a button, get insight—not just a picture. AI and analytics are the future.

Mike Gruss – Thanks to our panelists, and thanks to the Space Force Association. This conversation will be available at SpaceNews.com as part of the Space Minds podcast.