00:00 Joshua
So what can an investor expect regarding public market exposure for SpaceX? Here to chat is founder and COO of Explore and founder of Hemisphere Ventures, Lisa Rich.
00:09 Joshua
Lisa, good to see you. So SpaceX is moving forward with plans for this IPO.
00:13 Joshua
They would be looking to raise significantly more than 30 billion. That’s according to sources cited by Bloomberg who are eyeing a mid-to-late 2026 listing. I’m curious, Lisa, do you know how, if that happens, how would you expect public market investors to react and respond to that IPO?
00:26 Joshua
And more broadly, Lisa, could such an IPO signal to you just the economy and the space industry?
00:35 Lisa Rich
Thank you Josh. Thanks for having me and I’m happy to comment on this exciting news for SpaceX. Uh, this is a continuum of capabilities uh with a company that has proven to be sustainable, resilient and reliable, which is what the space industry needs.
00:54 Lisa Rich
Launching is a very difficult thing. There were hundreds of competitors in the launch. No one has done what SpaceX has done with the launch cadence that companies can count on. In fact, my own company Explore went into space on a Falcon 9 last December and it was just a phenomenal launch and everything went as planned.
01:21 Lisa Rich
This is what investors need to know. That’s what companies who are their customers need to know that they need to launch their high-capacity hardware and software on satellites.
01:34 Lisa Rich
As I said, this is a continuum of capabilities for SpaceX. Launch is the first, but with the Falcon 9, Starship is coming online and what they’re enabling with Starship is phenomenal.
01:51 Lisa Rich
When you walk into the Starship rocket at their SpaceX base, as I did, you walk into it and see the capacity that they can pack into a single launch. So what does this do? This lowers the cost of launch, which is really important to increase how much we can have, how much mass we can get into space.
02:11 Lisa Rich
and how many companies can benefit from the value of sending satellites into space. So, that Pez dispenser they created where they can get the payloads out of when they get the Starship into space. We can’t wait to be a part of it.
02:23 Joshua
I’m curious because you’ve invested in over 30 space companies. So where are we in the space economy cycle? You know, early stage versus actual commercialization. Where are we and where do you think SpaceX sort of fits in there?
02:37 Lisa Rich
Right, because our companies that left, um, Voyager most recently, um, it’s still early days, right? But the space economy is robust, and especially with government support, as you’ve done your shows about showing the importance of the military component to space. Um, there’s a lot of work to fuel the AI revolution.
03:07 Lisa Rich
So as we think about satellites going into space and what they do once they get into space. Um, it’s usually either communications, communications capabilities, or collects data.
03:22 Lisa Rich
So, like my company is doing, we are collecting data and this data will fuel the AI revolution. They need it because otherwise it is unattainable. It is pure uncorrupted scientific data autonomously collected from satellites that will power ML, LLM, ML and AI applications that all AI companies like Pateer, All etc. are working on.
03:47 Joshua
Lisa how has the regulatory environment for the US space economy evolved over the many years that you’ve been invested here, you know, how has it evolved? By the way, have you seen any significant changes since Trump took office?
04:01 Lisa Rich
Absolute. I just returned from DC and was very happy about the appointment of Taylor Jordan to the US Department of Space Commerce. One of the big moves I’m making is moving the Department of Space Commerce out of Noah.
04:13 Lisa Rich
out from under Noah. And having it as an independent department is very important. So that’s what’s happening and Howard Lutnick is a big proponent of space as I understand it. So, they have an investment that they are going to make. have already changed the parameters of how early-stage companies can benefit
04:32 Lisa Rich
and I have government help with the strategic capital office, which last year provided a $900 million loan opportunity for early-stage companies sending satellites into space.
04:47 Lisa Rich
They expect to expand this, I think, because the companies were promised that this was only the first stage and we will continue from there. So, I have confidence in this administration, especially with the emphasis on international relations and
05:01 Lisa Rich
um, making sure that the US has primacy in space, we have to work with our allies and we have to enable American commercial companies to strive and thrive. And how do we do that? We need the government to step in where it is needed, especially for international relations.
05:20 Lisa Rich
because it can become very complex for early stage commercial companies. And these are not companies with thousands of employees and a team of lawyers or foreign relations experts or what have you for international. So we need resources, and the US Department of Commerce and their partners like NTIA are looking to help.
05:46 Joshua
You know, last question, Lisa, we often talk about the key risk for people when it comes to Musk. You know that, of course. Um and I’m just curious as a SpaceX investor, what do you think about this? How do you feel about Musk’s centrality to this company?
06:02 Lisa Rich
By the way, is there a key risk for women? because we were seeing that Gwen Shotwell was selected twice as the Innovator of the Year Award and as one of the most outstanding operators and executives in the space industry.
06:22 Lisa Rich
So when you think about continuity, you know, you remember we were all worried about Disney when Iger left and you know what was going to happen or when Steve Jobs died. But in this case, I think you have other people behind the wheel.
06:36 Lisa Rich
I’m very close to some of their best people who run the launch, for example, and they have other goals at the company. They have the greatest team in the world. SpaceX has managed to attract the top 1% of employees, bar none.
06:55 Lisa Rich
I mean, I’d like to have their applicants, right? So I’m not worried.