The Drone Ultimatum

In this episode, Steve sits down with Dennis DeMeyere, Co-Founder and CEO of Autonomous Production. Manufacturing capacity has become a strategic advantage. As drones, autonomous systems, and precision weapons reshape modern warfare, the ability to produce at scale is becoming just as important as the technology itself. Dennis discusses how autonomous factories, AI-powered manufacturing systems, and distributed production networks could transform the defense industrial base. We explore lessons f

Jason Zins is the Founder and Managing Partner of Nomi Capital. Nomi Capital invests across defense, aerospace, manufacturing, space, energy, and national security technologies. Jason shares how his team evaluates defense startups, why they focus on later-stage companies, and what separates durable businesses from hype-driven investments. We discuss the current state of defense venture capital, manufacturing bottlenecks, the evolution of military technology, defense software, hypersonics, space

In this episode, Steve sits down with John "JD" Parkes, Founder and CEO of Parry Labs, and Amber Walker, Chief Growth Officer. Parry Labs develops mission-critical software and digital infrastructure that helps military systems communicate, integrate, and operate more effectively in contested environments. We discuss the evolution of military software, the push toward open architectures, the realities of defense acquisition, and why integration remains one of the hardest problems in defense. We

Zane Mountcastle is the co-founder and CEO of Picogrid, a defense technology company building the software and hardware infrastructure layer that connects drones, sensors, autonomous systems, and command platforms into unified operational networks. Learn more about our sponsor, Cushman & Wakefield (00:00) Intro (01:18) What Picogrid actually does (03:34) The integration problem across defense systems (07:02) Building infrastructure instead of one-off integrations (10:41) Deploying software insid

Ben Cipperley is the Chief Strategy Officer of HavocAI and a former Navy EOD officer who spent more than two decades in the Navy, including work on robotics, autonomy, and the Navy’s strategic modernization efforts. Follow Ben on LinkedIn Havoc AI Follow the show: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Weston Moyer and Jonathan Rue of MVP Ventures join The Drone Ultimatum to discuss defense tech investing, AI, robotics, aerospace, manufacturing, and what it takes for startups to scale in national security. 00:00:00 — Intro 00:02:13 — Anthropic and Pentagon AI concerns 00:07:16 — Saronic and defense manufacturing scale 00:08:46 — Guam and Pacific logistics 00:12:25 — Shahed drones and counter-UAS economics 00:14:04 — How defense sales actually work 00:29:38 — Anduril, Lattice, and defense softw