Fall Summit, Fundings: Electra, EpiSci, Cailabs
13 December 2022 - A Weekly Publication by New North Ventures
Mark your calendars for Fall 2023 for the High Consequence Leadership Summit brought to you by New North Ventures. We are bringing together top performers from the business world, special operations community, and pro-sports. The summit will explore parallels between these communities and pushing the boundaries of what is possible to win. You won’t want to miss this summit in Virginia Beach, home to Naval Special Warfare Group 2 and its SEAL Teams 2, 4, 8, 10 and 18.
We Need Consequential Leadership at all Levels in Momentus Times
“With this awareness of seeing the world as it is – in clear focus that the dynamics have shifted to economic raw power – we can lead together as a private-public partnership. We need to shift our collective message to clearly state that economic security is now national security as we confront this new geoeconomic order.” - Brett Davis
Founded: 2020
Key People: Founded by Dr. Sandeep Nijhawan
Elevator Pitch: Alternative steelmaking technology focused on electrifying and decarbonizing steelmaking using renewable energy with zero carbon dioxide emissions.
Funding: The company raised $57 million of venture funding in a deal led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures on December 11, 2022. BHP Ventures alongside 9 other investors also participated in the round.
Founded: 2012
Key People: Founded by Dr. Bo Ryu
Elevator Pitch: Synergistic system intended for future military and commercial applications, utilizing artificial intelligence, digital signal processing, and software-defined network systems. Focus on autonomous multi-UAV control and software-defined radio technologies and products.
Funding: The company raised an undisclosed amount of venture funding from RTX Ventures on December 8, 2022.
Founded: 2013
Key People: Co-founded by Dr. Jean-Francois Morizur, Guillaume Labroille, and Nicolas Treps
Elevator Pitch: Photonics products designed to reshape coherent light beams. Specialization in light manipulators that offer a large range of light-shaping components based on patented, efficient, and flexible technology of multi-plane laser conversion.
Funding: Starquest Capital sold a stake in the company to an undisclosed buyer. Previously, the company raised EUR 26 million of Series C venture funding in a deal led by NewSpace Capital on December 8, 2022. Safran Corporate Ventures, Crédit Agricole Ille et Vilaine Expansion, Innovacom, Starquest Capital and Bpifrance also participated in the round.
US Says Scientists Make Breakthrough in Nuclear Fusion Energy
Researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory near San Francisco were able produce a fusion reaction that generated more energy than it consumed. This is a major milestone for nuclear fusion energy as it proves that in the future we might be capable of harnessing the process that powers stars in commercial power plants on Earth.
In the experiment, lasers were used to bombard hydrogen isotopes held in a superheated plasma state in order to fuse them into helium, releasing a neutron and carbon-free energy in the process.
Previously in nuclear fusion experiments-which require a significant amount of power-the power needed to generate a fusion reaction has been greater than the energy produced. This net-energy-gain is a remarkable development.
While the results represent a breakthrough, there is still a long way to creating a viable technology, let alone delivering enough clean energy to help wean the world off fossil fuels.
Quantum Computing Cybersecurity Act Passes Senate
The Senate has passed their bipartisan Quantum Computing Cybersecurity Preparedness Act to strengthen national security by preparing the federal government’s defenses against quantum-computing-enabled data breaches.
The legislature will require the government to inventory its cryptographic systems, determine which are most at risk from quantum computing, and upgrade those systems accordingly.
The act will primarily control actions taken by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Including: prioritizing the acquisition and migration of federal agencies’ IT to post-quantum cryptography, guidance to assess critical systems after post-quantum cryptography standards have been issued, and annual reports to Congress that include risks, required funding, and whole-of-government coordination following the migration.
HawkEye 360 to launch satellites on Rocket Lab’s first mission from U.S. soil
NASA is launching an Electron rocket on Thursday, Dec. 15. that will be visible for those on the East Coast from Maine to Northern Georgia. It will be the first Rocket Lab Electron to launch from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia.
HawkEye 360 uses radio-frequency data analytics to geolocate electronic emissions and draw insights. Its satellites observe signal waveforms and downlinks the data to a cloud system on the ground where it’s analyzed. The data is used to detect activities such as illegal fishing or GPS jamming.
The rocket will deploy Hawkeye360’s next three “Cluster 6” satellites. The Cluster 6 satellites will fly to an inclined orbit to boost revisits over the mid-latitude regions of the globe. Once Cluster 6 is operational, HawkEye 360 says it will be able to collect RF data as frequently as every hour anywhere in the world.
Look for a new episode of Securing the Future Podcasts wherever you listen. In our latest episode we have guest Laura Thomas of ColdQuanta, sit down with General Partner Brett Davis for an engaging conversation on the future of quantum and national security. Listen below on Spotify.
