Aetherflux

Derrek Reggie Drachenberg recently joined us as a Principal Laser Engineer. He brings nearly two decades of experience in directed energy and LiDAR. At Aetherflux, he will develop advanced laser systems to transport energy from space-based solar arrays to ground stations on Earth. Our mission is to deliver energy to planet Earth. We’re focused on addressing the United States Department of Defense’s urgent energy challenges. With space solar power, we can deliver energy where it’s needed most, especially in contested environments, where traditional power delivery is expensive, complex, and dangerous. Before Aetherflux, Reggie worked at Cruise where he led a team developing short-range LiDAR technology for future autonomous vehicles. Before that, he worked on novel approaches to high-power directed energy applications, developing VBG-based spectral beam combining systems at CREOL, The College of Optics & Photonics, at UCF, and advancing ribbon-shaped fiber lasers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where he also led the development of diagnostic systems for a facility-scale high-power laser. Welcome, Reggie!

Please welcome Bill Simpson to Aetherflux! Bill joins us from SpaceX’s Starlink, where he served as a Lead Engineer and Software Manager, developing critical Flight Dynamics systems for thousands of Starlink satellites. At Aetherflux, Bill will help build a team of space networking, hardware, and firmware engineers to advance our mission to deliver energy to planet Earth. We're taking a new approach to space solar power, focusing first on providing operational energy to the United States Department of Defense, which has complex and urgent energy needs. With space solar power, we can deliver energy to remote, contested environments where it's otherwise expensive, challenging, or dangerous to get energy.? With over 30 years of experience in the aerospace and defense industry, Bill has worked with organizations including the U.S. Special Operations Forces and Lockheed Martin. Bill's tenure at Starlink included significant contributions on the classified side of operations in partnership with Sandia National Laboratories, working in highly secure, mission-critical environments. As the founder and CEO, and later CTO, of Braxton Technologies Inc., he led the development and deployment of software that launched and maintained the GPS satellite constellation for the Air Force, now United States Space Force. Welcome to the team, Bill!

Proud to see Aetherflux on the list. If you want to build the future of energy with Baiju Bhatt, we're hiring.

We're proud to be on Andreessen Horowitz's American Dynamism 50, a list of companies working to strengthen our national security. At Aetherflux, we're transforming energy generation and energy delivery. By delivering energy to forward operating bases, especially in contested environments, we can give our military a decisive operational advantage, untethered by complex or dangerous supply chains. ???? Join us: https://lnkd.in/emvER4in https://lnkd.in/e4KyK2M8

We joined the popular deep tech show, First Principles, to talk energy security, technical challenges with space solar power, Magic the Gathering, and more. Topics & timestamps ?? 00:00 — Why is the Robinhood co-founder starting a space company? 05:11 — Introducing Aetherflux: the American energy grid in orbit 10:30 — The energy cost & energy opportunity 18:24 — “You’re not a space company until you have something in space.” 20:12 — What are the hardest parts of engineering this product? 25:27 — Figuring out how to build a hyper-ambitious company from zero 28:06 — How do you get from a demo to the ultimate vision? 32:25 — “What’s an industry that could exist, that doesn’t exist right now?” 35:28 — American innovation is a juggernaut 39:23 — Expeditionary power for the Department of Defense & disaster response 44:50 — The analogy between Robinhood and Aetherflux 47:41 — Assigned watching, playing, and reading from Baiju Thank you for having Baiju Bhatt on the show, Christian Keil.

Yesterday at IDGA’s Operational Energy Summit, we joined 200+ operational and installation energy leaders from the United States Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), allied military, industry, and academic groups to discuss complex and urgent energy needs. Our Founder joined Sharon B., Former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Operational Energy, Department of Defense, to talk about how space solar power can deliver energy, day or night, where our forces need it most.

A big milestone for Aetherflux: The United States Department of Defense's Operational Energy Capability Improvement Fund (OECIF) announced it approved Aetherflux’s program, AETHER, for funding to develop space solar power for the U.S. military. We're committed to working with the U.S. government to deliver this emerging technology – this is just the start. ????

A big milestone for Aetherflux: The Department of Defense's Operational Energy Capability Improvement Fund (OECIF) announced it approved Aetherflux’s program, AETHER, for funding to develop space solar power for the U.S. military. OECIF invests in science and technology efforts that promote long term improvements to military capabilities aligned to operational energy strategy. Space solar power represents a strategic military advantage that can transform military operations. By delivering reliable energy, day or night, in contested environments, we can protect warfighter lives, safeguard military assets, and save taxpayer money that would otherwise be at risk. We're committed to working with the U.S. Government to deliver this emerging technology – this is just the start. We're hiring: Opto-Mechanical Engineer, Thermal Engineer, Laser Engineer, Precision Pointing Engineer, Sr. Technical Recruiter: https://lnkd.in/g4j85AqX https://oecif.org/

????? At Aetherflux, we don’t pause construction for a podcast interview. With electrical work and clean room expansion underway, our CEO Baiju Bhatt talked with CNBC about our new approach to space solar power, the underlying technology that makes it possible today, and our path to next year’s Mission 1 demonstration. Listen on Spotify: https://lnkd.in/e-fCigbD Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/eS9Cs3yM Join us: https://lnkd.in/emvER4in Morgan L Brennan, thank you for having us on the podcast and for the flexibility as we built out our clean room!

Robinhood co-founder Baiju Bhatt started building?Aetherflux?last year. He's capturing solar power in space and beaming it anywhere on Earth (with lasers!) Its a big undertaking, and he explains why its closer to reality than science fiction. Head to the comments for a link to the full 75 minute conversation going deep on how the tech works and their early roadmap, plus we get into the early days of Robinhood, from their accidental launch, to struggling to raise money, and Baiju’s philosophies on combining qualitative and quantitative user research.