Real-time Satellite Data, AI Learning and More with Planet Labs CEO Will Marshall 7/18/25

Planets Labs CEO Will Marshall joins Manifest Space to discuss the company’s rapid growth, fueled by deals across the globe as the changing geopolitical landscape means countries are looking for real-time data from satellites to respond to natural disasters, security threats and more. Planet Labs stock is up more than 100% in the last three months and Marshall talks about the demand for his company’s product.  

Hadrian, a defense manufacturing startup focused on machine parts, has closed a $260 million Series C funding round. Led by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund and Lux Capital, the capital will go towards building a 270,000 square foot factory in Arizona and expanding its California footprint. CEO Chris Power joins to discuss the raise, reviving American manufacturing and where defense tech goes from here.

Varda Space, an in-space manufacturing startup, has just raised $187 million in a Series C round led by Natural Capital and Shrug Capital. Since its inception four years ago, Varda has completed three successful missions, with a fourth in orbit and fifth expected by the end of 2025. Co-founder & CEO Will Bruey joins Morgan Brennan to discuss drug manufacturing in microgravity, hypersonic testing and more.

Axiom Space recently launched its fourth private crew mission to the International Space Station. AX-4-- sponsored by India, Poland and Hungary-- lifted off from Florida in a SpaceX capsule last week and is currently completing a two-week tour on the ISS. It was the first mission under CEO Tejpaul Bhatia, a serial entrepreneur with experience from Google, who took the helm at Axiom Space earlier this year. He joins Morgan Brennan to discuss the mission, alongside the company's development of its own commercial space station and lunar space suits for Prada.

Morgan sits down with Pete Cannito, CEO of Redwire, and Kirk Konert, Managing Partner at, AE Industrial -- one of the few aerospace private equity firms out there--to discuss Redwire’s game-changing acquisition of Edge Autonomy and how it transforms the company. The conversation explores how drones, AI, and autonomous systems are reshaping modern warfare, the growing investment in defense tech, and the role of space in global deterrence strategies. Cannito and Konert share insights on navigating this dynamic landscape and seizing a trillion-dollar market opportunity. 

Voyager Technologies, a commercial space and defense technology startup, has gone public. Skyrocketing more than 80% in its first day trading at the New York Stock Exchange, it reflects a milestone for the broader space. Co-founder & CEO Dylan Taylor joins Morgan Brennan from the stock exchange to talk about the new frontier for the company and space economy: Wall Street. 

CNBC’s Morgan Brennan sits down with Applied Intuition Co-founder and CEO Qasar Younis to discuss the company’s work to bring AI to more civilian and military vehicles, and the important of American innovation in the space as global competition heats up.

Zeno Power, a nuclear battery startup, has just raised $50 million in a Series B funding round to bring its nuclear battery to market. The startup has secured more than $60 million in contracts from the Pentagon and NASA to develop these batteries for maritime and space applications. Co-founder & CEO Tyler Bernstein joins Morgan Brennan to discuss delivering nuclear energy to remote locations

Trimble is one of the biggest software companies in the S&P 500 you’ve never heard of. Getting its start 50 years ago with what would become GPS, the company is now implementing AI to manage over a trillion dollars’ worth of construction, freight & more contract work. Following the Nasdaq’s Space Capital Conference, Trimble CEO Rob Painter joins Morgan Brennan to discuss how his company is harnessing technology from space to drive innovation and productivity on earth.

Once the stuff of science fiction, moon mining is getting government backing. Seattle-based startup Interlune—a previous guest of the podcast— came out of stealth last year. Its mission: to harvest resources from the moon. Now, they’re ready to announce their first customers. The Department of Energy has purchased three liters of lunar-extracted helium-3 for a delivery by 2029. A nuclear energy byproduct, Helium-3 is useful for cryogenics, medical equipment and fusion power—but its scarcity comes with a hefty price tag at $20 million per kilogram. Interlune CEO Rob Meyerosn joins Morgan Brennan to discuss the massive opportunity in moon mining.