In this episode of Deep Tech LIVE, SOSV and Women Moving Markets present: “Commercializing Deep Tech for Industrial Resilience.” SOSV General Partner Katie Hoffman sits down with Dr. Vanessa Chan, former Chief Commercialization Officer at the U.S. Department of Energy and now Vice Dean of Innovation at Penn Engineering, and Dr. Susan Schofer, Chief Science Officer at HAX and Partner at SOSV.

The conversation dives into the real-world roadmap for deep tech startups, from lab to market, and all the things you should’ve learned in your PhD program, but didn’t.

Tune in for insights on:

🔹 Why Adoption Readiness Levels (ARLs) may be the most important framework you’ve never heard of

🔹 How public-private partnerships are unlocking billions—and how startups can get a better seat at the table

🔹What it takes to win over the market when you’re buried deep in the value chain

🔹 And how paths that started in academia can lead to industry, government and venture capital - with stops at QVC and The Today Show along the way.

From hydrogen hubs to industrial resilience, this episode is a masterclass for anyone involved in the Deep Tech Ecosystem and interested in the keys to commercialization.

Check out this fascinating conversation between SOSV General Partner Pae Wu and Steve Isakowitz, CEO of the Aerospace Corporation, a leading architect for the nation’s space programs, operating in the civil, national security and commercial realms.

In this episode, Pae Wu talks with Isakowitz about his illustrious career, which spans 𝐍𝐀𝐒𝐀, where he helped open the door to the commercialization of space, to 𝐕𝐢𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧 𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜, where he raised $𝟏 𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧, to government jobs at the OMB and DOE, to his current role helming Aerospace.

Isakowitz shares unique perspectives on:

- The unparalleled demands of space tech

- The rapid evolution in the category, where startups are breaking barriers

- Whether the future of space innovation will depend more on software than hardware

- How asymmetric technologies and commercial space are reshaping global conflicts

- And where the next massive opportunities for space startups will be.

From billion-dollar government contracts to Silicon Valley startups rewriting the rules, this episode reveals how the new space race is reshaping innovation, national security, and our daily lives on Earth.

"Startups, Space, and Boundless Frontiers," with Steve Isakowitz, on SOSV Deep Tech LIVE.

SOSV Deep Tech LIVE is our new video podcast exploring the frontiers of Deep Tech with the world’s top technologists, founders, and researchers.

Coming up on the next episode of SOSV Deep Tech LIVE...

There’s no deep tech tougher than space tech—and no commercialization frontier more vast than what lies beyond the Kármán line. In a one-on-one conversation, 𝐀𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐂𝐄𝐎 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐈𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐳 joins 𝐃𝐫. 𝐏𝐚𝐞 𝗪𝐮 (SOSV GP & IndieBio CTO) to explore:

✨ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 – tackling extreme radiation, zero gravity, and mind-boggling speeds 🚀

📈 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐝 𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐲 – where startups are breaking barriers 🌌

🤝 𝐀𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞’𝐬 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐬 – bridging the gap between private innovation & government needs 🛰️

This promises to be a fascinating conversation! 𝐈𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐳’𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐍𝐀𝐒𝐀, where he helped open the door to the commercialization of space, to 𝐕𝐢𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧 𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜, where he raised $𝟏 𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧 and positioned the private space venture as a leader in space tourism and micro-gravity research.

At 𝐀𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞, a leading architect for the nation’s space programs, Isakowitz leads a team of more than 𝟒,𝟔𝟎𝟎 as they work alongside government and industry partners to 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 while nurturing the innovative technologies needed to further a new era of 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. This includes a strong focus on 𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 and helping drive 𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 coming out of the 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦.

💡 With 𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝟐𝟎𝐱, startups are unlocking new cosmic possibilities:

🌕 Permanent moon colonies

🚀 Human exploration of Mars

🌎 Advanced climate monitoring

🛰️ Giant space stations

💊 Zero-G pharmaceutical breakthroughs

Let’s talk 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞, 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡! 🌍➡️🌌

🌠 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧-𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 on the 𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐝 𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 and how 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐞𝐫𝐚 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

#SpaceTech #DeepTech #Startups #Innovation #Aerospace #CommercialSpace

Welcome to SOSV Deep Tech Live, where we explore the frontiers of Deep Tech with the world’s top technologists, founders, and researchers. Our moderators are the general partners of SOSV, “the First Check in Deep Tech,” a venture dedicated to human and planetary health.

In this premiere episode - “From the IRA to 'Drill Baby Drill.' What Now?” - we dive deep into the policies and politics of the energy transition with Dr. Jesse Jenkins, a world-renowned expert in energy systems modeling, grid decarbonization, and U.S. climate policy.

A professor at Princeton University, co-host of Shift Key, and Leader of Princeton’s Zero Lab, Dr. Jenkins has been described by Time Magazine as "the scorekeeper for American efforts to transition to clean energy,” and “the wonkiest and most effective of the number crunchers…”

Moderating the conversation, SOSV General Partners Duncan Turner and Katie Hoffman—leaders of HAX, SOSV’s Hard Tech program.

Together, they unpack some of the most critical questions of our time:

• What did the Biden administration’s climate push really accomplish?
• How have the Trump administration’s policies already changed everything?
• Where has investment in clean energy created unstoppable momentum, and where could uncertainty and funding freezes send things off the rails?

We also explore:

• How the AI boom is reshaping electricity demand
• Why “drill, baby, drill” could unintentionally spark a geothermal renaissance
• Whether tariffs and trade policies will help or hinder America’s industrial future, and
• How startups can survive and thrive in these uncertain times.

From the bottlenecks stalling clean energy deployment to the hidden power of public utility commissions, this episode is packed with insights for anyone following the high-stakes battle over energy dominance, climate action, and deep tech innovation.

“From the IRA to 'Drill Baby Drill.' What Now?” with Dr. Jesse Jenkins, on SOSV Deep Tech LIVE…

Tune in for the premiere episode of SOSV Deep Tech LIVE: “From the IRA to 'Drill Baby Drill.' What Now?” featuring Princeton’s Dr. Jesse Jenkins on the energy transition

Moderating the conversation, Katie Hoffman, SOSV General Partner and member of our HAX program team along with Duncan Turner, SOSV GP and Managing Director of our HAX Program

The conversation with Dr. Jenkins could not come at a more critical moment. The Trump administration is overturning most of the Biden renewable energy agenda and promising to “drill baby drill.” At the same time, there is no disputing the fast rising demand for electricity, our badly outdated transmission grid, the huge momentum in nuclear and geo-thermal, and the worsening impact of climate change. How much did Biden accomplish, and how will markets and politics ultimately shape Trump’s policies? We’re eager to hear from Dr. Jenkins on those topics and much more.

This is the first in SOSV’s new Deep Tech LIVE event series, which features top technologists, researchers, and founders working on the frontiers of deep tech. The events will be live-streamed online and available later on-demand.

“From the IRA to 'Drill Baby Drill.' What Now?” - On Deep Tech LIVE, from SOSV

Tune in to the live stream on LinkedIn Live February 20 at 6pm ET

More about SOSV and our HAX and IndieBio programs