DIB Innovators

EP 66 — Albers Aerospace’s John Albers on Vertical Integration Approach Solving DIB Gaps

The defense industrial base faces a manufacturing crisis that goes far deeper than workforce shortages, and John Albers, President/CEO of Albers Aerospace has positioned his company at the center of solving it. He grew Albers Aerospace from solo systems engineering to a $10 million vertically integrated manufacturer through 12 strategic acquisitions, all funded internally without outside investment until late 2024. His approach reveals how speed, strategic diversification, and long-term thinking can build resilient defense manufacturing capabilities even as traditional approaches struggle with slow cycles and demographic challenges.
 
John tells Dave that he attributes his business philosophy to reading Warren Buffett's shareholder letters repeatedly after his first business venture failed. Rather than taking distributions, he focused on building company value through acquisitions that provided both capability and customer diversification. The strategy proved prescient as his company evolved from services into weapons manufacturing, now producing components for F-35, F-16, and multiple missile programs while maintaining aircraft integration capabilities through recent acquisitions.
 
Topics discussed:
 
Strategic acquisition approach that prioritizes customer value over traditional ROI calculations, resulting in 12 company purchases funded through internal cash flow and moderate leverage rather than external investment.
Advanced manufacturing integration combining robotics, digital engineering, and traditional machining to maintain competitiveness while addressing skilled workforce shortages through 21-hour automated operations.
Three-vertical business model balancing industrial manufacturing, defense services for predictable cash flow, and innovation incubation to develop scalable solutions across the organization.
Defense industrial base classification challenges where companies face punitive size restrictions that prevent natural growth from small to large contractor status, limiting competition and industrial capacity.
Workforce development crisis stemming from elimination of vocational training programs, creating artificial scarcity in trades that will drive wage premiums and entrepreneurial opportunities for skilled workers.
Leadership philosophy adaptation from military servant leadership principles to business contexts, emphasizing individual thinking and leadership at every organizational level rather than hierarchical command structures.
Weapons manufacturing diversification strategy touching major programs through specialized components rather than platform-specific focus, providing resilience against program cancellations and budget fluctuations.
Veteran transition challenges requiring complete professional identity reconstruction rather than translating military experience directly into civilian business contexts, emphasizing humility and continuous learning.
Manufacturing cycle management addressing the extended timelines from quoting through material procurement to delivery, requiring sophisticated financial planning and pricing strategies to maintain profitability.
Customer-centric problem solving approach that prioritizes understanding client pain points over presenting predetermined solutions, leveraging acquisition experience to maintain customer perspective throughout business growth.

EP 65 — Scientific Systems' Kunal Mehra on Affordable Mass Revolution

The Ukrainian conflict revealed a stark reality that should light a fire under American defense planners: modern warfare consumes weapons at rates that would exhaust our entire arsenal in months, not years. In his conversation with Dave on the latest DIB Innovators, Kunal Mehra, President of Scientific Systems, brings a unique perspective to solving this crisis, shaped by his family's experience fleeing partition-era India and his father's determination to strengthen democratic nations through advanced technology.
 
Kunal argues that our addiction to "exquisite systems" has created a fundamental mismatch between 20th century military thinking and 21st century threats. The solution requires abandoning the hardware-defined military model in favor of software-defined capabilities that can rapidly turn commercial platforms into effective weapon systems. Scientific Systems' CMA platform demonstrates this approach across three layers: individual platform navigation without GPS, collaborative swarm coordination, and cross-domain orchestration. This architecture has proven adaptable from sea floor to space, enabling autonomous kill chain closure from detection to engagement.
 
Topics discussed:
 
The affordable mass imperative and why exquisite systems fail against distributed threats across vast Pacific distances with adversaries achieving numerical superiority.
CMA software architecture's three-layer approach: platform-level navigation without GPS, swarm collaboration for complex missions, and cross-domain orchestration for autonomous kill chains.
How underwater development environments naturally replicate contested battlefield conditions, forcing edge-based AI decision making with limited communication and sensor data.
The acquisition system evolution from winner-take-all programs to separated software/hardware procurement with constant competition cycles every six months.
Strategic approaches to crossing the valley of death through end-user demonstration, congressional relationships, and clear value propositions to prime contractors.
Why the defense industrial base needs billion-dollar software companies with developers embedded in operational environments for real-time capability iteration.
The capital allocation shift as venture firms recognize defense market disruption opportunities beyond traditional West Coast unicorns.
Project Replicator and DIU methodologies for rapid capability fielding using OTAs and special authorities to bypass traditional acquisition timelines.
Dual-use technology applications in urban air mobility, industrial automation, and re-industrialization efforts requiring edge-based autonomy capabilities. 

EP 64 — HAVOCai’s Paul Lwin on Winning Through Asymmetric Naval Economics

When America's adversaries can outbuild us in ships, what's our strategic advantage? Paul Lwin, CEO & Co-founder of HAVOCai, shares how his company is revolutionizing maritime operations by creating affordable autonomous vessels that can operate in swarms. As a Myanmar refugee who first saw American uniforms during his evacuation at age 10, Paul brings a unique perspective to defense innovation, combining his military experience with Silicon Valley approaches to solving national security challenges.
 
On this episode of DIB Innovators, Paul tells Dave about how, in just 17 months, HAVOCai has delivered 31 autonomous vessels to the Department of Defense, generated $3 million in revenue without government R&D funding, and demonstrated capabilities that outpace competitors who've been in the space for over a decade. Their conversation highlights how defense startups are creating asymmetric advantages for America by leveraging commercial manufacturing capacity, off-the-shelf components, and sophisticated software to transform maritime operations in the Pacific.
 
Topics discussed:
 
Creating a strategy where adversaries must spend million-dollar missiles to target $100,000 autonomous boats, creating favorable cost exchanges in conflict scenarios.
Leveraging existing American manufacturing capacity and proven commercial components rather than building expensive custom solutions from scratch.
Developing software that enables small teams to control dozens of vessels simultaneously, creating true swarm capabilities rather than the 90% remote-controlled systems offered by competitors.
Abstracting away boat building to focus engineering resources on sophisticated algorithms that enable autonomous decision-making and collaborative behavior.
Implementing theatre-level, sector-level, and unit-level command structures that mirror traditional military organization while integrating autonomous capabilities.
Using autonomous vessels to resupply isolated units on island chains when traditional air logistics would be vulnerable to enemy fire.
Building resilience into autonomous systems that can continue missions for days or months without human input when adversaries jam communications.
Integrating COLREGS compliance for commercial environments while maintaining tactical capabilities for conflict scenarios.
Leveraging the unprecedented convergence of government acquisition reform, venture capital interest in defense, and Silicon Valley technical talent to accelerate innovation.
Creating logistics and manufacturing processes capable of delivering up to 10,000 vessels annually when required for operational deployment.

EP 63 — Method MFG’s Rhys Andersen on Bootstrapping a Machine Shop into Aerospace Manufacturing

When Rhys Andersen, Founder & CEO at Method MFG, moved to Texas with an architecture degree, he never imagined he'd end up machining components for spacesuits and rockets. Yet his journey from welding to founding his company exemplifies the untapped potential in American manufacturing. By combining cutting-edge technology with a focus on upskilling his entire team, Rhys has created a manufacturing environment that more closely resembles a tech company than a traditional machine shop — with white walls, white floors, and sophisticated software driving everything from quoting to production.
 
Rhys also shares with Dave his practical experience building a bootstrapped manufacturing company servicing aerospace and defense clients, including his counterintuitive approach to workforce development and the technologies revolutionizing production. His insights demonstrate why manufacturing's image problem is holding back America's industrial base, and how rebranding machining as the tech profession it truly is could help solve critical workforce shortages.
 
 
Topics discussed:
 
Bootstrapping a capital-intensive manufacturing business by purchasing used equipment at a fraction of the cost for new pieces, while supplementing income through with other work to fund the company's early growth.
The transformation of machining into a tech profession where white-collar programmers operate sophisticated 5-axis equipment and automation cells rather than traditional machine operators.
Creating comprehensive cross-training programs to eliminate single points of failure by ensuring every machinist can program and operate the company's most sophisticated equipment.
Leveraging technology as a multiplier through automation cells with robots that can change their own end effectors to handle everything from small vises to 900 kg pallets for unattended overnight production.
The critical role of process documentation using iPads in the shop to capture setup photos and detailed notes, creating an institutional knowledge repository that prevents "reinventing the wheel" with repeat jobs.
Strategic vertical integration decisions like building an in-house anodizing line to control quality and turnaround times for quick-turn aerospace components rather than relying on external vendors.
Managing complex stress patterns in large aerospace components by creating strategic relief cuts and adapting clamping approaches to ensure finished parts maintain tolerance despite internal material stresses.
The potential of AI-driven programming to automate routine aspects of CAM while allowing machinists to focus on more creative problem-solving and complex machining strategies.
Rebranding manufacturing careers through educational partnerships showing students that modern machining involves sophisticated software, 5-axis programming, and automation rather than traditional manual labor.  

EP 62 — Graham Manufacturing’s Matthew Malone on Why Defense Manufacturing Must Reinvest in IT

President & COO Matthew Malone's journey from solving locomotive failures in Indonesia to leading Graham Manufacturing offers rare insight into how technical expertise transforms into business leadership. In this episode of DIB Innovators, Matthew tells Dave how Graham bridges the innovation gap between rapid-iteration space technology and methodical defense requirements while manufacturing critical components for Columbia-class submarines and Ford-class carriers. His perspective challenges conventional thinking about workforce development, supply chain management, and the often-overlooked IT infrastructure that enables entire organizations to function effectively.
 
Topics discussed:
 
How technical problem-solving skills translate directly to business strategy, with Matthew's background in mechanical engineering enabling both relationship-building and physics-based risk management.
Strategies for convincing rapid-iteration innovators to work within methodical defense frameworks while using advanced computational fluid dynamics to redesign legacy systems.
How connecting 3D design environments directly to production eliminates paper-based processes, enabling much faster concept-to-prototype cycles and more efficient system architecture design.
Implementing apprenticeship programs for machinist development while restructuring teams around complementary strengths rather than searching for individual employees who can do it all. 
Treating suppliers as team members by extending resources, deploying manufacturing engineers to improve their processes, and working with government agencies to secure funding for dual-sourcing critical components.
Managing supply chain risks around rare earth metals for electrification and advanced power electronics, where component differences between vendors can be the difference between product success and failure.
The methodical process of demonstrating value to defense customers, from execution within existing structures to proposing improvements that deliver tangible benefits in cost, lead time, or obsolescence management.
Why many leaders focus exclusively on domain-specific capabilities while neglecting the critical systems that allow hundreds of employees to collaborate effectively across the organization. 

EP 61 — Agile’s Chris Pearson on Mastering Space Propulsion with 3D Printing & Test Innovation

The race to protect America's orbital assets is accelerating, and Agile Space Industries is providing the engines needed for rapid spacecraft maneuverability. In this episode of DIB Innovators, CEO Chris Pearson walks Dave through how decades-old chemical propulsion technology is finding new relevance as Space Force openly prepares for potential conflict in space. Through vertical integration combining additive manufacturing and in-house test facilities, Agile has achieved 50% annual growth, turning a garage operation into a company with $42 million in backlog.
 
Chris also shares his journey from UK space engineer to Colorado-based entrepreneur, building multiple successful companies before taking the helm at Agile. His insights on scaling hardware businesses through strategic funding combinations — from non-dilutive SBIR grants to strategic investments from defense primes — provide a masterclass in defense technology commercialization. As Agile expands with a new facility in Tulsa, Chris also offers candid perspectives on managing the cultural transition from innovative startup to production-focused manufacturer while maintaining the speed that gives them their edge in the market. 
 
Topics discussed:
 
How national security space requirements have shifted from satellite deployment to preparing for potential orbital conflict, creating demand for rapid-maneuverability propulsion.
The technical limitations of electric propulsion for military applications, with chemical propulsion providing the immediate thrust needed for threat response and evasive maneuvers.
Leveraging additive manufacturing to condense propulsion system development cycles from months to days by printing complex. geometries impossible with traditional subtractive manufacturing
Creating vertical integration through in-house test facilities that eliminate industry bottlenecks and enable rapid iteration between design and qualification testing.
Strategic capital raising approach combining non-dilutive funding, strategic investment, and commercial revenue to maintain favorable terms.
Balancing the triple funding strategy of government investment, commercial partner funding, and internal R&D to accelerate commercialization while maintaining IP ownership.
Managing organizational evolution from garage operation to volume manufacturer while retaining innovation speed and preventing analysis paralysis.
Building transparent customer relationships around risk management for first-of-kind space technologies, rather than promising unrealistic certainty in performance.
Diversifying from component supply to full propulsion systems and launch logistics services to capture more of the rapidly expanding space operations value chain.

EP 60 — Bazze’s Samuel Semwangu on How Commercial Intelligence Is Transforming Modern Warfare

Samuel Semwangu, CEO of Bazze, provides his insider perspective on the revolution happening in defense intelligence collection that most Americans aren't seeing. Bazze federates queries across dozens of commercial data vendors, delivering intelligence insights in seconds that previously took days. He also explains why the Ukraine war has become the ultimate proof point for commercial intelligence adoption and why our allies are moving faster than the US in embracing these technologies.
 
Samuel tells Dave his journey from spending a decade in the national security community to now at Bazze, highlighting the evolution of exclusive intelligence collection methods of the early 2000s that are now commercially available. His platform enables defense and intelligence organizations to pay only for the specific data they need rather than purchasing entire datasets that might go unused. Beyond technology, Samuel offers surprising insights into why personnel management systems and misaligned incentives are the true obstacles to defense innovation. 
 
Topics discussed:
 
The transformation of global intelligence gathering through commercially available data that was once exclusive to government agencies, with Bazze enabling access to two dozen commercial data sources through a single platform.
How Ukraine has become the definitive proof point for commercial intelligence adoption, demonstrating how commercially available satellite and cell phone data combined with affordable platforms can neutralize advanced military hardware.
Why US allies are adopting commercial intelligence technologies faster than the US: their budgets are smaller, and they're in the “splash zone" of Russia and China.
The structural problem of defense innovation funding, with only approximately 1% of the defense budget dedicated to innovative companies addressing critical national security challenges.
How the post-WWII personnel management system, with constant rotations and outdated incentives, actively works against innovation adoption in defense and intelligence communities.
The disincentivization of adopting unclassified technologies in intelligence organizations where career advancement is tied to conducting classified operations rather than filling intelligence gaps effectively.
Strategies for crossing the "valley of death" in defense tech by building partnerships with established players like Palantir, Valenvar, and Deloitte who are already embedded with target users.
The evolution of data partner relationships in defense tech, where Bazze provides value by establishing government contracts and paying data providers on a per-query basis, dramatically reducing their customer acquisition costs.
How AI is integrated into every element of Bazze's platform, enabling untrained analysts to accomplish in minutes what experienced analysts previously needed days or weeks to complete.

EP 59 — Lt. Gen. Nahom (USAF, ret) on Why Predictability Matters More Than Money in Military Readiness

In a rapidly changing geopolitical landscape, Lt. Gen. Nahom, (USAF, ret), brings invaluable perspective on how Arctic security, budget realities, and emerging technologies are reshaping military strategy. In this episode of DIB Innovators, Lt. Gen. Nahom offers Dave unique insights into why the Arctic has become a critical frontier for national security while climate change creates new opportunities for competition between major powers. 
 
His experience as the Air Force A8 provides a candid look at why the military struggles to rapidly adopt innovative technologies despite having seemingly large budgets and highlights the difficult trade-offs between maintaining aging fleets and investing in modernization. Lt. Gen. Nahom's firsthand account of the Chinese surveillance balloon incident reveals significant domain awareness gaps in detecting unconventional threats, while his strategic advice for small defense companies — partner directly with combatant commands rather than individual services — offers a practical roadmap for navigating the "valley of death" in defense innovation. 
 
Topics discussed:
How climate change is transforming the Arctic into a strategic battleground as retreating sea ice creates new shipping lanes that cut 10-14 days off transit between Asian and European ports, opening economic opportunities that bring competition and potential crisis.
The misconception about military budgets illustrated through the "pass-through" phenomenon, where intelligence agency funding appears in Air Force numbers but isn't actually controlled by the service, leaving single-digit percentage budget flexibility for innovation.
Why maintaining multiple aging aircraft fleets creates unsustainable weapon system sustainment costs, forcing difficult decisions about vertical fleet cuts to enable modernization.
The domain awareness challenges exposed by the Chinese balloon incident, highlighting gaps in detecting and responding to unconventional threats that don't match traditional expectations of attack vectors.
The cost asymmetry problem in modern warfare where adversaries deploy $1,000 drones that require $500,000 missiles to defeat, necessitating more cost-effective counter-UAS solutions.
Why small defense companies struggle to cross the "valley of death" from initial AFWERX/SBIR funding to program of record, requiring partnerships between combatant commands and OSD to secure additional funding pathways.
The critical need for predictability in maintenance and training schedules for aging fleets, which can dramatically improve aircraft availability and readiness virtually overnight when implemented correctly.
How data integration rather than new platforms will transform warfare by 2030, enabling legacy systems like B-52s to work seamlessly with advanced platforms by closing hundreds if not thousands of kill chains inside a vulnerability period.
The strategic imperative of reducing fleet types from seven distinct fighter fleets to four to cut maintenance and logistics costs while enabling faster modernization.
The contrasting lessons from Ukraine and Israel conflicts versus the "ultimate away game" in the South China Sea, where geographic distances create fundamentally different operational challenges that many technological solutions from current conflicts won't address.

EP 58 — Advanced Space’s Bradley Cheetham on Using Orbital Mechanics to Cut Mission Costs

Advanced Space CEO & President Bradley Cheetham's journey from a PhD student at CU Boulder to successfully putting a satellite around the moon demonstrates how small, innovative companies can lead space exploration with minimal capital. In this episode of DIB Innovators, Bradley shares with Dave how his 14-year journey began with a purpose to enable the sustainable exploration, development, and settlement of space. 
 
Rather than building hardware, his team focused on creating technologies, capabilities, software, and mission design solutions that didn't require giant rocket factories or satellite production facilities. This approach led to operating the CAPSTONE mission (Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation experiment): a microwave-sized satellite that's been orbiting the moon for over two years in a novel orbit never used before, pathfinding NASA's Artemis program for under $30 million without outside investment.
 
Topics discussed:
 
The counterintuitive approach of focusing on enabling technologies instead of hardware manufacturing, allowing Advanced Space to grow from 12 to 100 people and reach the moon without venture capital by reinvesting customer revenue into strategic capability development.
How Advanced Space's focus on advanced astrodynamics reduced mission costs by 75%, transforming what would have been a $120M+ traditional mission into a sub-$30M pathfinder by designing transfer orbits that accommodate smaller spacecraft with less fuel.
How the Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System (CAPS) solves the Deep Space Network's bandwidth limitations by establishing satellite-to-satellite communication, successfully demonstrated by linking with the decade-old Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter that was never designed for such interaction.
Why this unprecedented orbit solves multiple lunar mission challenges simultaneously, providing constant Earth visibility, minimizing solar eclipses to prevent spacecraft freezing, enabling access to any point on the lunar surface, and facilitating efficient Earth-Moon transfers.
How Advanced Space recovered from two near-mission-ending anomalies by leveraging NASA partnerships and attempting never-before-tried techniques, including successfully freezing and thawing propellant in space when conventional recovery methods failed.
Advanced Space's years-long development of machine learning and neural networks for satellite operations, moving beyond theoretical applications to successfully demonstrating these technologies in lunar orbit two years before the current AI boom.
Why the future of lunar exploration depends less on individual mission capabilities and more on developing autonomous operations, communications networks, and navigation systems that can overcome Earth-based infrastructure limitations as mission frequency increases.

EP 57 — Cyber Resilience at the Crossroads [Webinar]

The security landscape has radically transformed from counter-terrorism to strategic competition with nation states who are actively positioning cyber assets to disable American infrastructure during potential conflicts. In this vital discussion examining National Security Memorandum 22 (NSM-22), Gen. VanHerck, former Commander of United States Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command, shares that 80% of force projection in any global crisis flows from homeland facilities dependent on civilian infrastructure — from local energy grids to transportation networks, creating an unprecedented vulnerability that adversaries are exploiting daily. 
 
Kevin Phillips, Chairman of the Board of ManTech, provides a rare insider perspective on how nation states have spent decades mapping defense industrial base networks, explaining that it's safe to assume that no matter what size you are, you're on somebody's radar and detailing his 10-year journey implementing zero trust architecture to counter these threats. 
 
Mark Montgomery, Sr. Director & Sr. Fellow at Foundation for Defense of Democracies, delivers the most alarming assessment: China's Volt Typhoon campaign has already embedded malware throughout rail, aviation, ports, and power grids as operational preparation of the battlefield. All this and more on this special episode of DIB Innovators! 
 
Topics discussed:
 
The transition from cyber espionage to operational battlefield preparation by nation-state actors targeting the 80% of military deployment capabilities that rely on civilian infrastructure, creating a dual vulnerability where domestic critical systems become frontline targets.
Implementing a decade-long zero trust architecture strategy that systematically eliminates technical debt, narrows network footprints, and implements micro-segmentation before attempting advanced security measures—a methodology proven successful at Mantech.
Why China's Volt Typhoon operation represents a fundamental shift in cyber warfare tactics, embedding dormant capabilities throughout transportation, energy and communications networks as part of a deliberate 25-year strategy following the 1995-96 Taiwan Strait crisis.
The critical flaw in NSM-22's approach to critical infrastructure protection through its failure to establish mandatory prioritization criteria for the approximately 500 most vital national assets, while simultaneously dismantling effective public-private collaboration frameworks.
How living off the land attack techniques have evolved to mimic legitimate network traffic patterns, requiring organizations to make network penetration prohibitively expensive through comprehensive identity management and application control rather than relying on detection.
The operational reality that SMBs face existential threats from cyber incidents with only 4-8 weeks of financial float while remediation typically requires 3-4 weeks, exemplified by the $4 billion emergency Medicare advance during the Change Healthcare attack that still resulted in $1 billion taxpayer losses.
The strategic use of cloud services and infrastructure-as-a-service models to maintain current patching and upgrades when internal operations lack capacity, creating resilience against nation-state threats that specifically target update delays and technical vulnerabilities.
Addressing the asymmetric security gap where government would respond to physical attacks on critical infrastructure but companies are left to defend themselves against sophisticated cyber attacks from the same actors, potentially requiring National Guard cyber response teams instead of relying solely on CISA hurt teams.
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