2026.07.16 19:31

Fmr SpaceX CIO Ken Venner joined in 2012 when it was *only* a $1B company. Today, post-IPO $SPCX briefly touched ~$3T in market cap.. "SpaceX wasn't a name. I had no idea who they are." All it took was a factory tour & @elonmusk's vision to "save humanity from itself by colonizing another planet" to win him on the mission. Here's the story behind why Ken took the job: "He invited me up one day to just do a tour of the factory. I wasn't looking for a job, but he invited me up. I did this tour of the factory, which is in Hawthorne, downtown LA-ish. Here they are building big metal objects supposedly cheaper than anyone else in the world in downtown LA, and I'm like, 'Well this is crazy.' But I have manufacturing in my blood. My entire career's been in manufacturing. I'm like, 'Well this is a pretty interesting place.' I have no idea who they are. I don't know what they do for a living, 'cause SpaceX wasn't a name back in those days, and they're an hour at least away from where I live. So he offered me a job, and I'm like, 'I don't know that I wanna drive an hour up to this place.' But it was such an interesting story that Elon was going to save humanity from itself by colonizing another planet, 'cause we're gonna screw this one up & we need to keep humankind going. And it was another scaling opportunity, so I thought about it, talked to my wife, and in the end decided to bite the bullet and take it. It was a great move." "Elon had hired me 'cause he wanted to build the digital nervous system for the 21st century rocket company."

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Molly O’Shea@MollySOShea

2026.07.15 14:23

BREAKING: @Senra_Systems Raises $65M Series B co-led by @lowercarbon & Interlagos Total funding hits $112M+ Full interviews: › Co-Founder & CEO @jordan__black › Ken Venner Chief Tech & Product Officer (fmr SpaceX CIO) › Factory tour Wire harnesses are the nervous system of every rocket, car, & missile. Up to 25% of a vehicle's cost, & still 100% built by hand. Senra Systems is rebuilding wire harness manufacturing around software. Series B participation from General Catalyst, Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, Dylan Field, CIV, 8VC, The Friedkin Group, Jaws Estates Capital, Sozo Ventures, & Alumni Ventures We cover: › $65M round & Factory 3 › Ken Venner on scaling Broadcom & SpaceX › Quitting SpaceX to build harnesses on an apartment carpet › Supplying the fastest-scaling defense companies in America › Amp, their operating system › Where the name Senra comes from 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐒 (00:00) Jordan Black, Co-Founder & CEO & Ken Venner, CTPO at Senra Systems (00:57) Senra raises a $65M Series B (01:36) What Senra Systems actually builds (05:18) Why they built two very different factories (07:00) The reindustrialization of America (09:09) Commercial vs. Government: who's really buying? (09:52) The origin story (17:35) Turning a 2-year training pipeline into 4 weeks (25:06) Bringing on SpaceX legend Ken Venner (29:23) Why Jordan became obsessed with wire harnessing (31:46) The investors betting big on wire harnesses (34:16) The real story behind the name "Senra" (36:49) Will the SpaceX IPO fuel Senra's growth? (39:32) Ken Venner (41:40) Scaling lessons from Broadcom and SpaceX (43:21) Why Ken left Broadcom for SpaceX (44:40) Life as SpaceX's CIO (46:11) The secret to Elon Musk's management style (47:15) What it's really like working with Gwynne Shotwell (51:28) Scaling with AI vs. pure headcount (55:04) Factory tour with Jordan

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