2026.06.02 19:09

SpaceX employee #13# @_Eric_Romo describes the moment @elonmusk and SpaceX knew they had to become vertically integrated: "They're canonically so vertically integrated now. But at the time, we were outsourcing basically everything." "Any time we would need some new part built, it was like, 'Send the drawing to the vendor and get it built.'" " Maybe two weeks later, if you're lucky, you get this part back." "One of the [vendors] was always the quickest, pretty cost-effective, and very communicative. We were really reliant on this one." "I remember sitting in the bunker in Texas underground with @lrocket and the team, and we get a call from that vendor and he's like, 'Hey sorry, but we're shutting down. We're closing our doors.'" "We realize we have to go hire as many people from that vendor as we can, and we have to build up the internal capacity because that's what's going to help us iterate." " It's all stuff that seems super obvious now." "But in 2003, that was not so obvious at the time."

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Molly O’Shea@MollySOShea

2026.06.02 14:23

BREAKING: Impulse Space Raises $500M Series D Reaching $1+ Billion in Total Funding to Build In-Space Mobility Infrastructure aka "Move Things in Space" Full interview w/ President & COO Eric Romo (@_Eric_Romo) (SpaceX Employee #13#) Founder & CEO Tom Mueller (@lrocket) (SpaceX Employee #1#): "We're building more than spacecraft: we're building the economic & technical engine that will power humanity's expansion into space. From Earth orbit to the Moon & beyond, the ability to move quickly, precisely, & affordably on orbit is the fundamental capability that will unlock a true space age." We cover: → The $500M raise → Mira: precision maneuvering → Helios: same-day delivery → Caravan: GEO rideshare → Commercial vs defense → Space Force demand → SpaceX origins → Hiring 200+ roles The Series D was co-led by @137ventures & BANNER VC. Additional participating investors include Founder’s Fund, Lux Capital, & Linse Capital. 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐒 (00:00) Eric Romo, President & COO at Impulse Space (00:58) Fueling the next phase with a $500M Series D (04:30) Crossing the $1B funding mark (06:00) The freedom to execute (07:09) Why startups d*e from indigestion (08:30) Building beyond SpaceX (13:32) How defense became the real opportunity (16:19) Impulse’s product stack: Mira, Helios & Caravan (23:43) The economics of urgency (26:23) "Closer to a fighter jet than a tugboat" (30:40) The new era of space defense (37:33) The SpaceX DNA at Impulse (38:27) The biggest lesson from SpaceX (44:23) Hiring world class engineers (45:38) If not COO, then what? (46:43) The road to first Helios launch

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