Nathaniel Salander

[Nathaniel Salander @NateSalander]

Thanks @ADoricko and @isaiah_p_taylor for the space, and @soren_ma for the flight demo and materials

[Apollo Defense @apollo_defense]

El Segundo Defense Tech Hackathon Review
Apollo is proud to have hosted the defense technology event that facilitated:

1) Defense technology companies hiring dozens of engineers
2) Representation of billions of dollars of capital from venture capital firms
3) Multiple defense startups being formed and funded
4) Technology transfer and funding of multiple products to Ukrainian mission partners
5) Tens of millions of impressions on X

This event was a microcosm of a new era of American primacy – one where patriotism in technology is normalized and encouraged.

It was a privilege to bring together military partners, defense technology startups, students, prospective founders, Ukrainian partners, and venture capital firms to build for the national interest – this is how wars are won.

A timeline:

2 PM @catbuchatskiy opened the event by grounding participants in the import of their work - ‘The Patron Saint of Ukraine today is the roaring gospel of Javelins, Stingers, and HIMARS’

2 PM @ADoricko & @isaiah_p_taylor encouraged a return to a new American Gilded Age, where optimism permeates every aspect of a free society.

5 PM @johncoogan reflected on Peter Thiel’s Zero to One and explained that the next large defense technology startup might be orthogonal to the industry.

5 PM - 2 PM Teams consisting of existing founders, undergraduates from engineering schools across the country, military personnel, and representatives from defense technology startups built solutions immediately relevant to the warfighter

12 AM - Our engineers consulted directly with personnel from the Ukrainian military to tweak their solutions to the gaps in the frontline

Apollo is proud to announce that we are facilitating a technology transfer and follow-up funding for multiple prototypes developed at the hackathon to directly make an impact on the front

11 AM - Nathan Mintz reviewed his lessons learned after scaling defense unicorn Epirus and now Spartan Radar

2 PM - We selected our winner, Cloud, a group of young engineers from MIT that built non-interceptable laser communication systems for drone swarms, technology that will save lives on the frontlines by keeping operators far away from danger

Apollo is especially grateful to @8vc, @join_ef, and @NSIN_us for co-hosting this event. We wouldn’t have been able to pull this off without their experience and relentless advocacy.

We would also like to thank all our fantastic sponsors, @foundersfund, @hello_valhalla, @RainmakerCorp, @trueventures, @elsegundocity, @GundersonLaw, @chapterone, @ShinkeiSystems

As conflict stirs worldwide, this hackathon was a respite from the standard institutional pessimism.

[Nathaniel Salander @NateSalander]

@JTLonsdale @8vc Thanks for co-hosting alongside @apollo_defense

[Atoms Not Bits @AtomsNotBits]

This weekend, we witnessed the future of defense being built atom by atom.

Insane 24 Hours: El Segundo Defense Tech Hackathon.

Thanks to @apollo_defense, @8vc, @join_ef, @NSIN_us, @rasmusdeymeyer @tommyjtietjen, @NateSalander,@RainmakerCorp, @ADoricko, @valaratomics, @0xPHBD, @anishgoel_, @the_simonpastor, @MichaelJGTZ, & @isaiah_p_taylor

[Nathaniel Salander @NateSalander]

Thanks @KTmBoyle @Andercot for covering and helping with this - to win, we need all hands on deck to fight for freedom wherever it is threatened.

Thanks also to @8vc @join_ef for co-leading this event alongside @apollo_defense (cc: @tommyjtietjen @rasmusdeymeyer)

[Katherine Boyle @KTmBoyle]

“The story being told in Gundo is a compelling one:

Build for your country, Build for your family. Focus on things that are real.
Work hard, work out, live clean.
Call bullshit where you see it.”

Amen. 🇺🇸💪🚀

[Andrew Côté @Andercot]

Organizers @apollo_defense did a fantastic job bringing together a room full of talented students, defense industry engineers, and investors.

Teams built through the night and even had calls with members of the Ukrainian defense ministry who were keen to see and use the results

[Nathaniel Salander @NateSalander]

@zanemountcastle Circa 345 am