TechTalks, Meetups, and More

The Business of Satellites:
Now and Things to Come

Hacker Dojo, Mountain View, CA
Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016, 6:30 to 8:30 pm
Chris Stott
CEO, ManSat, Isle of Man

AIAA SF/SVSC TechTalk:

Sign-up on EventBrite.

The satellite industry is so interwoven into people’s
lives around the world that they don’t even know it.
Yet with launch costs in steep decline and new
technologies coming on line, the architecture of
commercial satellites is changing.
As a result, the business of building, launching,
and operating satellites is changing as well.
Chris Stott has decades of experience in the
satellite industry, and has a unique broad
perspective of the industry.
TechTalks and more

The Phase Four CubeSat Ambipolar Thruster

Hacker Dojo, Mountain View, CA
Monday, Dec. 14, 2015, 6:30 to 8:30 pm
Simon Halpern and J. P. Sheehan
Phase Four, Pasadena, CA

Phase Four’s CubeSat Ambipolar Thruster (CAT) is a
plasma propulsion device designed to be small,
low mass, and low power. No metal parts are exposed
to the plasma, which is shaped by a magnetic field.
It can use a range of propellants, including iodine and water.

Applications include: nanosat extended time on orbit,
formation flying, interplantary exploration, etc.

Recent AIAA SF/SVSC TechTalk:

Sign-up on EventBrite.
More at Phase Four.
TechTalks, Meetups, and More

ISEE-3 Reboot

Hacker Dojo, Mountain View, CA
Monday, Nov. 9, 2015, 6:30 to 8:30 pm
Dennis Wingo and Marco Colleluori
SkyCorp, Moffett Field, CA
Originally launched in 1978, ISEE-3 studied the Earth's
magnetic field and the solar wind. In 1985, it became the
first spacecraft to visit a comet. Its NASA mission ended
in 1997. In 2014, the crowd-funded ISEE-3 Reboot effort
re-established contact with the spacecraft, turned on
telemetry, and restarted propulsion after 27 years.

Recent AIAA SF/SVSC TechTalk:

Sign-up on EventBrite.
ISS ENTREPRENEURIAL OPPORTUNITIES

The Center for Advancement of Science in Space
(CASIS) and Silicon Valley Space Center (SVSC)
held a 3-day workshop* designed to find
solutions and opportunities, and lower barriers
for entrepreneurs in the Low Earth Orbit and
NewSpace industries.

Chosen by NASA to manage the International Space
Station U.S. National Laboratory, the mission of
CASIS is to maximize use of this unparalleled
platform to benefit humankind. SVSC a business
accelerator and hub of entrepreneurial activity in
the growing NewSpace industry in Silicon Valley.

In addition to presentations and panels, attendees
participated in challenges and questions about
lowering barriers in the NewSpace industry.

* Workshop dates: October 18-20, 2013.

Event Agenda (PDF)

Workshop images courtesy Thread Global

Workshop Report (PDF)
VISION

Spaceflight in the 21st Century requires the infusion of entrepreneurship
and the development of value-added and cost effective commercial services
over a wide range of revenue levels. We created the Silicon Valley Space
Center to assist innovative entrepreneurs in the commercialization of
products or services within the growing NewSpace industry by integrating
the technology expertise, industry acumen, leveraged finance, and
educational leadership of Silicon Valley.

Sean Casey, Managing Director

Upcoming Events

Press

Launch Pad

The Silicon Valley Space Center Accelerator Program “LaunchPad” is advising, mentoring, and co-founding new space start-ups.
We focus on:

TECH DEVELOPMENT

Consultations with new space companies and entrepreneurs on developing their technologies.

BUSINESS STRUCTURES

Setting up company structure tailored for space related ventures.

ANGEL LEVEL FUNDING

Private angel investor meetings.

Vision
Product & Customer Development
Incorporation and Finance
Marketing
Pitching & Fundraising

Together we translate your passion into a business

Develop your product to address market demands
Set realistic goals and expectations
Test business plan assumptions

We will help you set realistic expectations for building a company stemming from our collected industry and incorporation experience. Basically we'll lend you our perspective on whether your business idea and future vision makes sense in the current market, and suggest any changes to the idea or to your expectations - helping you create a successful outlook.

Products Development

How do you build a prototype?
What's the most effective path from idea to offering?
What should comprise a minimum viable product?

We can help you plan and start building your offering as we have extensive hands on knowledge of how you turn your idea into a product, both regarding manufacturing and making effective product development plans. It's crucial to use maximize your efficiency in getting a product to market, and there are a ton of pot-holes on the road that we can help you avoid.

Customer Development

How do you attract the first customers and partners to your vision?
How do you avoid bias in getting useful customer feedback?
How do you effectively use feedback to better your product?

Don't spend 3 months developing a product nobody wants - build your product around your customer. Customer Development is a key because it opens the door to rapid product improvement, without wasting time and effort developing something nobody will buy. The first step is exploration, which is focused on determining whether there is a problem worth solving in the first place. The only way to answer that question is to ask or analyse your prospective customers. But how and when do you conduct these interviews? How do you get actionable insights out of them? People lack the capacity to accurately predict their own behavior in hypothetical situations.

Legal

How to incorporate in investor friendly ways
How do you avoid common legal mistakes?
What about NDAs?

Especially if starting your first business, incorporation can be a major headache, luckily we know how to do it right in terms of not wasting time or money on incorporation whilst insuring that your new business is friendly to investors in the space industry. Revenues, Costs and Profits What does it cost to build your product or service? How much will you charge? Can you expect a profit? Do you have a financial model planned out to pay investors?

Cofounders & Hiring

What talent do you need in the beginning to be successful? How do you recruit the first team members with extremely limited resources? How do you set expectations, measure results and remove or fire under-performing resources? Do you need a co-founder?

What are tips and tricks to present your business? How do you craft a successful media release? What are effective tactics to get social media, the blogosphere and traditional media to take notice? What are common media mistakes for new companies? How do you portray yourself and your business to the world? How do you involve your customers and partners in your success?

30 seconds is all it takes

Learn how to do a 30 second, Two Minute and Five Minute Pitch. How NOT to do a slide deck. When is it realistic to raise capital for a brand new company? Mentor Review A selected mentor will review your business, and provide blunt feed back on improvements. How should you calculate the amount of money to raise? How should you define the use use of proceeds? What materials are required to fund raise? What do investors expect from the company? What are typical investment structures and deal terms for seed-stage financing? Identify a list of potential investors, and prepare to meet them.

About

Silicon Valley Space Center provides business acceleration, strategic direction and angel level funding for startup companies within the growing NewSpace industry in Silicon Valley. We assist start-up and early-stage companies with the commercialization of their innovative products or services. We regularly host events and workshops to bring together the vast array of entrepreneurs, scientists, engineers, and investors who share a passion for shaping the future of space exploration. Join SVSC and become part of this group on the forefront of NewSpace in Silicon Valley.

Dr. Sean Casey Founder and Managing Director

Dr. Sean Casey is Co-Founder and Managing Director of the Silicon Valley Space Center, a business accelerator for NewSpace entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley. He is a member of the Suborbital Applications Researchers Group of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation and has over two decades of experience as an airborne astronomer. Dr. Casey’s work has been recognized as an example of NASA’s goal for “more efficient and cost effective methodologies to instrument design and construction…”. read more

Dr. Periklis Papadopoulos Founder

Professor Papadopoulos is the Aerospace Program Coordinator and the Director/Founder of the Center of Excellence for Space Transportation and Exploration at San Jose State University (SJSU). At SJSU, he directs the microsatellite and CubeSat program. He is the author or co-author of 58 research publications in aerothermodynamics and computational fluid dynamics and has performed de-orbit trajectory, CFD and systems level analysis for the Mars Science Laboratory.

Rick Kwan Director/DevOps and Communications

Rick Kwan is part computer scientist and part aerospace technologist. He is a Founding Member of the Silicon Valley Space Center, and serves as its DevOps (development operations) and Communications Director. His early aerospace focus was in trajectory modeling and spacecraft computing systems, but in recent years has expanded to include small launch vehicle propulsion and avionics. He is a technical adviser to small launch vehicle and drone start-ups. read more

William Willoughby Chief Operations Officer

William Willoughby has more than 44 years of commercial, military and general aviation maintenance experience including station operations, airframe and engine heavy depot maintenance and overhaul, flight line maintenance and component back shops. Positions included chief operations officer, director of maintenance, aircraft maintenance manager, station manager, senior engineering supervisor, consultant, team leader, aviation maintenance instructor and supervisor.read more

Dr. Eric Morano Principal Advisor

Dr. Eric Morano is a Principal Advisor to the Silicon Valley Space Center where he provides management advice about the current and future direction of the center including its incubator efforts. He has over 20 years of experience and held multiple positions in science, aerospace engineering and management, and business development. At Caltech he was a Senior Research Fellow and a co-founder of the Virtual shock physics Test Facility for the DoE ASCI program. read more

Join SVSC

Join the Silicon Valley Space Center (SVSC) and become an integral part of a unique and proactive coworking group at the forefront of the growing NewSpace industry in the Silicon Valley. SVSC members are innovative forward-leaning, advanced thinking engineers, scientists, hackers, technologists, business developers, spacers, and others driven to encourage the growth of NewSpace startups. You do not need a membership to attend an SVSC meetup, or to pitch a business or technology to us. However, if you find yourself attending meetings frequently and partaking in the communal snacks, please become a member. Membership dues go toward keeping our brains fueled and events happening. Members now receive copies of The Lurio Report, updates from the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, and other sources as SVSC is able to provide them. SVSC offers three levels of regular membership: Individual, Student, and Corporate. In addition, there are Silver and Gold levels of sponsorship. These are briefly summarized below, and described in further detail in the SVSC Membership Levels table (PDF). All members receive:

discounted registration to SVSC-sponsored workshops, hackathons, and other events.
updates from the Commercial Spaceflight Federation.
monthly news from SVSC on trends, technology, and resources.

Find more details in the Membership section.

Get in Touch

Contact info

Feel free to reach out to us with your questions and ideas about entrepreneurial space activity. newspace@siliconvalleyspacecenter.org 3505 El Camino Real Palo Alto, CA, United States 505-690-1295

In the community

SVSC regularly hosts TechTalks on entrepreneurial space technology and business subjects. See the Upcoming Events section for details. We also post our latest news updates on Facebook, you can also see our linkedin profile below.

The first Space Hacker Workshop for Suborbital Experiments, presented by Citizens in Space and the Silicon Valley Space Center, was a stunning success. Citizensinspace.org