4 ms·

NASA Startup Studio

122 points by Erikun 6y ago

aramachandran7 6y ago
Wonder if a program like this would be made available to students, or if there’s a way for students to get involved.
- Mobleysoft 6y ago
  Joining a startup that's involved should work
- rrmm 6y ago
  I don't think it excludes them and in the text it says, " The NASA Startup Studio is intentionally designed to be completed alongside a full-time job or MBA program, as participants need to commit an average of 15 hours per week." So certainly at least some students can participate.
- FedTechStartups 6y ago
  Hi there! As of now, we typically don't accept undergraduate students. However, students that are in post-secondary degrees can participate. We've had plenty of current MBA and grad school students participate
lifeisstillgood 6y ago
Well I signed up. Begged them to let me take OpenMCT into the Enterprise Space. Done right, Nasa should expect to earn some real money from all its internal tech - will this be the right way to monetise - I don't know. but worth a go!
- rexreed 6y ago
  You're dealing with FedTech here, not NASA directly. If you're interested in dealing with NASA directly you should check out their Startup NASA effort, which is actually run by NASA not a third-party startup studio / accelerator: https://technology.nasa.gov/startup https://technology.nasa.gov/startup
echelon 6y ago
We need this, but for the US military. Imagine pork boondoggles like the JSF being carved up by efficient startups like Palantir, Anduril, and SpaceX. It'd be a much more efficient use of tax dollars.
- ggillas 6y ago
  It exists and I went through the program. More details are on the same domain: https://www.fedtech.io/startup-studios https://www.fedtech.io/startup-studios
- zcw100 6y ago
  You have a very charitable view of Palantir, Anduril, and SpaceX. There's nothing private industry can't do better than the government...........right after the government bears the burden of years of basic research.
  - Craighead 6y ago
    That's a fairly unnuanced position.
  - CamTin 6y ago
    Agreed. Palantir in particular is a bizarre example. It's a private company specifically engineered to vacuum up government money. Anything it makes in nominally-private transactions just window dressing.
  - robomartin 6y ago
    > There's nothing private industry can't do better than the government...........right after the government bears the burden of years of basic research. I read this kind of stuff all the time and it always rubs me the wrong way, because it is as wrong as can be. Ever heard the phrase "Practice makes perfect"? Well, it's bullshit. Practicing correctly makes perfect. Just practicing random crap or practicing in the wrong manner make a mess and nothing even close to "perfect". So, applying that simple principle: What do you think would have happened if Elon Musk did not start SpaceX and decide scrapping every rocket was a dumb idea? I can tell you exactly what would have happened. Our government would have continued to invest in "basic research" for years and buying billion dollar rockets that got scrapped every flight. NOBODY told Musk to make reusable rockets. Nobody from government came over and said "Do this for us because we want to save money". One has to wonder where some areas of industry would be if government funding had not caused the typical level of stagnation we see time and time again. I remember visiting a company years ago that made hydraulic valves used in navy ships. The valves were as unremarkable as could be. This company has survived decades without innovating one millimeter of these valves. The place was so depressing I would have to take out my eyeballs with a spoon if I had to work there. It is remarkable to see just how much of that is common to government programs across a range of industries. Compare that to the dynamic world of consumer and industrial products that elevated China to the second largest economy in the world. We, in the US, can't even make iPhones. Heck, we can't even make N95 masks. We don't have the supply chain. We don't have the materials. We don't have the educated workforce. We don't even make the equipment needed to make such products here. But we make great government-funded valves that cost 10x to 100x what they should cost.
mNovak 6y ago
Odd that this one makes you sign up first, then apparently assigns you a technology. Normally these federal IP commercialization competitions let you pick the IP you're interested in.
- FedTechStartups 6y ago
  We do a matching with technology! We let accepted applicants rank their preference, and then we match to team's based on background, fit, and other factors!
rexreed 6y ago
This is run by FedTech, which has a range of programs, and I'm not sure how their fee arrangement works. "FedTech was born in 2015 after participating in the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program when we saw an opportunity to commercialize the ~$150B/year in federally funded R&D. We iterated on different concepts to materialize our vision, before landing on the most effective way to move cutting edge technology from the bench to the marketplace: the Startup Studio. FedTech has since grown from a regional startup studio to an international company, offering a range of options to serve our different clients. Our impact has expanded significantly since our first Startup Studio in 2015, as we now work with fortune 500 companies, non-profit organizations, and forward-thinking government agencies in a number of capacities, while still remaining true to our mission of unlocking the benefits of technology through entrepreneurially minded people." Folks should dig deeper into what the exact arrangement is before committing to anything.
- jonwachob91 6y ago
  >>This is run by FedTech, which has a range of programs, and I'm not sure how their fee arrangement works. From the link (no digging required): "There is no cost to participate, and for any team that launches their own venture through this studio, FedTech does not take any equity from the companies formed."
ArtWomb 6y ago
>>> NASA Startup Studio is intentionally designed to be completed alongside a full-time job or MBA program, as participants need to commit an average of 15 hours per week Makes it sound more like an engineering co-op, than a full-time accelerator. NASA has the iTech program targeting aeronautics this cycle. And Space Apps Challenge Hackathon in the fall ;) Ignite the Night AERONAUTICS, a virtual event https://www.nasaitech.org/ https://www.nasaitech.org/ Space Apps Challenge 2021: Oct 2-3, 2021 https://www.spaceappschallenge.org/ https://www.spaceappschallenge.org/
- jcadam 6y ago
  I held a work-study job while doing my BS working on a NASA Space Grant funded project. I got to program the flight computer for a high altitude research balloon and even participated in flying it (it flew several experiments - those were put together by grad students). As far as fun factor goes, all of my corporate jobs post-college have been a let down by comparison. Though I'm making a bit more than $9.60 an hour these days :P
cainxinth 6y ago
What’s going on with that website? Is it supposed to parallax (or whatever is happening there) like that?
FedTechStartups 6y ago
Glad to see people talking about our programs. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us at recruiting@fedtech.io We are always recruiting entrepreneurs for our Startup Studios. The program is free, virtual, and part-time.

NASA Startup Studio

122 points by Erikun 6y ago

aramachandran7 6y ago

Wonder if a program like this would be made available to students, or if there’s a way for students to get involved.

Mobleysoft 6y ago
Joining a startup that's involved should work
rrmm 6y ago
I don't think it excludes them and in the text it says, " The NASA Startup Studio is intentionally designed to be completed alongside a full-time job or MBA program, as participants need to commit an average of 15 hours per week." So certainly at least some students can participate.
FedTechStartups 6y ago
Hi there! As of now, we typically don't accept undergraduate students. However, students that are in post-secondary degrees can participate. We've had plenty of current MBA and grad school students participate

lifeisstillgood 6y ago

Well I signed up. Begged them to let me take OpenMCT into the Enterprise Space. Done right, Nasa should expect to earn some real money from all its internal tech - will this be the right way to monetise - I don't know. but worth a go!

rexreed 6y ago
You're dealing with FedTech here, not NASA directly. If you're interested in dealing with NASA directly you should check out their Startup NASA effort, which is actually run by NASA not a third-party startup studio / accelerator: https://technology.nasa.gov/startup https://technology.nasa.gov/startup

echelon 6y ago

We need this, but for the US military. Imagine pork boondoggles like the JSF being carved up by efficient startups like Palantir, Anduril, and SpaceX. It'd be a much more efficient use of tax dollars.

ggillas 6y ago
It exists and I went through the program. More details are on the same domain: https://www.fedtech.io/startup-studios https://www.fedtech.io/startup-studios
zcw100 6y ago
You have a very charitable view of Palantir, Anduril, and SpaceX. There's nothing private industry can't do better than the government...........right after the government bears the burden of years of basic research.
- Craighead 6y ago
  That's a fairly unnuanced position.
- CamTin 6y ago
  Agreed. Palantir in particular is a bizarre example. It's a private company specifically engineered to vacuum up government money. Anything it makes in nominally-private transactions just window dressing.
- robomartin 6y ago
  > There's nothing private industry can't do better than the government...........right after the government bears the burden of years of basic research. I read this kind of stuff all the time and it always rubs me the wrong way, because it is as wrong as can be. Ever heard the phrase "Practice makes perfect"? Well, it's bullshit. Practicing correctly makes perfect. Just practicing random crap or practicing in the wrong manner make a mess and nothing even close to "perfect". So, applying that simple principle: What do you think would have happened if Elon Musk did not start SpaceX and decide scrapping every rocket was a dumb idea? I can tell you exactly what would have happened. Our government would have continued to invest in "basic research" for years and buying billion dollar rockets that got scrapped every flight. NOBODY told Musk to make reusable rockets. Nobody from government came over and said "Do this for us because we want to save money". One has to wonder where some areas of industry would be if government funding had not caused the typical level of stagnation we see time and time again. I remember visiting a company years ago that made hydraulic valves used in navy ships. The valves were as unremarkable as could be. This company has survived decades without innovating one millimeter of these valves. The place was so depressing I would have to take out my eyeballs with a spoon if I had to work there. It is remarkable to see just how much of that is common to government programs across a range of industries. Compare that to the dynamic world of consumer and industrial products that elevated China to the second largest economy in the world. We, in the US, can't even make iPhones. Heck, we can't even make N95 masks. We don't have the supply chain. We don't have the materials. We don't have the educated workforce. We don't even make the equipment needed to make such products here. But we make great government-funded valves that cost 10x to 100x what they should cost.

mNovak 6y ago

Odd that this one makes you sign up first, then apparently assigns you a technology. Normally these federal IP commercialization competitions let you pick the IP you're interested in.

FedTechStartups 6y ago
We do a matching with technology! We let accepted applicants rank their preference, and then we match to team's based on background, fit, and other factors!

rexreed 6y ago

This is run by FedTech, which has a range of programs, and I'm not sure how their fee arrangement works. "FedTech was born in 2015 after participating in the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program when we saw an opportunity to commercialize the ~$150B/year in federally funded R&D. We iterated on different concepts to materialize our vision, before landing on the most effective way to move cutting edge technology from the bench to the marketplace: the Startup Studio. FedTech has since grown from a regional startup studio to an international company, offering a range of options to serve our different clients. Our impact has expanded significantly since our first Startup Studio in 2015, as we now work with fortune 500 companies, non-profit organizations, and forward-thinking government agencies in a number of capacities, while still remaining true to our mission of unlocking the benefits of technology through entrepreneurially minded people." Folks should dig deeper into what the exact arrangement is before committing to anything.

jonwachob91 6y ago
>>This is run by FedTech, which has a range of programs, and I'm not sure how their fee arrangement works. From the link (no digging required): "There is no cost to participate, and for any team that launches their own venture through this studio, FedTech does not take any equity from the companies formed."

ArtWomb 6y ago

>>> NASA Startup Studio is intentionally designed to be completed alongside a full-time job or MBA program, as participants need to commit an average of 15 hours per week Makes it sound more like an engineering co-op, than a full-time accelerator. NASA has the iTech program targeting aeronautics this cycle. And Space Apps Challenge Hackathon in the fall ;) Ignite the Night AERONAUTICS, a virtual event https://www.nasaitech.org/ https://www.nasaitech.org/ Space Apps Challenge 2021: Oct 2-3, 2021 https://www.spaceappschallenge.org/ https://www.spaceappschallenge.org/

jcadam 6y ago
I held a work-study job while doing my BS working on a NASA Space Grant funded project. I got to program the flight computer for a high altitude research balloon and even participated in flying it (it flew several experiments - those were put together by grad students). As far as fun factor goes, all of my corporate jobs post-college have been a let down by comparison. Though I'm making a bit more than $9.60 an hour these days :P

cainxinth 6y ago

What’s going on with that website? Is it supposed to parallax (or whatever is happening there) like that?

FedTechStartups 6y ago

Glad to see people talking about our programs. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us at recruiting@fedtech.io We are always recruiting entrepreneurs for our Startup Studios. The program is free, virtual, and part-time.