> What distinguishes a defense startup apart from just some nerds "blowing things up in the desert"? Connections formed over the years of being part of the mil

> What distinguishes a defense startup apart from just some nerds "blowing things up in the desert"? Connections formed over the years of being part of the military industrial complex. Colonel or general rotates out of a job from the Pentagon to a big defense contractor, to a think tank, to a CIA gig, to a major media talking head job, back to a defense contractor, and so on. It is almost unheard of that startups of the kind you seem to be imagining make any inroads in government procurement. It is deeply corrupt and does not resemble what you would imagine to be an open market.