The Inevitable: Only a Matter of Time

In this issue, we discuss the different types of internet users and how they interact with the internet. We also introduce

• Intuitive Machines enters the public market
• Silicon Valley goes to war
• News from Transcelestial, Umbra and more

The Intuitive Machines merger with a SPAC created some turbulent waters for the company last week, as it received far less cash than it forecasted. However, despite this bump in the road, shares of Intuitive Machines saw major highs last week and investors seem confident that the company will be able to bounce back from its rocky start. Investors seem to believe that there is great potential for Intuitive Machines in its various industries, both currently and into the future. This optimism gives investors reason to remain bullish on the stock price even though initial results were discouraging.

Many investors appear to be weary of SPACs, with redemptions totaling over $279.8 million being requested prior to the deal closing. This may be a sign that some are not confident in the future of these companies, even amidst an upswing in popularity in the past few years. Despite this, SPACs could still provide potential investment opportunities for those who are willing to take a chance.

Investors were quick to unload shares of the company following its initial public offering (IPO), quickly pushing its stock price downward. However, given how profitable the company has been since it went public, some shareholders may be regretting their decision. The company’s stock closed at $10.03 on its first day of trading Tuesday, and surged to $39.73, up 211%.

Intuitive Machines created an image of a lunar lander. This renders the spacecraft as if it is floating above the surface of the moon. The design is sleek and modern looking, indicative of the cutting edge technology that Intuitive Machines utilizes to produce its images.

Defense tech investments have surged recently, signaling an increased focus on protecting companies and nations from attack. Some of this newfound interest may be motivated by recent threats to global security, but it could also be a response to growing fears about cyberattacks. Whatever the reasons, this trend indicates that businesses and governments alike are serious about defending themselves against physical dangers

Given the current global security environment, it is clear that investors are hungry for companies that can develop cutting-edge technologies to help protect us from potential threats. This enthusiasm appears to be translating into large sums of investment bourned into defense-first startups, demonstrating just how important this sector has become.

Timothy Snyder, a Johns Hopkins historian and expert on European history, has written that the New Dark Age is “a period of great fear and anticipated gloom” in which “illiberal majority governments, stimulated by demagogues who exploit nativist sentiments, attack liberal democracy and the rule of law.” Snyder argues that the forces driving this conflict are international:Collapse of global order — multinational corporations gone wild; unchecked migration; chronic economic inequality. Along with laxity at home comes an erosion of our country’s defenses. America can’t rely on its allies to police globalization anymore when they can’t even handle their own problems. For a while we’ve been able to paper over these cracks with money, but eventually expensive bailouts have an expiration date. In any event it won’t be long before the rest of NATO realizes that payback’s a bitch and joins Russia in laughing at us behind our backs.

The famed Silicon Valley is home to some of the brightest minds in the world, and it is here that democracy will be forged. David Ulevitch, a16z general partner, made this statement in an interview with TechGround and he is right- democracy demands a sword. It would be impossible to have a truly democratic society without one. Democracy entails freedom of speech, assembly and other fundamental rights; these are essential ingredients for any successful society. With technology advancements come new ways to silence voices that oppose the ruling class or desire change; through weapons like AI and deep learning we can empower marginalized communities to speak out for change. Silicon Valley has always been

Kiyoshi Tanno, who has photographed the likes of Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus and Selena Gomez, captured a haunting image of Gaga in her native New York City. “The Tears of

• Near Space Labs CEO Rema Matevosyan sat down with TechGround to explain what, exactly, was up with that alleged Chinese spy balloon. (TG+)
• SpaceX faces a $175,000 fine to the Federal Aviation Administration for not reporting certain data to the agency prior to a Starlink launch last August. (TG+)
• Transcelestial, a startup based in Singapore, scored $10 million to expand its wireless laser communications system across parts of Southeast Asia. (TG+)
• Virgin Orbit’s Start Me Up mission was bungled by a faulty fuel filter and fuel pump in the second stage’s engines. (TG+)

• Astranis was awarded a $4.5 million Phase III SBIR contract with the U.S. Space Force to integrate tactical waveform technology into its spacecraft, with a $6 million option for an orbital demonstration using a future Astranis satellite. (Astranis)
• Blue Origin quietly announced a program, Blue Alchemist, that’s been at work for at least two years developing tech to turn lunar regolith into solar cells and electricity transmission wires. (Blue Origin)
• India successfully launched the new SSLV rocket, six months after the first launch attempt ended in failure. (NASA Spaceflight)
• Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency scrubbed a launch of its new H3 rocket at T-0. (Reuters)
• Launcher’s first spacecraft, Orbiter SN-1, stopped operating after the craft was unable to generate power from its solar panels. (Launcher)
• Maxar and Umbra announced a new partnership this week, which will see Umbra’s synthetic aperture radar data combine with Maxar’s optical imagery in a combined offering for customers. (Maxar)
• SpaceRyde, a Canadian launch company that was developing a vehicle that used a balloon first stage, has filed for bankruptcy. (Payload)
• SpaceX has sold the two oil rigs it purchased back in 2020, which were to be converted into offshore launch platforms for Starship. (SpaceNews)

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