The Exchanges

Q Alex, I want to hear from you. How much space debris are we talking? Sounds like it has increased with time, but I don't know if many people have a sense of the sheer magnitude of stuff up above us.

A So we're talking about over a million pieces of debris that are smaller than a centimeter. But the only thing we can really see from ground-based radar is stuff that's bigger than the size of a softball. So, you know, when, when Morbus says there's these 26,000 things or, you know, whatever that, that, that number is precisely, those are things the size of a softball doing roughly 18,000 miles an hour. And, you know, MV squared, still MV squared. So, it's, it's a real problem because the little pieces of debris, the things you can't see can really hurt you. In space. Uh, you, you wouldn't get on a passenger jet if you got told when you boarded the plane, there's a million little bullets flying around, and this is going to make your life potentially very miserable. We just don't know. Um, hope you make it. Like that would be, but that's kind of what's going on with space flight. The first challenge is you have to be able to see everything so that we can put together a plan on how to solve for that. And astrograph, wayfinder, these are tools to help enlighten Uh, the world and kind of bring attention to the problem first so that we can all align on what the best solutions are for cleaning up space, which is kind of one side of Privateer's mission of making space safe and accessible for humankind.

AI assessment note: “we're talking about over a million pieces of debris that are smaller than a centimeter.”

Q Alex, I want to hear from you. How much space debris are we talking? Sounds like it has increased with time, but I don't know if many people have a sense of the sheer magnitude of stuff up above us.

A So we're talking about over a million pieces of debris that are smaller than a centimeter. But the only thing we can really see from ground-based radar is stuff that's bigger than the size of a softball. So, you know, when, when Morbus says there's these 26,000 things or, you know, whatever that, that, that number is precisely, those are things the size of a softball doing roughly 18,000 miles an hour. And, you know, MV squared, still MV squared. So it's, it's a real problem because the little pieces of debris, the things you can't see can really hurt you. In space. Uh, you, you wouldn't get on a passenger jet if you got told when you boarded the plane, there's a million little bullets flying around, and this is going to make your life potentially very miserable. We just don't know. Um, hope you make it. Like that would be, but that's kind of what's going on with space flight. The first challenge is you have to be able to see everything so that we can put together a plan on how to solve for that. And Astrograph, Wayfinder, these are tools to help enlighten Uh, the world and kind of bring attention to the problem first so that we can all align on what the best solutions are for cleaning up space, which is kind of one side of Privateer's mission of making space safe and accessible for humankind.

AI assessment note: “we're talking about over a million pieces of debris that are smaller than a centimeter”

Q Alex, I want to hear from you. How much space debris are we talking? Sounds like it has increased with time, but I don't know if many people have a sense of the sheer magnitude of stuff up above us.

A So we're talking about over a million pieces of debris that are smaller than a centimeter. But the only thing we can really see from ground-based radar is stuff that's bigger than the size of a softball. So, you know, when, when Morbus says there's these 26,000 things or, you know, whatever that, that, that number is precisely, those are things the size of a softball doing roughly 18,000 miles an hour. And, you know, MV squared, still MV squared. So it's, it's a real problem because the little pieces of debris, the things you can't see can really hurt you. In space. Uh, you, you wouldn't get on a passenger jet if you got told when you boarded the plane, there's a million little bullets flying around, and this is going to make your life potentially very miserable. We just don't know. Um, hope you make it. Like that would be, but that's kind of what's going on with space flight. The first challenge is you have to be able to see everything so that we can put together a plan on how to solve for that. And Astrograph, Wayfinder, these are tools to help enlighten Uh, the world and kind of bring attention to the problem first so that we can all align on what the best solutions are for cleaning up space, which is kind of one side of Privateer's mission of making space safe and accessible for humankind.

AI assessment note: “over a million pieces of debris that are smaller than a centimeter”

Q How do you get that data? How are you actually convincing a magnitude of parties to contribute to that database?

A It's, it's more mutual benefit than it is quid pro quo, because what we're basically saying is contribution results in capability. If you contribute your state vectors and telemetry, and you share with us where your vehicles are in space, we share with you the capability to make sure that we all have eyes on those things, and that we can all observe them better, and we can operate more efficiently and more safely in space, and that benefits the entire community, because we can't put our own assets up in an environment that's unknown. The risk is too high. And the risk to space operators operating, you know, as Morba said, Elon does have kind of his own orbit right now.

AI assessment note: “contribution results in capability. If you contribute your state vectors and telemetry”

Q Alex, I want to hear from you. How much space debris are we talking? Sounds like it has increased with time, but I don't know if many people have a sense of the sheer magnitude of stuff up above us.

A So we're talking about over a million pieces of debris that are smaller than a centimeter. But the only thing we can really see from ground-based radar is stuff that's bigger than the size of a softball. So, you know, when, when Morbus says there's these 26,000 things or, you know, whatever that, that, that number is precisely, those are things the size of a softball doing roughly 18,000 miles an hour. And, you know, MV squared, still MV squared. So, it's, it's a real problem because the little pieces of debris, the things you can't see can really hurt you. In space. Uh, you, you wouldn't get on a passenger jet if you got told when you boarded the plane, there's a million little bullets flying around, and this is going to make your life potentially very miserable. We just don't know. Um, hope you make it. Like that would be, but that's kind of what's going on with space flight. The first challenge is you have to be able to see everything so that we can put together a plan on how to solve for that. And astrograph, wayfinder, these are tools to help enlighten Uh, the world and kind of bring attention to the problem first so that we can all align on what the best solutions are for cleaning up space, which is kind of one side of Privateer's mission of making space safe and accessible for humankind.

AI assessment note: “we're talking about over a million pieces of debris that are smaller than a centimeter.”

Q How do you get that data? How are you actually convincing a magnitude of parties to contribute to that database?

A It's, it's more mutual benefit than it is quid pro quo, because what we're basically saying is contribution results in capability. If you contribute your state vectors and telemetry, and you share with us where your vehicles are in space, we share with you the capability to make sure that we all have eyes on those things, and that we can all observe them better, and we can operate more efficiently and more safely in space, and that benefits the entire community, because we can't put our own assets up in an environment that's unknown. The risk is too high. And the risk to space operators operating, you know, as Morba said, Elon does have kind of his own orbit right now.

AI assessment note: “contribution results in capability. If you contribute your state vectors and telemetry, and you share”

Q a bunch of compounding effects. There's a lot of Stuff already in space. A lot of space debris. Some of it we can't track because it's so small. There's going to be an exponential nature to more things being launched into space and no coordination, or at least not the coordination that we need. So Alex, what is privateer doing in this space to help mitigate some of these issues?

A We're doing two Things in two very broad categories. We're focused on space safety and accessibility, and we think that they're totally interconnected, right? And part of that is, is what you actually kind of alluded to and touched on, which is that my three-year-old daughter knows how to share better than we know how to share in space. Like, you know, like Morbus said, how many more cameras do we need over flying Keeve right now? It's great that we have them. It's great that we can provide the capability. It's kind of sad that we don't do a very good job sharing. You don't need 50 cameras over flying a region if you know how to actually effectively utilize one asset. So privateers focus on safety through things like Wayfinder and our conjunction software that helps people not crash in space. And we're doing that in a really open way to the community that encourages interaction and involvement amongst kind of space operators so that we coordinate and we cooperate in space. And the reason for that is it should make a ton of sense. There has been a history in space of companies serving this community that look like extortionists. They look like the mafia. Give me a dollar and your satellite won't crash in space. You know, give me a dollar and I'll make sure that my exquisite observation keeps you from getting into trouble. Those days have to come to an end really fast, and we aim…

AI assessment note: “privateers focus on safety through things like Wayfinder and our conjunction software”

Q a bunch of compounding effects. There's a lot of Stuff already in space. A lot of space debris. Some of it we can't track because it's so small. There's going to be an exponential nature to more things being launched into space and no coordination, or at least not the coordination that we need. So Alex, what is privateer doing in this space to help mitigate some of these issues?

A We're doing two Things in two very broad categories. We're focused on space safety and accessibility, and we think that they're totally interconnected, right? And part of that is, is what you actually kind of alluded to and touched on, which is that my three-year-old daughter knows how to share better than we know how to share in space. Like, you know, like Morbus said, how many more cameras do we need over flying Keeve right now? It's great that we have them. It's great that we can provide the capability. It's kind of sad that we don't do a very good job sharing. You don't need 50 cameras over flying a region if you know how to actually effectively utilize one asset. So privateers focus on safety through things like Wayfinder and our conjunction software that helps people not crash in space. And we're doing that in a really open way to the community that encourages interaction and involvement amongst kind of space operators so that we coordinate and we cooperate in space. And the reason for that is it should make a ton of sense. There has been a history in space of companies serving this community that look like extortionists. They look like the mafia. Give me a dollar and your satellite won't crash in space. You know, give me a dollar and I'll make sure that my exquisite observation keeps you from getting into trouble. Those days have to come to an end really fast, and we aim…

AI assessment note: “privateers focus on safety through things like Wayfinder and our conjunction software”

Q even if you have these tracking systems that you and others are creating, so we know what's going on to a larger degree, how do you even solve that problem? How do you create the right policy or legislation for people to become good actors? Because right now it seems like even if someone wanted to be a good actor, They don't even have the rule set to do that.

A Well, it's, it's like the International Space Act and treaties. I mean, we all sign this thing when we go to space. When we put a satellite up, we all sign this. And it includes things like not weaponizing space, not doing generally bad things in space, not doing bad things to each other in space. And yet, you know, Moriba proved this definitively with his work, um, that, that he did at UT Austin with IBM on a project called Arcade. Where they looked at how many objects in space are in or out of compliance with the Space Act and treaties. And the number out of compliance is over 40% of those registered objects are out of compliance.

AI assessment note: “it's like the International Space Act and treaties. I mean, we all sign this”

Q people that you need in the industry. Alex, I'm going to ask you a question which is, Privateer has a lot of ambition. There are many things that you're working on that sound very exciting that sound like they're going to change things in space on earth. What are your biggest challenges? If, if privateer were to fail for some reason over the next few years, why would that be?

A Well, more of it actually hit it right on the head. It's, it's a lack of empathy because apathy is really the enemy of empathy and We have created an environment and space where people really don't give a shit. It's gonna sound like I'm picking on somebody. I'm not picking on anybody, but when you're a billionaire and you put on a cowboy hat and you go up on a rocket, that doesn't feel like all of us could do it. It doesn't feel like our own personal journey is tied to their journey. When, when the Apollo 11 astronauts touched down on the surface of the moon, or at least when two of them did, there are messages to humanity while the entire world watched. And, you know, I'm too young to have watched it live, but I've certainly watched the recording. Because the message from the astronauts Were not just to their families and to all humanity, but they were messages of peace. They were messages of love. They were messages of understanding. They were messages of hopefulness. They were messages of what was going to come in the future, that this new frontier was going to enable humankind to reach new levels. You know, even the messages that we delivered onto the lunar surface were from like, 50 plus countries that did not get along with each other. But those world leaders left similar messages About our humanness and the nature of that, so that if it were ever seen and someone ever in…

AI assessment note: “If privateer fails, it's because humanity failed to recognize space as a frontier for all”

Q is also inspiring to hear that you and others are trying to fix the problem. They're trying to coordinate the many parties involved here. Contrary to my previous question about privateer failing, if privateer were to succeed alongside others who have similar missions, What would that look like? What would the space landscape look like in, let's say, 10 years if we are able to achieve that kind of coordination?

A It'll be driven by accessibility and the desire for people to access space resources. I, I think largely self, self-interested motivation will be to improve life on Earth. That, that, and that remains a big part of our mission. You know, improving life on space doesn't do much for us, at least not in the short term, right? Uh, but improving life on Earth from space is very, very important. And we see like-minded companies around us working and like-minded people working on the same set of challenges. I think the first part of our mission safety, my hope is that this, this notion of giving away these technologies that we develop to help ensure a safe space environment, a sustainable space environment will encourage usage. And ultimately if enforcement does occur, which I think it's bound to occur soon, it has to occur soon. You'll start to see space traffic control be very akin to air traffic control. And today the two things don't even connect, but when you have this many things in space and they do reenter, quite, quite a lot of them do ultimately reenter our atmosphere. They don't just totally vaporize. Little pieces come back. Sometimes big pieces come back. With the number of objects we're talking about, you know, Murphy's law is hard at work and the, the odds are low. But it is possible that space debris will enter and even intersect with air traffic or shipping traffic, a…

AI assessment note: “You'll start to see space traffic control be very akin to air traffic control.”

Q people that you need in the industry. Alex, I'm going to ask you a question which is, Privateer has a lot of ambition. There are many things that you're working on that sound very exciting that sound like they're going to change things in space on earth. What are your biggest challenges? If, if privateer were to fail for some reason over the next few years, why would that be?

A Well, more of it actually hit it right on the head. It's, it's a lack of empathy because apathy is really the enemy of empathy and We have created an environment and space where people really don't give a shit. It's gonna sound like I'm picking on somebody. I'm not picking on anybody, but when you're a billionaire and you put on a cowboy hat and you go up on a rocket, that doesn't feel like all of us could do it. It doesn't feel like our own personal journey is tied to their journey. When, when the Apollo 11 astronauts touched down on the surface of the moon, or at least when two of them did, there are messages to humanity while the entire world watched. And, you know, I'm too young to have watched it live, but I've certainly watched the recording. Because the message from the astronauts Were not just to their families and to all humanity, but they were messages of peace. They were messages of love. They were messages of understanding. They were messages of hopefulness. They were messages of what was going to come in the future, that this new frontier was going to enable humankind to reach new levels. You know, even the messages that we delivered onto the lunar surface were from like, 50 plus countries that did not get along with each other. But those world leaders left similar messages About our humanness and the nature of that, so that if it were ever seen and someone ever in…

AI assessment note: “If privateer fails, it's because humanity failed to recognize space as a frontier”

Q is also inspiring to hear that you and others are trying to fix the problem. They're trying to coordinate the many parties involved here. Contrary to my previous question about privateer failing, if privateer were to succeed alongside others who have similar missions, What would that look like? What would the space landscape look like in, let's say, 10 years if we are able to achieve that kind of coordination?

A It'll be driven by accessibility and the desire for people to access space resources. I, I think largely self, self-interested motivation will be to improve life on Earth. That, that, and that remains a big part of our mission. You know, improving life on space doesn't do much for us, at least not in the short term, right? Uh, but improving life on Earth from space is very, very important. And we see like-minded companies around us working and like-minded people working on the same set of challenges. I think the first part of our mission safety, my hope is that this, this notion of giving away these technologies that we develop to help ensure a safe space environment, a sustainable space environment will encourage usage. And ultimately if enforcement does occur, which I think it's bound to occur soon, it has to occur soon. You'll start to see space traffic control be very akin to air traffic control. And today the two things don't even connect, but when you have this many things in space and they do reenter, quite, quite a lot of them do ultimately reenter our atmosphere. They don't just totally vaporize. Little pieces come back. Sometimes big pieces come back. With the number of objects we're talking about, you know, Murphy's law is hard at work and the, the odds are low. But it is possible that space debris will enter and even intersect with air traffic or shipping traffic, a…

AI assessment note: “You'll start to see space traffic control be very akin to air traffic control.”

Q little bit to what is at stake here. So you're talking about thousands of things that we can monitor, but potentially millions that we aren't able to monitor. How often does this stuff actually collide? And then also how often does that impact us on earth, whether it be things actually coming down to earth or impacting the satellites or infrastructure that we use on earth up there in space?

A I mean, there's a lot of collisions. Right, and there are some that we actually can see and we can clearly identify that was caused by debris or, or even in the case of a satellite hitting an active satellite or vice versa or, you know, two objects in nearer space colliding. It happens a lot more than we would like to think, and there's also reasons why we don't talk about it as a community, why we don't just openly talk about our, our problems in the space community the way that we would in other academic, uh, communities or places where we're more data-driven. And some of that actually surrounds liability and risk. As an example, many insurance policies in space on the riders exclude space debris from a covered loss. I'm not saying that people do it, I'm probably implying it, but if your insurance policy said, we don't cover things hitting your car windshield that are rocks, then whatever cracked your car windshield is probably not a rock. Um, so, These are, these are challenges we're also working around, which is the evolution of space policy and the space act and treaties evolving. These things were based in maritime law. Uh, and, and I guess that kind of made sense for the time because we needed a framework for how we interoperate in space, but that is actually creating the challenge because we don't have even the, the simplest notions of like right of way or you're in spa…

AI assessment note: “It happens a lot more than we would like to think”

Q even if you have these tracking systems that you and others are creating, so we know what's going on to a larger degree, how do you even solve that problem? How do you create the right policy or legislation for people to become good actors? Because right now it seems like even if someone wanted to be a good actor, They don't even have the rule set to do that.

A Well, it's, it's like the International Space Act and treaties. I mean, we all sign this thing when we go to space. When we put a satellite up, we all sign this. And it includes things like not weaponizing space, not doing generally bad things in space, not doing bad things to each other in space. And yet, you know, Moriba proved this definitively with his work, um, that, that he did at UT Austin with IBM on a project called Arcade. Where they looked at how many objects in space are in or out of compliance with the Space Act and treaties. And the number out of compliance is over 40% of those registered objects are out of compliance.

AI assessment note: “the number out of compliance is over 40% of those registered objects”

Q little bit to what is at stake here. So you're talking about thousands of things that we can monitor, but potentially millions that we aren't able to monitor. How often does this stuff actually collide? And then also how often does that impact us on earth, whether it be things actually coming down to earth or impacting the satellites or infrastructure that we use on earth up there in space?

A I mean, there's a lot of collisions. Right, and there are some that we actually can see and we can clearly identify that was caused by debris or, or even in the case of a satellite hitting an active satellite or vice versa or, you know, two objects in nearer space colliding. It happens a lot more than we would like to think, and there's also reasons why we don't talk about it as a community, why we don't just openly talk about our, our problems in the space community the way that we would in other academic, uh, communities or places where we're more data-driven. And some of that actually surrounds liability and risk. As an example, many insurance policies in space on the riders exclude space debris from a covered loss. I'm not saying that people do it, I'm probably implying it, but if your insurance policy said, we don't cover things hitting your car windshield that are rocks, then whatever cracked your car windshield is probably not a rock. Um, so, These are, these are challenges we're also working around, which is the evolution of space policy and the space act and treaties evolving. These things were based in maritime law. Uh, and, and I guess that kind of made sense for the time because we needed a framework for how we interoperate in space, but that is actually creating the challenge because we don't have even the, the simplest notions of like right of way or you're in spa…

AI assessment note: “It happens a lot more than we would like to think, and there's also reasons”

Q now people are talking about carbon taxes. They're creating new technologies that make it actually more economical to be More kind to the environment versus less kind. So how do you think about that within space? How do you design the right incentives? So it doesn't rely on people's goodwill, but instead the incentives are just aligned where most people will act that way, whether they have empathy or not.

A It's, it's going to come down to enforcement. I mean, unfortunately there, there is the carrot, which is we all get to participate together. And I am a big believer that that carrot and that, that reward And that incentive is really huge. And that will encourage people's behavior to do the right thing. If we can enable that without making it more punitive for them to do the right thing, right? It has to be just as easy to recycle your, your things than it is to throw it out your car window while you're driving. And this is something that is also societal and it's behavior related in nature, right? Uh, I, I married a therapist. It doesn't show at all. You know, if you, if you travel to Tokyo, You don't see trash cans on every street corner because there's a societal notion that you are responsible for taking care of your garbage. You're not going to toss it on the street. Like, I mean, I can't even imagine what it would be like to throw some trash in the street of Tokyo. Now, in contrast, New York City, hey, one of my favorite cities, there's a trash can on every single street corner and there's trash littering the streets. So to your point, how do you encourage people to take the thing and just put it in the trash can It's societal, it's behavioral, it's trained, and the incentive structure isn't there. We all acknowledge that it's trashed, but there's always this notion that s…

AI assessment note: “It's societal, it's behavioral, it's trained, and the incentive structure isn't there.”

Q little bit to what is at stake here. So you're talking about thousands of things that we can monitor, but potentially millions that we aren't able to monitor. How often does this stuff actually collide? And then also, how often does that impact Us on earth, whether it be things actually coming down to earth or impacting the satellites or infrastructure that we use on earth up there in space.

A I mean, there's a lot of collisions, right? And there are some that we actually can see and we can clearly identify that was caused by debris or, or even in the case of a satellite hitting an active satellite or vice versa, or, you know, two objects in near earth space colliding. It happens a lot more than we would like to think. And there's also reasons why we don't talk about it as a community, why we don't Just openly talk about our, our problems in the space community the way that we would in other academic, uh, communities or places where we're more data-driven, and some of that actually surrounds liability and risk. As an example, many insurance policies in space on the riders exclude space debris from a covered loss. I'm not saying that people do it. I'm probably implying it, but if your insurance policy said, we don't cover things hitting your car windshield that are rocks, Then whatever cracked your car windshield is probably not a rock. Um, so these are, these are challenges we're also working around, which is the evolution of space policy and the space act and treaties evolving. These things were based in maritime law. Uh, and, and I guess that kind of made sense for the time because we needed a framework for how we interoperate in space, but that is actually creating the challenge because we don't have even the, the simplest notions of like right of way. If you're i…

AI assessment note: “It happens a lot more than we would like to think.”

Q now people are talking about carbon taxes. They're creating new technologies that make it actually more economical to be More kind to the environment versus less kind. So how do you think about that within space? How do you design the right incentives? So it doesn't rely on people's goodwill, but instead the incentives are just aligned where most people will act that way, whether they have empathy or not.

A It's, it's going to come down to enforcement. I mean, unfortunately there, there is the carrot, which is we all get to participate together. And I am a big believer that that carrot and that, that reward And that incentive is really huge. And that will encourage people's behavior to do the right thing. If we can enable that without making it more punitive for them to do the right thing, right? It has to be just as easy to recycle your, your things than it is to throw it out your car window while you're driving. And this is something that is also societal and it's behavior related in nature, right? Uh, I, I married a therapist. It doesn't show at all. You know, if you, if you travel to Tokyo, You don't see trash cans on every street corner because there's a societal notion that you are responsible for taking care of your garbage. You're not going to toss it on the street. Like, I mean, I can't even imagine what it would be like to throw some trash in the street of Tokyo. Now, in contrast, New York City, hey, one of my favorite cities, there's a trash can on every single street corner and there's trash littering the streets. So to your point, how do you encourage people to take the thing and just put it in the trash can It's societal, it's behavioral, it's trained, and the incentive structure isn't there. We all acknowledge that it's trashed, but there's always this notion that s…

AI assessment note: “It's, it's going to come down to enforcement. I mean, unfortunately there, there is the carrot”

Q Does it take one of those catastrophic events to make people want to coordinate? Is that, is that what it'll come to, do you think, where we have Literally a piece of space debris coming back through the atmosphere that hits an airplane. Like, is that the kind of event that you think will wake people up to the issue?

A I hope not. You know, I, I really hope that we do the right thing because it's the right thing to do. Our, our satellite constellation is called Pono, and Pono is like the Hawaiian word for karma. It means to do the right thing or to do the righteous thing. You know, in, in general, Hawaii is actually a really interesting place to headquarter privateer because there are notions in Hawaiian society and words that are used that don't exist really in English. Hawaiians have a, a, a word for stewardship and responsibility that's called kuleana. That is More than just a word, it's a virtue. It's something that people live their kuleana, their responsibility. Ideas like pono and kuleana and the nature of stewardship and conservatorship, that has to translate to our space environment. Other than in our tax dollars, we don't pay for air traffic control, space situational awareness, and traffic management, domain awareness, and traffic control. All these things should be free. They should not be things that space operators have to pay for. They should be things that enable people to do good things while they operate safely in space. And we've already had bad things happen. We've had things happen in space that were nearly catastrophic, that have nearly cost a lot of lives. You know, we're, we're co-sponsored by Omega watches. So this is not a total shameless plug, but Apollo 13, you got…

AI assessment note: “I hope not. You know, I, I really hope that we do the right thing”

Q little bit to what is at stake here. So you're talking about thousands of things that we can monitor, but potentially millions that we aren't able to monitor. How often does this stuff actually collide? And then also, how often does that impact Us on earth, whether it be things actually coming down to earth or impacting the satellites or infrastructure that we use on earth up there in space.

A I mean, there's a lot of collisions, right? And there are some that we actually can see and we can clearly identify that was caused by debris or, or even in the case of a satellite hitting an active satellite or vice versa, or, you know, two objects in near earth space colliding. It happens a lot more than we would like to think. And there's also reasons why we don't talk about it as a community, why we don't Just openly talk about our, our problems in the space community the way that we would in other academic, uh, communities or places where we're more data-driven, and some of that actually surrounds liability and risk. As an example, many insurance policies in space on the riders exclude space debris from a covered loss. I'm not saying that people do it. I'm probably implying it, but if your insurance policy said, we don't cover things hitting your car windshield that are rocks, Then whatever cracked your car windshield is probably not a rock. Um, so these are, these are challenges we're also working around, which is the evolution of space policy and the space act and treaties evolving. These things were based in maritime law. Uh, and, and I guess that kind of made sense for the time because we needed a framework for how we interoperate in space, but that is actually creating the challenge because we don't have even the, the simplest notions of like right of way. If you're i…

AI assessment note: “It happens a lot more than we would like to think. And there's also reasons”

Q Does it take one of those catastrophic events to make people want to coordinate? Is that, is that what it'll come to, do you think, where we have Literally a piece of space debris coming back through the atmosphere that hits an airplane. Like, is that the kind of event that you think will wake people up to the issue?

A I hope not. You know, I, I really hope that we do the right thing because it's the right thing to do. Our, our satellite constellation is called Pono, and Pono is like the Hawaiian word for karma. It means to do the right thing or to do the righteous thing. You know, in, in general, Hawaii is actually a really interesting place to headquarter privateer because there are notions in Hawaiian society and words that are used that don't exist really in English. Hawaiians have a, a, a word for stewardship and responsibility that's called kuleana. That is More than just a word, it's a virtue. It's something that people live their kuleana, their responsibility. Ideas like pono and kuleana and the nature of stewardship and conservatorship, that has to translate to our space environment. Other than in our tax dollars, we don't pay for air traffic control, space situational awareness, and traffic management, domain awareness, and traffic control. All these things should be free. They should not be things that space operators have to pay for. They should be things that enable people to do good things while they operate safely in space. And we've already had bad things happen. We've had things happen in space that were nearly catastrophic, that have nearly cost a lot of lives. You know, we're, we're co-sponsored by Omega watches. So this is not a total shameless plug, but Apollo 13, you got…

AI assessment note: “I hope not. You know, I, I really hope that we do the right thing”