StarZero All shows Try the podcast clipper →

Feb 26, 2026 · 22m · sourcery

Revel: The $1B Startup Rewriting Hardware Control · Sourcery with Molly O'Shea

Scott Morton · 16m spoken Molly O'Shea · 4m spoken
0:00 / 0:00
▶ Watch on YouTube →

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In this episode of Sourcery, host Molly O'Shea interviews Revel Founder & CEO Scott Morton about how his SpaceX background inspired him to modernize hardware control software, driving Revel to a $1B valuation and widespread aerospace adoption.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Molly holds 22.6% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Molly as informed peer 2.4 Guest teaching 4.9 Guest disagreement 0.0 Molly pushing back 0.3
05100:0010:0020:000:40–2:42 · Molly as informed peer 4/10 Revel's $150M Series B and Preemptive Fundraising Molly opens with exact details of Revel's $150M Series B round and $1.005B valuation, asking pointed questions about the preemptive nature of the round and early investors.2:42–5:22 · Molly as informed peer 2/10 The Hardware Control Problem and Legacy Software Limits Scott educates Molly on the history of hardware control systems, highlighting how tools like LabVIEW (1986) and Structured Text (1993) created an outdated legacy ecosystem due to internet-era brain drain.5:22–7:26 · Molly as informed peer 3/10 Customer Impact and Impulse Space Onboarding Case Study Molly asks targeted operational questions on time savings, prompting Scott to share hard metrics from Impulse Space, including a 5x to 10x increase in engine test cadence.7:26–10:18 · Molly as informed peer 0/10 SpaceX Learnings: High-Consequence Control and Starship Development Scott delivers an uninterrupted narrative explaining high-consequence control software at SpaceX, detailing the high-stakes 'load and go' Falcon 9 propellant sequencing and T-1 minute Starship risks.10:18–15:43 · Molly as informed peer 2/10 Sponsor Segment: Brex Financial Platform Following sponsor reads, Molly prompts Scott on lessons learned from Elon Musk, leading to an extensive case study on how SpaceX engineered Starship hot staging in days.15:43–18:20 · Molly as informed peer 3/10 Scaling Strategy, Product Expansion, and Dream Customers Molly probes Scott's headcount expansion plans and dream customers. Scott explains Revel's command and control tier (Revel C2) and cites Exxon and nuclear startups as target adopters.18:20–20:55 · Molly as informed peer 3/10 Sponsor Segment: Public Generated Assets Molly and Scott discuss influential network figures such as Dylan Field, alongside 100% pilot conversion metrics and validation from early SpaceX colleagues.0:40–2:42 · Guest teaching 2/10 Revel's $150M Series B and Preemptive Fundraising Molly opens with exact details of Revel's $150M Series B round and $1.005B valuation, asking pointed questions about the preemptive nature of the round and early investors.2:42–5:22 · Guest teaching 6/10 The Hardware Control Problem and Legacy Software Limits Scott educates Molly on the history of hardware control systems, highlighting how tools like LabVIEW (1986) and Structured Text (1993) created an outdated legacy ecosystem due to internet-era brain drain.5:22–7:26 · Guest teaching 5/10 Customer Impact and Impulse Space Onboarding Case Study Molly asks targeted operational questions on time savings, prompting Scott to share hard metrics from Impulse Space, including a 5x to 10x increase in engine test cadence.7:26–10:18 · Guest teaching 6/10 SpaceX Learnings: High-Consequence Control and Starship Development Scott delivers an uninterrupted narrative explaining high-consequence control software at SpaceX, detailing the high-stakes 'load and go' Falcon 9 propellant sequencing and T-1 minute Starship risks.10:18–15:43 · Guest teaching 6/10 Sponsor Segment: Brex Financial Platform Following sponsor reads, Molly prompts Scott on lessons learned from Elon Musk, leading to an extensive case study on how SpaceX engineered Starship hot staging in days.15:43–18:20 · Guest teaching 5/10 Scaling Strategy, Product Expansion, and Dream Customers Molly probes Scott's headcount expansion plans and dream customers. Scott explains Revel's command and control tier (Revel C2) and cites Exxon and nuclear startups as target adopters.18:20–20:55 · Guest teaching 4/10 Sponsor Segment: Public Generated Assets Molly and Scott discuss influential network figures such as Dylan Field, alongside 100% pilot conversion metrics and validation from early SpaceX colleagues.0:40–2:42 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Revel's $150M Series B and Preemptive Fundraising Molly opens with exact details of Revel's $150M Series B round and $1.005B valuation, asking pointed questions about the preemptive nature of the round and early investors.2:42–5:22 · Guest disagreement 0/10 The Hardware Control Problem and Legacy Software Limits Scott educates Molly on the history of hardware control systems, highlighting how tools like LabVIEW (1986) and Structured Text (1993) created an outdated legacy ecosystem due to internet-era brain drain.5:22–7:26 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Customer Impact and Impulse Space Onboarding Case Study Molly asks targeted operational questions on time savings, prompting Scott to share hard metrics from Impulse Space, including a 5x to 10x increase in engine test cadence.7:26–10:18 · Guest disagreement 0/10 SpaceX Learnings: High-Consequence Control and Starship Development Scott delivers an uninterrupted narrative explaining high-consequence control software at SpaceX, detailing the high-stakes 'load and go' Falcon 9 propellant sequencing and T-1 minute Starship risks.10:18–15:43 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Sponsor Segment: Brex Financial Platform Following sponsor reads, Molly prompts Scott on lessons learned from Elon Musk, leading to an extensive case study on how SpaceX engineered Starship hot staging in days.15:43–18:20 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Scaling Strategy, Product Expansion, and Dream Customers Molly probes Scott's headcount expansion plans and dream customers. Scott explains Revel's command and control tier (Revel C2) and cites Exxon and nuclear startups as target adopters.18:20–20:55 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Sponsor Segment: Public Generated Assets Molly and Scott discuss influential network figures such as Dylan Field, alongside 100% pilot conversion metrics and validation from early SpaceX colleagues.0:40–2:42 · Molly pushing back 1/10 Revel's $150M Series B and Preemptive Fundraising Molly opens with exact details of Revel's $150M Series B round and $1.005B valuation, asking pointed questions about the preemptive nature of the round and early investors.2:42–5:22 · Molly pushing back 0/10 The Hardware Control Problem and Legacy Software Limits Scott educates Molly on the history of hardware control systems, highlighting how tools like LabVIEW (1986) and Structured Text (1993) created an outdated legacy ecosystem due to internet-era brain drain.5:22–7:26 · Molly pushing back 0/10 Customer Impact and Impulse Space Onboarding Case Study Molly asks targeted operational questions on time savings, prompting Scott to share hard metrics from Impulse Space, including a 5x to 10x increase in engine test cadence.7:26–10:18 · Molly pushing back 0/10 SpaceX Learnings: High-Consequence Control and Starship Development Scott delivers an uninterrupted narrative explaining high-consequence control software at SpaceX, detailing the high-stakes 'load and go' Falcon 9 propellant sequencing and T-1 minute Starship risks.10:18–15:43 · Molly pushing back 0/10 Sponsor Segment: Brex Financial Platform Following sponsor reads, Molly prompts Scott on lessons learned from Elon Musk, leading to an extensive case study on how SpaceX engineered Starship hot staging in days.15:43–18:20 · Molly pushing back 1/10 Scaling Strategy, Product Expansion, and Dream Customers Molly probes Scott's headcount expansion plans and dream customers. Scott explains Revel's command and control tier (Revel C2) and cites Exxon and nuclear startups as target adopters.18:20–20:55 · Molly pushing back 0/10 Sponsor Segment: Public Generated Assets Molly and Scott discuss influential network figures such as Dylan Field, alongside 100% pilot conversion metrics and validation from early SpaceX colleagues.

speaking balance: gold is Molly, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Molly 23.2% · guest 76.8%0:00 · Molly 23.2% · guest 76.8%3:00 · Molly 5.8% · guest 94.2%3:00 · Molly 5.8% · guest 94.2%6:00 · Molly 0% · guest 100%6:00 · Molly 0% · guest 100%9:00 · Molly 51.5% · guest 48.5%9:00 · Molly 51.5% · guest 48.5%12:00 · Molly 2.5% · guest 97.5%12:00 · Molly 2.5% · guest 97.5%15:00 · Molly 7.7% · guest 92.3%15:00 · Molly 7.7% · guest 92.3%18:00 · Molly 64.2% · guest 35.8%18:00 · Molly 64.2% · guest 35.8%21:00 · Molly 29% · guest 71%21:00 · Molly 29% · guest 71%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 1:20 Scott rejects traditional drawn-out fundraising processes

Scott dismisses the conventional competitive fundraising process, arguing that dragging out rounds over months fails to secure high-conviction partners.

 Hardest push from Molly ▶ 15:43 Molly presses Scott on team scaling and headcount

Molly directly asks Scott whether he plans to keep Revel small or aggressively scale the team, pressing him for a clear organizational philosophy.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 3:30 Scott details how 1980s legacy tools created an industry-wide software bottleneck

Scott provides a thorough breakdown of legacy industrial software like LabVIEW and Structured Text, explaining how 1990s tech drain left hardware control three decades behind.

 Molly holds their own ▶ 0:43 Molly cites exact fundraising details and unicorn valuation

Molly demonstrates full mastery of Revel's fundraising milestones, highlighting the $150M Series B raise at a $1.005B valuation within 15 months of founding.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicMolly as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementMolly pushing backWhy
Revel's $150M Series B and Preemptive Fundraising 4201 Molly opens with exact details of Revel's $150M Series B round and $1.005B valuation, asking pointed questions about the preemptive nature of the round and early investors.
The Hardware Control Problem and Legacy Software Limits 2600 Scott educates Molly on the history of hardware control systems, highlighting how tools like LabVIEW (1986) and Structured Text (1993) created an outdated legacy ecosystem due to internet-era brain drain.
Customer Impact and Impulse Space Onboarding Case Study 3500 Molly asks targeted operational questions on time savings, prompting Scott to share hard metrics from Impulse Space, including a 5x to 10x increase in engine test cadence.
SpaceX Learnings: High-Consequence Control and Starship Development 0600 Scott delivers an uninterrupted narrative explaining high-consequence control software at SpaceX, detailing the high-stakes 'load and go' Falcon 9 propellant sequencing and T-1 minute Starship risks.
Sponsor Segment: Brex Financial Platform 2600 Following sponsor reads, Molly prompts Scott on lessons learned from Elon Musk, leading to an extensive case study on how SpaceX engineered Starship hot staging in days.
Scaling Strategy, Product Expansion, and Dream Customers 3501 Molly probes Scott's headcount expansion plans and dream customers. Scott explains Revel's command and control tier (Revel C2) and cites Exxon and nuclear startups as target adopters.
Sponsor Segment: Public Generated Assets 3400 Molly and Scott discuss influential network figures such as Dylan Field, alongside 100% pilot conversion metrics and validation from early SpaceX colleagues.

Statements from this episode (9)

Disclosure
Morton: Revel raised $150M round and $180M total in 15 months
“Raised in this round, a hundred and fifty million total raised 180, 15 month old company.”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 0:56
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Morton: SpaceX Had to Build Control Infrastructure From Scratch
“At SpaceX, we ended up actually having to build all the infrastructure from scratch to actually have something that was modern and that and that also really helped us be more successful.”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 4:26
Opinion
Morton: 1993's Structured Text Remains the Cutting Edge in Industrial Controls
“The other big market is industrial control systems, and it's actually this, it's like a very similar story. The kind of most modern tools were developed in it's a language called structured text, Invented in 1993 and that is still to this day like the cutting …”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 4:52
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Morton: Revel increased Impulse Space's engine test throughput 5x to 10x
“So impulse, the first big deployment was actually their rocket engine test site, which was like their kind of big burning need at the time. And they previous software, it was kind of one of the legacy solutions. They were testing about once every other day and…”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 5:28
Insight
Morton: One Character Error in Rocket Control Code Can Destroy Launchpads
“I'm about to have tens of thousands of lines of code execute, one character wrong in one of these lines of code. Is the difference between, like, total success and then, like, maybe no more launch site.”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 9:21
Disclosure
Morton: Revel is building Astra Mechanica's jet engine test facility
“Astra Mechanica is another one. We're doing their jet engine test facility.”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 16:17
Disclosure
Morton: Radiant Nuclear uses Revel C2 for command and control
“That's actually what Radiant is using, is we call it REVEL C-II, which is, C-II stands for Command and Control, and so it does things like high availability, where we have primary backup systems, we have data logging redundancy as well, and we also have, we ca…”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 17:29
Disclosure
Morton: Figma CEO Dylan Field Is an Investor in Revel
“Dylan Field is actually a pretty big investor in, in Revel, and it's been super interesting.”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 20:10
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Revel has converted 100% of customer pilots to date, says Morton
“Every pilot has actually converted. We're, we bet a thousand so far.”
Scott Morton Feb 26, 2026 ▶ 20:58
Made with StarZero

Turn any episode into a week of clips.

This entire site, over 160 episodes transcribed, diarized, checked and made playable, runs on the StarZero media pipeline. Drop in your own episode and the podcast clipper finds the moments worth sharing, cuts them, captions them, and reframes them for every feed.

Try the podcast clipper Learn more