In this episode of The Interconnect, Stanford University Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics Simone D’Amico and CFR’s Space Task Force Project Director Esther Brimmer discuss how private companies are driving innovation in orbit, the new moon race that’s underway, and how increased commercial and military activity raises questions about the responsible use of space.

Guest: Simone D’Amico, associate professor of aeronautics and astronautics at Stanford University and a science fellow at the Hoover Institution

Guest: Esther Brimmer, the James H. Binger senior fellow in global governance at the Council on Foreign Relations and project director for CFR’s Space Task Force

Host: Martin Giles, managing editor of the Stanford Emerging Technology Review

Read the 2025 Stanford Emerging Technology Review at https://setr.stanford.edu/ 

Read CFR’s 2025 Space Task Force Report, Securing Space: A Plan for U.S. Action