This past November, the University of Austin hosted their Inaugural SOMA Summit to explore the amazing transformation in space right now, especially how the commercial space era is decentralizing access. I had the privilege to moderate a fascinating panel titled "Science in the Commercial Space Age" featuring Chris Sembroski from Blue Origin, along with University of Florida space biologists Dr. Rob Ferl and Dr. Anna-Lisa Paul.

As space becomes more accessible, it's evolving beyond merely a frontier to explore into its own innovation platform and ecosystem. This opens up a whole galaxy of possibilities.

Episode Highlights

• Mission Experiences
• Space Peppers
• Understanding Human Adaptation
• Space as an Innovation Frontier 
• Manufacturing in Microgravity
• Plants' Role in Future Exploration
• Ethical Considerations
• What's next for science in the commercial space age?
  • Rob Ferl: “More scientists flying to do their experiments in space.”
  • Anna-Lisa Paul: “More research in how we effectively take our biology off the planet to have long-term existence elsewhere”
  • Chris Sembroski: “Recognizing that it's not going to end with us, that we have to keep inspiring that next generation”

Chris Sembroski: X/Twitter, LinkedIn
Rob Ferl: UF Faculty Page
Anna-Lisa Paul: UF Faculty Page

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

AI is becoming the biggest force multiplier for human talent in history. Austen Allred shares how Gauntlet AI is reimagining engineering education for this new reality and why Austin's is the perfect place to build this ambitious program. This is was quick turnaround episode as Gauntlet AI applications close January 4th (application link below). We also go deeper on the 2nd and 3rd order effects of this transformation on engineering, learning, kids, and Austin.

Episode Highlights

• What is Gauntlet AI?
• How AI transforms the engineering craft 
• Building $100M engineers 
• Breaking traditional talent signals & building new ones 
• AI's impact on adaptive learning 
• Developing spiky points of view 
• Austin's emergence as an edtech hub
• What's Next Austin?
  • "Austin just found a home for all of the people who think a little bit differently and see the world a little bit differently...And historically, if there's a place where all of the independent thinking vagabonds go with a lot of ambition, that's going to be a really cool place, and that's a place you want to be."

Gauntlet AI

Austen Allred: X/Twitter, LinkedIn

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

Space is becoming our next great innovation frontier as we move from 700 astronauts spending days or months to tens of thousands spending years. What does that do to the human body? What does it mean for our species? Eliah Overbey, Assistant Professor of Bioastronautics at the University of Austin, joins the podcast to explore topics in the increasingly blurred line between science fiction and science fact.

Episode Highlights

• What is Bioastronautics? 
• Space's Impact on Human Biology 
• Current Space Medicine and Healthcare Challenges 
• The Commercialization of Space and NASA's Evolving Role 
• UATX's Unique Approach 
• The SOMA Summit and Space Research Community 
• Genetic Modification for Mars 
• Human Evolution with Space Colonization
• What's Next Austin?
  • "I'm working on building at UATX is I'm getting a bioastronautics lab started up...More and more people go to space, we're going to have more and more people that we want to sequence to...answer these questions in a more scientifically rigorous way, get our end value higher than before in a single experiment."

Eliah Overbey: LinkedIn, X/Twitter
University of Austin: Website, LinkedIn, X/Twitter
BioAstra: Website, LinkedIn, X/Twitter

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

Austin is rapidly emerging as a significant edtech hub, attracting not just innovative startups but also established industry leaders. In this episode, Udemy's Chief Revenue Officer Rob Rosenthal joins me to explore what skills are in-demand and how technology is transforming both what we learn and how we learn it.

Episode Highlights

• Generational Changes in Professional Learning
• The Rise of Skills-Based Organizations
• Foundational vs Transitory Skills
• AI as a Teaching Tool, Not a Replacement
• The Power of Learning Marketplaces
• Why Austin is Becoming an EdTech Hub
• What's Next Austin?
  • "It's always been one of my favorite places in the world to spend time. I know you've had a lot of growth, you have a lot more coming."

2025 Global Learning & Skills Trends Report
Q3 2024 Global Workplace Learning Index

Rob Rosenthal

Udemy: Website, LinkedIn, X/Twitter

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

Recorded live at Austin's Quantonation Day this past September, I sat down with senior leaders from Strangeworks, Qunnect, Pasqal, and Tau Systems to discuss the state of quantum and physics tech. This candid panel went beyond the typical quantum computing conversation to face the market realities of building a business in the space. We explored the tension between the possible future this technology brings and immediate needs of customers today.

Episode Highlights

• Introduction to Quantum and Physics Tech
• Deep Tech Communication
• Scientific-Business Divide
• Hype vs Market Reality vs Innovation Progress
• Solving Customer Problems Today
• The Role of Patience
• Infrastructure and Horizontal Tech 
• What’s Next

William 'whurley' Hurley: Strangeworks, LinkedIn, X/Twitter
Noel Goddard: Qunnect, LinkedIn
Wasiq Bokhari: Pasqal, LinkedIn
Bjorn Manuel Hegelich: Tau Systems, LinkedIn
Quantoation 

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

Optimizing health is about more than just new tech, it's about new models, new ways to engage, and being fun. Jim Donnelly, founder and CEO of Humanaut Health, is pioneering a comprehensive approach that combines advanced diagnostics, the latest interventions, with lifestyle changes to add decades of healthy living to people's lives. In this episode, we look at these new approaches and how Austin is emerging as a hub for health innovation companies.

Episode Highlights

• Humanaut Health and Its Mission
• Longevity vs. Health Optimization
• Navigating the Wild West of Wellness 
• Measuring Prevention and Healthspan
• New Business Models: Aligning Incentives, Dealing with Churn, Integrating Tech
• Austin: A Hub for Health and Wellness Innovation
• What's Next, Austin?
  • "That many of these great things that are happening in Austin become less the purvey of the top 1%-5%. It's not the biohackers. It's not the rich people. It's like a lot of this sort of filters down more and more."

Jim Donnelly
Humanaut Health: Website, Instagram

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

Building companies that can 10x humanity requires extraordinary leadership. Craig Cummings of Moonshots Capital has made finding and backing these leaders his mission. Craig shares his insights on building the next generation of mission-driven companies and the future of the Austin ecosystem.

Episode Highlights

• What is a Moonshot?
• Finding the %$^* Yes: Moonshots Capital's Investment Philosophy
• Austin's Open Networks and Culture of Help 
• Building the Nation's Defense Tech Hub
• Dancing with the Stars Austin
• What's Next Austin?
  • "How do we get bigger and smaller at the same time...Don't try to change it, help us maintain it."

Craig Cummings
Moonshots Capital:  Website, LinkedIn, X/Twitter
Dancing with Starts Austin
Center for Child Protection: Website, Instagram

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

Nothing motivates a parent to action like a sick child, and for the Andrews family, words like no and impossible became mere roadblocks on their journey to help their kids. Our guests, Pam and Chris Andrews, founders of the Firefly Fund, turned their battle with their daughters' rare genetic disorder into a mission to revolutionize rare disease research and treatment here in Austin and beyond.

Episode Highlights

• Firefly Fund's Origin
• Establishing a Rare Disease Center at UT Dell Medical School 
• Navigating the Diagnostic Odyssey
• Interplay of Tech Innovation and New Business Models in Healthcare
• Downstream Effects of Rare Disease Advancements
• What's Next, Austin?
  • Pam Andrews: "Let's see how the intersection of technology and healthcare really can transform healthcare because I think that rare disease can light the way and inform the way that we do precision medicine for generations to come. So that's what we want through the Center for Rare Disease here in Austin is for it to evolve and unfold in a partnership with the rare disease community."
  • Chris Andrews: "My dream is that when people think of Austin, they'll think of the University of Texas, they'll think of barbecue, but they also will think of a place where people work to save lives."

Firefly Fund: Website, Facebook, X/Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

Angel investors are supposed to descend and bring early grace to startups but the reality of angel investing is much more complicated and complex. From individual big-check writers to small investors to organized groups, the will, experience, and dynamics vary widely.  Katie Russel (Central Texas Angel Network), Hall Martin (Ten Capital), and James Burkett (NuFund) join us to explore angel investing evolution and the state of Austin's scene. 

Episode Highlights

• Defining an Angel
• Angel Investing Intersections with the Ecosystem
• Dynamics of Individual Investors, Small Syndicates, and Angel Networks
• Where is Expertise in Verticals, Investing, and Startups
• Contrarian vs Consensus Decision Making in Angel Investing
• SAFE vs Convertible Note Debate 
• Austin's Angel Scene, its Evolution, and Challenges
• What's Next, Austin?
  • Katie Russel: "Making sure that Texas based startups have access to angel level capital and that investors, if they want to get involved in early stage investing, they know how to get involved and where to go"
  • Hall Martin: "Life science and deep tech...Austin's right there with the Bits and Atoms"
  • James Burkett: "Continue to do what defines Austin as a city. It's been really good at blazing its own trail in a number of unique industries and just because it's not something that someone in Sand Hill Road wants to fund doesn't mean it's the wrong thing to be building. And have conviction in that."

Katie Russel: LinkedIn, Central Texas Angel Network (CTAN)
Hall Martin: Ten Capital Group, Startup Funding Espresso, Investor Connect
James Burkett: LinkedIn, NuFund, Florin Digital

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack

Are we overlooking the most powerful model of intelligence we have  in our race to create smarter machines,  the human mind?  Peter Voss, CEO and Chief Scientist of Aigo.ai, coined the term "Artificial General Intelligence" (AGI) and brings decades of experience in AI research and development. We explore Peter's vision and challenge the current consensus path we are on.

Episode Highlights

• Defining AGI and Its Distinctions
• Measuring Intelligence Beyond the Turing Test
• Current AI Limitations and the Need for Real-Time Learning 
• Building Cognitive AI to Mimic the Human Mind 
• The Future of AI Development in Austin
• What's Next Austin?
  • "I hope Austin becomes the center of cognitive AI and AGI"

Peter Voss: LinkedIn, X/Twitter, Aigo.AI
Concepts Is All You Need: A Direct Path to AGI
Towards Incremental Learning
Why We Don’t Have AGI Yet?
INSA – Integrated Neuro-Symbolic Architecture
Creating The Future With Artificial General Intelligence

LLMs are not the Path to AGI

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Austin Next Links: Website, X/Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn
Ecosystem Metacognition Substack