In this season finale, we are joined by Miles Kirby, CEO of Deep Tech Labs in Cambridge, UK. It is a true privilege to have Miles on the show as he shares insights from his incredible career spanning both sides of the Atlantic, transforming innovative ideas into successful products that generate millions of dollars in revenue.

Before Deep Tech Labs, Miles was the Managing Director of AV8 Ventures. This was a €150 million fund that focused on early-stage investments in cutting-edge technologies like mobility, big data, AI, digital health, and cybersecurity. He also led technology investments at Oxford Capital, where his portfolio included companies like UltraSoC (acquired by Siemens) and Latent Logic (acquired by Waymo). His time at Qualcomm Ventures, a $500 million corporate fund, gave him a unique understanding of how to find and support promising startups.

At Qualcomm, Miles not only managed a big investment portfolio but also started an internal incubator and led the company's work in augmented reality, wireless charging, and machine learning, resulting in 34 patents. He also has practical experience in creating and leading product management teams for mobile phones and display groups at Qualcomm.

In this conversation, we will explore Miles's vast experience and discuss the details of product management in the world of deep tech. We'll go beyond the basics and talk about the changing roles within deep tech startups and the different product management cultures in the US and Europe.

We explore :

● Why "Product Management Thinking" Matters: Understand why having a product management mindset from the start is crucial for success in deep tech, even for small teams.

● The common misconceptions around the product management function, particularly in the European context, and why it's about more than just project management.

● The key differences between product management in software versus deep tech, emphasizing the need to align the technology development roadmap with the product roadmap.

● How product management should evolve as a company grows, and the different ways this function can be fulfilled depending on the startup's stage and the founder's background.

● The importance of focus for early-stage companies and why pursuing every opportunity can lead to spreading resources too thin.

● Whether startups should aim to be acquired or build for growth, and how to position themselves for success in either scenario.

Book Suggestions:

While Miles doesn't recommend a specific book, he finds Harvard Business cases particularly useful due to their practical nature and real-world applications. He appreciates the learning-by-doing aspect of these cases, where you can analyze a situation, formulate a strategy, and then compare it with the actual outcome. Read them here: https://store.hbr.org/case-studies/?ab=store_hp_nav_-_cases

This episode welcomes Maria Maragkou, VP of Product at Riverlane, a pioneering company working on error correction for quantum computers. Maria, with her background in physics and business, brings a unique perspective to product development in the rapidly evolving landscape of deep tech.

Key Takeaways:

●Beyond Traditional Product Development: Discover how Riverlane embraces an iterative product development process ("acty") that prioritizes continuous learning, customer collaboration, and adapting to the uncertainty inherent in the quantum computing industry.

●Performance Metrics Redefined: Learn how this iterative approach necessitates a shift in performance measurement, moving away from traditional output-focused metrics towards those that reflect learning, customer feedback integration, and the strength of strategic partnerships.

●Building High-Performing Teams: Gain insights into Maria's strategies for building and managing high-performing teams in a deep tech environment. She shares her perspectives on fostering psychological safety, embracing failure as a learning opportunity, and attracting talent equipped for the unique demands of quantum computing.

This episode is a must-watch for:

●Product managers in deep tech and emerging industries

●Anyone interested in the unique challenges and opportunities of quantum computing

●Leaders seeking innovative approaches to product development and performance management

Join us as we talk with Chris Hodson, Head of Product at Oxford Instruments Plasma Technology, about the intricacies of product management in the dynamic world of semiconductor fabrication equipment products. With over 20 years of experience, Chris provides valuable insights into:

●Unraveling Customer Needs: Discover the critical importance of understanding emerging customer needs and aligning them with cutting-edge technologies

●Bridging Innovation and Industry: Explore the differences in product development for innovators versus established industries and how to effectively translate research into practical solutions.

●Production Qualification: Learn about the iterative process of getting disruptive technologies ready for production, including managing customer feedback, adapting to market dynamics, and ensuring stakeholder alignment.

Whether you're a seasoned product leader or just starting in the semiconductor industry, this episode offers essential advice on navigating this complex and rapidly evolving market.

This episode of the Deep Tech Product Podcast features Mulham T. of Spaceforge discussing the unique challenges of product management in the space tech and semiconductor industries. Listeners will learn how to manage stakeholder expectations across these distinct sectors and plan for uncertainty in a complex landscape. This episode is useful for product managers in the space tech industry, those interested in the space tech industry, product managers navigating multi-industry collaborations, and anyone interested in product development in deep tech.

In this conversation with Mike Harmon, founder of Hardtech CMO, we explore another aspect of product management critical to ensuring success post-development, i.e., impactful messaging and going to market. The podcast taps into Mike's in-depth expertise on this subject and learns about how to think about messaging along the product development journey before and after going to market, how to think about product messaging during long development cycles in deep tech, and how to leverage partnerships along the way. Listeners will grasp the nuances, the best practices, the common mistakes, and the potential obstacles to sidestep.

Join us in this episode as we host Ed Wood, the VP of Product at Nu Quantum. Ed brings a wealth of experience from the telecom, wireless systems, and hardware cryptography domains, including his involvement with the pioneering company nCipher. In the last three years, he has entered the quantum space with Cambridge start-up Nu Quantum, a spin-out from the Cavendish Physics lab at Cambridge University.

Nu Quantum is doing fascinating work in developing technology that allows multiple, smaller quantum computers to be interconnected, forming a network with significantly increased processing power. In this conversation, Ed shares his experience on how they pivoted their product based on customer feedback, a significant challenge in the capital-intensive deep tech landscape.

Join us in this episode as we host Quentin Francois, the VP of Product at Robeaute, who shares his valuable insights into the early stages of deep tech product development. In this conversation, Quentin delves into the world of developing early visionary customers and using their feedback to define the right application for technology. He highlights the importance of design early on in deep tech projects, the challenges of aligning multiple stakeholders, and the process of iterating on potential applications for Robeauté's groundbreaking healthcare technology.

Robeaute, under Quentin's leadership, is pioneering in healthcare technology with a focus on surgical robotics. In this conversation, we delve into the intricacies of developing innovative solutions in deep tech, especially within the demanding realm of surgical robotics.

Interested in how strategic acquisitions can accelerate product portfolios in deep tech?

In this conversation with Dr. Nadia Carlsten, VP of Product at Sandbox AQ, we dive into another dimension in the product management toolkit for deeptech, i.e., product and technology acquistions. Nadia shares valuable experiences from leadership roles at various deep tech efforts and provide tangible takeaways for product managers to ace make vs buy decisions!

In this episode of Deep Dive, we delve into the world of deep tech product management with Blaise Vignon, Chief Product Officer at Alice&Bob, a French company pioneering the development of quantum computers.

Blaise shares his insights on the unique challenges of turning cutting-edge research into successful products in the complex and rapidly evolving landscape of deep tech. He discusses the need for a robust "Science vs. Innovation Factory" process that bridges the gap between scientists and engineers, fostering collaboration and ensuring efficient product development.

Resources:

Blaise's Blog: https://alice-bob.com/blog/deeptech-motion-transform-a-research-lab-into-an-innovation-factory/

Book recommendation : The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldratt : https://amzn.eu/d/cnJB8sg

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• Deep Tech Syndicate— A community of product leaders in deep tech , join us today! : https://deeptechsyndicate.substack.com/