The Jason Cavness Experience

Paula Thomas left Amazon after 14 years as a software engineer. She's now running Viter Manufacturing—a 3D printing company focused on custom retail displays. But she's not a typical startup founder.

She's a Gold Star military spouse, which means her husband died in service. Her approach to building a company around grief, resilience, and curiosity is the opposite of the hype-and-speed culture that dominates tech.

In this conversation, we talk about why most 3D printing startups fail (the hidden costs nobody tracks), how to know when to push through and when to walk away, the power of learning out loud and getting called out publicly, and why innovation actually requires the customer sitting at the table with you from day one.

We also discuss:

• Why resilience is a skill you build early, not something you develop in crisis

• The brutal math behind 3D printing pricing and why so many entrepreneurs get it wrong

• Gold Star families, TAPS and the resources most military families don't know exist

• From software engineering to 3D printing: what skills transfer, what doesn't

• Beta programs that flip the script on R&D costs

• How military spouses are the most underemployed demographic in America

• Why listening is harder than talking,and why it matters more

Paula links: Weiter Manufacturing weiter-mfg.com

Paula Thomas on LinkedIn — linkedin.com/in/paula-thomas

Jason links:

The Jason Cavness Experience thejasoncavnessexperience.com

Jason on LinkedIn — linkedin.com/in/jasoncavness

Cavness LLC — cavness.io

Chancy Williams didn't know the difference between GSM and cotton blend six months ago. Now he's running his own streetwear brand, Majority, funded entirely out of a 9-to-5 job and a college class schedule. Chancy is 20, a double major in international business and marketing, and the son of one of my old Army buddies. We get into why he started a clothing brand before he had a real job, what happened when his first bulk order came back ruined, and why he thinks his generation needs to stop waiting for permission to start something.

We also discuss:

Why he chose sweatpants and hoodies as his first drop instead of T-shirts

Getting burned by an overseas manufacturer and what he'd do differently

Funding a business entirely himself while working retail in Florida

The lesson that changed how he thinks about marketing before inventory exists

What "Majority" as a brand name actually means to him

Chancy's links

Personal: https://www.instagram.com/chayfrmitaly/

Majority (Instagram): https://www.instagram.com/majority.rpt/

Majority (TikTok) https://www.tiktok.com/@majority.rpt?

(TikTok): https://www.tiktok.com/@majority.rpt?_r=1&_t=ZT-98fdkoKbu5V

Jason's links

https://linktr.ee/jasoncavness

Keith McCall is building a company that watches the Earth from above. Omniris pulls imagery from drones, satellites, and IoT sensors, overlays it on a map, and adds the one thing that makes data powerful time. Capture the same field or cell tower ten times across a year and you get a living database, a digital twin more useful than anything sitting in a spreadsheet. His network of 4,000 independent drone pilots has flown Walmart's headquarters, Amazon distribution centers, 11,000 Verizon cell towers, and solar farms around the world.

Keith is the CEO of Omniris, along with the ag-tech company Pollen Systems and the wine venture Everyvine. He and Jason get into why he ripped out a $2 billion incumbent and bet on open source, how he handles data sovereignty across Azure, AWS, and on-premise servers from Saudi Arabia to Chile, and why he thinks the billions being poured into AI valuations could evaporate faster than anyone expects.

We also discuss: Why he went open source to scale past a $2 billion competitor The AI valuation bubble and how Chinese model distillation could wipe it out Smart cities. Why Seattle's cameras, drones, and traffic lights aren't on one geospatial layer The coming food crisis and the aging-farmer knowledge problem behind his ag-tech work Hiring for communication, collaboration, and compassion over pedigree Ranking family offices first and venture capital last when raising money

Keith's links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithmccall/

Omniris: https://omniris.world/

Pollen Systems: https://www.pollensystems.com/

Everyvine: http://www.everyvine.com

Eastside Entrepreneurs: https://eastent.org/

Jason links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncavness

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Most elected officials face voters. Many local officials never face an opponent. Brien Kennedy left a career scaling e-commerce businesses at Amazon, Microsoft, Nuun Hydration, and SmartyPants Vitamins to work inside the Kitsap County Superior Court. What he saw was a system that people depend on during some of the hardest moments of their lives. But often cannot understand or navigate. Now he is running in only the third contested race for Kitsap County Clerk in 28 years.

We also discuss:

• Why uncontested elections create complacency

• What a county clerk actually controls

• Why 20 to 30 people each week enter divorce court without a lawyer

• How confusing court processes punish people who cannot afford representation

• Using dashboards, audits, and data to make government accountable

• What Amazon taught Brien about writing, preparation, and measurable results

• How he helped scale SmartyPants Vitamins and Nuun Hydration toward acquisition

• Why local elections can affect your daily life more than national politics

Brien's links Website: https://kennedyforclerk.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kennedyforclerk/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Kennedyforclerk

Local leadership matters more than most people realize. Follow The Jason Cavness Experience for more conversations with founders, operators, veterans, and community leaders working to create real change.

Find every episode and connect with Jason here: https://linktr.ee/jasoncavness

Preserving culture requires more than celebrating it. The traditions also need customers, economic opportunity, and a path to the next generation. Suleiny Altamirano, founder and CEO of Tizana Mexicana, shares how moving from Guerrero, Mexico, to Seattle inspired her to build a bridge between Mexican artisans and new markets. She explains why trust matters more than technology, how immigrant founders can build a new support system, and why social impact companies still need a sustainable business model.

We also discuss: • Why immigrant founders need to create a new family of mentors, supporters, and collaborators

• How Tizana Mexicana works with approximately 175 artisans

• Why artisan products cannot compete on price alone

• How cultural traditions disappear when creators cannot earn a living

• Building trust across language, banking, technology, and communication barriers

• Why founders should talk about their ideas before they feel ready

• Balancing social impact with profitability

• Expanding beyond Washington and bringing more artisans to Seattle

• The role of community in entrepreneurship and leadership

Suleiny' links"

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suly-altamirano

Website: https://www.tizanamexicana.com

Instagram: @tizanamexicana

Jason's CTA:

Subscribe to The Jason Cavness Experience on YouTube for more conversations with founders, operators, and builders turning personal experience into meaningful companies.

Jason's links:

https://linktr.ee/jasoncavness

Most brands do not have an influencer problem. They have a strategy problem. Alex Shebar, founder of NYC Social Club, explains why generic campaigns, rigid scripts, and oversized creator lists fail to generate meaningful results. He breaks down how brands can find creators who match their audience, test content without wasting their budget, and build smaller communities that actually care.

We also discuss:

• Why 10 engaged followers can be more valuable than 1,000 passive ones

• How community managers keep online communities alive

• Why brands should stop trying to reach everyone

• The problem with publishing 100 mediocre posts a day

• How to identify and amplify content that is already working

• Why niche creators are becoming more valuable

• How Alex built NYC Social Club and began working with major brands

• What hackathons teach builders about deadlines and creativity

• Why consistency matters more than one viral moment

Alex's links:

NYC Social Club: https://www.NYCSocialClub.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-shebar/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@featuringalex

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexshebar/

Jason links:

https://linktr.ee/jasoncavness

The strongest encryption in the world cannot protect you when someone can force you to unlock your phone. Josh Thomas, founder of Deniable, explains why conventional mobile security ignores coercion and how plausible deniability changes the equation. He also shares a hard-earned rule for builders: decide what would make you kill a project before your identity, money, and emotions become attached to it.

We also discuss:

• Why institutions often capture problems instead of solving them

• How incentives shape behavior inside nonprofits and the United Nations

• Why every startup should establish a kill metric

• Building technology for high-risk environments

• What Josh learned traveling through North Korea and Central Asia

• Raising globally curious children

• Why people across borders have more in common than we assume

Josh's links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshthom/

Deniable: https://deniable.io

Karakoram: https://karakoram.co

Jason links:

https://linktr.ee/jasoncavness

Ben King spent six years in the Army before starting over in the startup world as a Sales Development Representative. He brought discipline, leadership, and resilience, but still had to learn a new industry, prove himself in a new environment, and build his civilian career one sales conversation at a time.

Now at Loop8, Ben is helping companies move beyond AI hype and use automation and cloud technology to solve real business problems. This conversation explores what veterans bring to tech, what startup sales actually demands, and why successful AI adoption should begin with the mission not the tool.

We also discuss:

• Starting over as an SDR after leaving the Army

• Translating military experience into civilian value

• Why veterans are built for high-pressure sales environments

• The habits that create long-term sales success

• Building go-to-market systems inside a growing company

• Selling AI without exaggerating what it can do

• How Loop8 approaches AI, automation, and cloud infrastructure

• Why business outcomes matter more than flashy technology

Sponsor

This episode is sponsored by 2BAR Spirits, a Northwest grain-to-glass distillery with an all-female production team. The first Seattle distillery to produce bourbon, 2BAR Spirits creates approachable whiskey designed to bring people together.

2BAR Spirits also sponsored The Jason Cavness Experience Deep Tech Demo Day. https://www.2barspirits.com/

Ben's links

Ben King on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjamin-king-013041148/

Email Ben: [email protected] Loop8: https://www.loop8.io

Cloudy with a Chance of Awesome podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/0ynfms8t8MZbLWrU6S5h4a?si=d93ab1af30e64e4b

Jason links

https://linktr.ee/jasoncavness

Quantum will not transform every workload and that is exactly why deep-tech founders need to stop selling it as a universal solution. Lori Salow Marshall explains where quantum computing can create real commercial value. Why it must be integrated with classical systems, and how science led companies can translate technical breakthroughs into focused market opportunities. She also breaks down why deep-tech founders should lead with the urgent problem they can solve today not every possible application their technology may support in the future.

We also discuss:

• Why quantum is fundamentally different from AI and cloud

• The problems that create an exponential scaling wall

• Where quantum may create value in pharmaceuticals, materials and financial services

• Why quantum computing will be use-case driven

• The role of classical and quantum hybrid architectures

• Why deep-tech founders try to tell too much of the story

• How to commercialize science without oversimplifying it

• Why category creation matters for emerging technologies

• How ecosystems influence product, funding and acquisition strategy

• What Lori learned from taking her own technology company to market

• Why technical possibility does not guarantee customer demand

Lori's Links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorisalowmarshall/

The Quantum Links Group: https://www.thequantumlinksgroup.com/

Ecosystem Entanglement Substack: https://www.ecosystementanglement.com/

Email: [email protected]

Jason links:

https://linktr.ee/jasoncavness

Military Creator Con exists because the military community is bigger than resumes, contractor jobs, and transition checklists. James Van Prooyen, Air Force retiree and co-founder of Military Creator Con, talks about building a home for military-connected creators, podcasters, entrepreneurs, artists, writers, performers, and builders. We get into why Veterans need more creative paths, how community turns ideas into momentum. Why the next chapter after service does not have to look like the last one.

We also discuss:

• Why Military Creator Con needed to exist

• What military transition still gets wrong

• Why veterans and military spouses need creator-focused spaces

• How podcasting opened doors for James

• Why relational networking beats transactional networking

• What made Military Creator Con work as a standalone event

• The role of sponsors, volunteers, and community

• How running shaped James' mindset

• Why military people are already creators, even if they do not call themselves that

James' links

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-van-prooyen-podcasthost/

Website: https://www.militarycreatorcon.com/

Phone: 719-322-8269

Jason links https://linktr.ee/jasoncavness