We speak with Marie-Elisabeth Makohl, Co-Founder and CEO of SEAL Robotics, to explore how automation is starting to reshape one of the most overlooked parts of global logistics.

Marie-Elisabeth shares how a container voyage across the North Atlantic and North Sea led her to build a robotics company focused on container securing, a process still handled manually across ports worldwide. She explains the safety risks, labour pressures, and operational delays tied to this work, and why ports are ready for change.

The conversation also covers her path from computer science and robotics at the Technical University of Munich into entrepreneurship, the realities of building a startup in heavy industry, and why product market fit matters more than hype. They discuss fundraising, leadership, multidisciplinary engineering, and the importance of building robotics that fit the real environment, not just the lab.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Recorded live at Prism, this episode of Behind the Flight features Jeremy Cooper, Managing Director of Platform Aerospace UK.

He shares how a 28-year RAF career shaped his leadership style and how those lessons now apply to building a high-growth aerospace business.

The conversation explores his transition from military to industry, why persistence is critical in uncrewed aerial systems, and what it takes to build a UK presence within a scaling US company. It also covers the impact of regulation and procurement on innovation, alongside the growing importance of cyber, autonomy and multi-mission systems.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Behind the Robot, we speak with Julian Hoffmann, Co-Founder and CTO of Sitegeist.

Julian shares how a university thesis at TU Munich led to building a robotics startup focused on one of the toughest jobs on construction sites, hydro demolition. He explains the physical demands of the work and why replacing manual processes with robotics has clear value for safety, efficiency, and long-term workforce sustainability.

The conversation explores how Sitegeist approaches robotics in a practical way, focusing on solving specific problems rather than chasing general-purpose humanoid systems. Julian outlines why construction sites are one of the most complex environments for robotics, and how tackling these challenges creates strong technical and commercial foundations.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We sit down with Soroush Karimzadeh, Co-Founder and CEO of Novarc Technologies, to explore how autonomous welding is reshaping industrial automation.

Soroush shares his journey from engineering into entrepreneurship, and how Novarc is solving one of manufacturing’s biggest challenges, the global shortage of skilled welders. The conversation covers embodied AI, product market fit in robotics, and why reliability matters more than hype.

They also break down the realities of building a hardware business, from early sacrifices and funding challenges to scaling a multidisciplinary team. Soroush explains how Novarc is using AI-driven vision systems to enable adaptive welding, and what this means for productivity, quality, and workforce transformation.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we speaks with Martin Heriaud, Head of Racing Technology Development at Nissan Formula E Team.

Martin shares his journey into motorsport, from early internships to race engineering and now leading key technology development across the team. He explains how Formula E has evolved over the years, what makes the championship such a unique engineering challenge, and why software, simulator work, and systems thinking now play such a central role in performance.

The conversation also explores the team side of motorsport, the importance of consistency, how success is built across every department, and what the move into the Gen 4 era means for Nissan Formula E Team.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we speak with Bentzion Levinson, Founder and CEO of Heven Aerotech, about building a global drone company from first principles and scaling in one of the fastest-moving sectors in the world.

Bentzion shares how his journey from military service into entrepreneurship shaped his perspective on leadership, responsibility, and building technology with real-world impact. He explains why timing matters as much as the idea itself, and how spotting the shift from drones as cameras to drones as autonomous systems created a clear opportunity.

The conversation explores the realities of building in defence technology, from early-stage uncertainty and personal sacrifice to scaling manufacturing and competing in a rapidly evolving global market. Bentzion also breaks down the role of hydrogen fuel cells, AI, and autonomous systems in shaping the next generation of aerial platforms.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we speak with Theo Nash, CEO of Mundane, about building robots for real work and why the future of robotics should focus on labour amplification, not labour replacement.

Theo shares his journey from electrical engineering in the UK to studying in China and at Stanford, before co founding Mundane to tackle the dull, dangerous and repetitive work that robots are best placed to handle.

He explains why Mundane took a full stack approach, from hardware and control systems to human robot interfaces, and why the real challenge is not flashy demos but building robots that create economic value in real environments.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode Mark Bjornsgaard, Founder & Chief Innovation Officer of Deep Green, shares his journey into entrepreneurship and the thinking behind building a new model for data centre infrastructure.

Mark discusses the importance of testing assumptions, killing weak ideas early, and approaching entrepreneurship through disciplined experimentation rather than blind belief.

The conversation explores Deep Green’s mission to reuse heat from data centres, the growing power challenge driven by AI, and why distributed computing could reshape how data centres are built in the future.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode Mark Bjornsgaard, Founder & Chief Innovation Officer of Deep Green, shares his journey into entrepreneurship and the thinking behind building a new model for data centre infrastructure.

Mark discusses the importance of testing assumptions, killing weak ideas early, and approaching entrepreneurship through disciplined experimentation rather than blind belief.

The conversation explores Deep Green’s mission to reuse heat from data centres, the growing power challenge driven by AI, and why distributed computing could reshape how data centres are built in the future.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we speak with Kraettli Epperson, CEO and Co-Founder of Vigilant Aerospace, about autonomous aviation safety and building the systems that enable drones to operate at scale.

Kraettli shares his journey as a serial entrepreneur, from early internet startups to founding a company at the forefront of airspace management and collision avoidance for uncrewed aircraft.

The conversation explores aviation regulation, beyond visual line of sight operations, detect and avoid systems, and why safety is the foundation for the future of autonomous flight. Kraettli also explains how Vigilant Aerospace works across commercial, defence, and advanced air mobility markets, and why clear communication and cross functional engineering are critical in this space.

The Techne Connect Podcast 🎧

Thank you for listening to Techne Connect! This podcast takes you inside the companies and conversations shaping the future of engineering.

From space and defence to robotics, AI, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and next-generation mobility, each episode features the founders, engineers and technology leaders building tomorrow's world.

Through candid discussions on innovation, leadership, product development and career journeys, the podcast uncovers the ideas, challenges and breakthroughs driving the world's fastest-moving industries. Whether you're an engineer, founder, investor or simply fascinated by emerging technology.

Techne Connect offers a front-row seat to the people creating what's next.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.