NewSpaceVision's goal is to grow the European (New)Space startup scene and build awareness for the unique applications of space-related hard and software. NSV acts as the starting point for aspiring entrepreneurs and skillful engineers from all kinds of fields to find contact points to existing companies or find colleagues, inspirations and resources to start their own venture.
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Karthik Gollapudi on SpaceX, SIFT & the Future of Hardware
How do you build hardware like software?
For our 50th episode, we sit down with Karthik Gollapudi, Co-Founder of SIFT, to break down what happens when the fast, iterative mindset of software development is applied to aerospace, defense, robotics, and other physical systems.
Karthik spent more than four years at SpaceX, working on simulation and flight software for Dragon. He saw first-hand how SpaceX’s culture of rapid iteration and continuous testing could make incredibly complex hardware development move faster. When he started wondering whether these principles could become the foundation for a company, he called his now co-founder - who told him that “four different companies are actually trying to hire me to build that.”
Today, SIFT is building the observability layer for hardware: bringing telemetry, logs, video, and other data together to continuously monitor the health of complex systems and understand what changed when something goes wrong.
We discuss:
🚀 How SpaceX applies software development principles to hardware
🔍 Why hardware needs continuous observability - not occasional testing
📡 The challenge of making sense of telemetry, logs, video, and multiple time sources
🤖 How AI could fundamentally change the way physical systems are designed and built
💰 Lessons from building SIFT, raising $70M+, and convincing investors to back a new category
Karthik also shares his perspective on where AI-driven hardware development is heading - from autonomous systems that discover solutions humans wouldn't think of to physical structures that look more like biology than traditional engineering.
A conversation about the technology, culture, and infrastructure needed to build the next generation of hardware - faster.
Follow Karthik and SIFT:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/karthikgollapudi
https://www.siftstack.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/sift-stack/
https://www.youtube.com/@Siftstack
https://www.instagram.com/siftstack/?hl=en
https://x.com/SiftStack
Follow NewSpaceVision:
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https://www.meetup.com/de-DE/newspace/
This podcast is sponsored by LiveEO. For more information on how Earth observation can help your company, contact:
info@live-eo.com
podcast@newspace.vision
podcast@live-eo.com
2 Apr 2026
#49: Inside the Mind of a Space Engineer Turned VC (feat. Koen Geurts, Senior Investment Manager at HTGF)
He helped land a spacecraft on a comet. Now, he decides which space startups get funded.
Koen Geurts went from operating one of ESA’s most iconic missions to becoming a Senior Investment Manager at HTGF - one of Germany’s most active early-stage investors.
In this episode, we cover:
What it’s really like to land on a comet (and bounce multiple times)
The transition from space engineer to VC
How HTGF thinks about early-stage space investments
Where Europe is falling behind - and where it can win
Contrarian bets (like propulsion) vs overhyped ideas (like space data centers)
Why government contracts are critical for scaling New Space companies
A rare inside look at both engineering and capital within the space ecosystem.
Follow Koen & HTGF:https://www.linkedin.com/in/kgeurts?originalSubdomain=dehttps://www.linkedin.com/company/high-tech-gruenderfonds/https://www.htgf.de/en/venture-capital-investor-2/
Follow NewSpaceVision:
https://de.linkedin.com/company/newspacevision
https://twitter.com/newspacevision
https://www.instagram.com/newspacevision/
https://www.facebook.com/newspacevision/
https://www.meetup.com/de-DE/newspace/
This podcast is sponsored by LiveEO. For more information on how Earth observation can help your company, contact:
info@live-eo.com
podcast@newspace.vision
podcast@live-eo.com
4 Mar 2026
#48: From Spin-Off to Spin Control with Chemical Propulsion (feat. Lukas Werling, CEO & Co-Founder, ISPTech)
In this episode of the NSV Podcast, we sit down with Lukas Werling, co-founder & CEO of InSpacePropulsion Technologies, or (https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=0a1aba6b912ecc9d&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS970US970&sxsrf=ANbL-n52vItmQ7Tq2xEIN506DKB8OsO6CQ:1772631997536&q=ISPTech+-+InSpacePropulsion+Technologies+GmbH&si=AL3DRZGNtcdgKOqVhotcr-UG2kkYpwR2WO4qu3O00NmpwBmLnRAG-1bqK1vkCcvgWslrd_EVhUGfw4bw_5YKE6JAtsDFH3RQ75AIpYyl0EmsBxyQk5e_UHsXWtKltK_3xrZkB2zSFKuSHGJs1VmX1-n4yud1iPzxxZ-cdNVB42PSm0cOR9tWBcg%3D&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwic9p7ksIaTAxWYcvEDHVcvG60Q_coHegQILhAB)ISP Tech, a German startup building non-toxic chemical propulsion systems for satellites and spacecraft.
After more than a decade at DLR’s rocket engine test site in Lampoldshausen, Lukas spun out ISP Tech to commercialize advanced green propulsion technology. We discuss:
The journey from research scientist to founder
How to spin out of a major research institution
Chemical vs. electric propulsion
Why agility in orbit is becoming critical
Europe’s funding environment for deep tech
ISP Tech is building the mobility layer of space, enabling satellites to move precisely, responsively, and safely in an increasingly crowded orbit.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
8,347
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.0 / 5
4 ratings
Spotify
4.7 / 5
16 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 47 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
33
Social presence
0
YouTube
68
Engagement
84
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