SPACE IN 60

Podcast: SPACE IN 60 Episode 15: Mo Islam Welcome to the SPACE IN 60 podcast, where hosts Clint Graumann, Chad Baker, and Andrew Pylypchuk bring you into the world of the new space industry! Today, Clint and Chad kick off the conversation with updates on what’s happening in the industry before turning to today’s guest, Payload Space co-founder Mo Islam. Payload Space is about a year old and has made a name for itself publishing a daily newsletter of current events in the new space industry. The company plays a unique role in the fast-growing industry, and Mo’s hand in the company and unique background give him a lot of insight into the state and trajectory of NewSpace! Turning to origin stories, Mo shares about how Payload was formed and how he got into the space industry. Mo studied economics and spent most of his career on Wall Street, but he always loved space. He was able in his Wall Street career to focus on space investing and research, and he found himself struggling to learn about what was happening in NewSpace. This gap in available information provided the impetus for a new company, a company that would capitalize on the vast amount of content to report coming out of new space. This company, Payload, relies on the very different strengths and skillsets of its staff and advisory board, aims to give its newsletter a voice and “smart brevity,” and is intentional about reader engagement. Moving forward, the group first discusses the email Elon Musk recently sent to SpaceX about the possibility of bankruptcy. SpaceX, Mo explains, is an industry game-changer. He believes that Elon intended for the email to be leaked, hoping to bolster urgency in the company and wider industry. Mo, Chad, and Clint - all launch junkies - talk about the anticipated Starship launch, as well as the relationship of the Starship port to its surrounding community. Conversation about Elon Musk, whose presence basically represents the entire advertising strategy of SpaceX, also leads Mo to share about Payload’s work to create a space advertising market. Next, conversation shifts to SPACs. Mo explains that SPACs help sponsors to be comfortable funding companies that don’t really have revenue yet, offering companies the opportunity to build publicly. The space industry still needs to institute longer-term incentive structures for sponsors and company leaders, but there are currently billions of dollars available in SPACs, and Mo expects to see a wave of space companies going public in 2022. As the episode moves toward a close, Mo shares what he finds particularly exciting in the industry today: commercial space station construction! He concludes with a final window into what Payload is working on! Please like, share with your friends, and subscribe so you don’t miss an episode! Links: Connect with Mo Islam on LinkedIn and learn more about Payload Space and its newsletter. Connect with Clint Graumann on LinkedIn and Twitter. Connect with Chad Baker on LinkedIn. Connect with Andrew Pylypchuk on LinkedIn and Twitter. Learn more about SPACE IN 60 and connect on Twitter.