DIB Innovators

RADICL
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Technology
  • Updated Biweekly

The DIB Innovators podcast celebrates the brilliant minds behind innovation within the Defense Industrial Base. In each episode, host and co-founder of RADICL, David Graff will speak with DIB leaders who are driving technological advancements, championing our nation’s security, and shaping the future of defense technology. Brought to you by RADICL — Cybersecurity-as-a-Service purpose-built for small and mid-sized businesses in the Defense Industrial Base. Starting your CMMC journey? RADICL guides and accelerates your compliance—while reducing ransomware and other cyber risks—with a transparent, turn-key solution. www.radicl.com/cmmc_solved

  1. 18h ago

    EP 117— NODA AI's Phil Duong On Building Mission Command For Autonomous Forces

    Phil Duong, CEO and Co-Founder of NODA AI, is building the mission command layer for autonomous forces that nobody else is focused on. His company orchestrates multi-vendor platforms into coordinated effects the way a JTAC pairs aircraft with targets. A Marine Corps naval aviator and JTAC turned defense tech founder, Phil earned NODA AI a $100 million Department of War award to scale mission command for autonomous forces after years refining a thesis on software-defined effects. Topics discussed: - Building a mission command orchestrator for multi-vendor autonomous forces - Flying drones point to point as table stakes - Software-defined effects and working backward from desired end states - Adaptive recomposition when assets go down mid-mission - Operating autonomous systems in disconnected, denied environments - Navigating the triad of warfighter, Pentagon, and Capitol Hill - Why software will overtake hardware in future conflict - Finding investors who truly back founders at the earliest stage Listen to more episodes:  Apple  Spotify  YouTube Website

    EP 117— NODA AI's Phil Duong On Building Mission Command For Autonomous Forces

  2. 5d ago

    EP 116 — Carbonix's Dario Valenza On Building 10-Hour Flight Drones That Compete With Helicopters

    How do you build a drone that flies 10 hours, takes off without a runway, and earns the first beyond visual line of sight certification for its class? Start with a decade of America's Cup yacht racing and a fixation on making structures lighter and faster. Dario Valenza, Founder of Carbonix, breaks down how his team applied carbon fiber composites and first principles design to build a long-range VTOL aircraft now scanning pipelines, power lines, and mine sites. With defense traction including Anduril and a fleet deployed to Ukraine, Dario explains the dual-use model driving Carbonix forward. Topics discussed: - Applying America's Cup composites and rapid iteration to drone design - Building a VTOL aircraft with 8-10 hour flight endurance - Transitioning from airframe OEM to full-service data provider - Earning a world-first SAIL III beyond visual line of sight certification - Designing redundant VTOL systems with separate vertical and horizontal propulsion - Scaling aircraft production from weekly to daily output - Balancing commercial survey revenue with defense ISR applications - Choosing build versus buy for avionics, batteries, and critical subsystems Listen to more episodes:  Apple  Spotify  YouTube Website

    EP 116 — Carbonix's Dario Valenza On Building 10-Hour Flight Drones That Compete With Helicopters

  3. Aug 11

    EP 115 — WAR Inc's Jon Williams On Building a Defense Company Backwards, From IP to Factory

    Jon Williams took ownership of technical data packs for munitions from 40 millimeter to 1,000 pound bombs. WAR Inc. is building a single facility where raw materials go in one end and a complete round comes out the other. A combat Marine who served in Fallujah and Sangin before stints at Microsoft and a professional race team, Jon breaks down how frontline feedback from Ukraine drives new munitions development and why American-owned manufacturing is non-negotiable for the DIB. Topics discussed: - Owning technical data packs for munitions from 40mm to 1,000 lb bombs - Building vertically integrated manufacturing for complete rounds - Using frontline feedback from Ukraine to develop new TDPs - Project ONI consortium for full system-of-systems delivery - Why deployable manufacturing may not pencil for real operations - Pushing past 80-year-old munition designs with new technology - Keeping defense manufacturing American-owned and American-built - Raising capital as a lean veteran-owned defense company Listen to more episodes:  Apple  Spotify  YouTube Website

    EP 115 — WAR Inc's Jon Williams On Building a Defense Company Backwards, From IP to Factory

  4. Aug 6

    EP 114 — Saronic Technologies' Vibhav Altekar On Building 300 Autonomous Vessels In Two Years For Zero Crew

    What happens when you design ships for full autonomy from day one instead of retrofitting crewed vessels? At Saronic Technologies, it meant removing living quarters, plumbing, and human-centric systems, then building navigational autonomy and automated ship systems capable of operating 30 to 40 days without human contact. Vibhav Altekar, Co-Founder and CTO, walks Dave through building over 300 Corsairs in under two years, betting early on fully passive sensing for contested RF environments, and the first-ever rescue of a downed aircrew by an unmanned vessel. Topics discussed: Designing autonomous vessels from scratch versus retrofitting crewed ships Building intelligent agents as the foundation for collaborative autonomy Operating fully passive in GPS-denied and contested RF environments Bridging the air-water gap between UAVs and UUVs Encoding mariner expertise into a digital captain for challenging seas Competing with Chinese shipbuilding through autonomous production Partnering with Castellion to launch hypersonic weapons from unmanned platforms Reducing developer-to-ocean testing cycles to 48 hours Listen to more episodes:  Apple  Spotify  YouTube Website

    EP 114 — Saronic Technologies' Vibhav Altekar On Building 300 Autonomous Vessels In Two Years For Zero Crew

  5. Jul 30

    EP 113 — 3Wire Partners' Anita Antenucci On Why 80% Of VC-Backed Defense Suppliers Could Disappear

    Anita Antenucci, Founder and Managing Partner of 3Wire Partners, has spent three decades and roughly five hundred deals watching the defense capital stack evolve. Venture capital typically funds ten companies knowing only one or two will survive. As more defense suppliers depend on VC money, government risks inheriting that attrition, potentially losing 80% of those providers.  Anita explains why proving a prototype in the field is scarcer than the ability to scale, where she sees the strongest deal flow, and why she asks every founder whether they want to be bought or backed. Topics discussed: Matching founder timelines to the right class of private capital Venture capital attrition risk inside the defense supply chain Why battle-tested proof matters more than ability to scale How family offices fill a gap fixed-timeline funds cannot The "messy middle" of connectivity, compute, and cyber protection Space as a military domain driving deal flow and capital Programs of record competing with faster acquisition pathways Demand signal clarity as the biggest capital inefficiency Listen to more episodes:  Apple  Spotify  YouTube Website

    EP 113 — 3Wire Partners' Anita Antenucci On Why 80% Of VC-Backed Defense Suppliers Could Disappear

  6. Jul 23

    EP 112 — Persistent Systems' Jon Patrick On Winning $120M in Tactical Networking Without A Program Of Record

    Persistent Systems won a $120 million tactical networking award without a program of record. Their Wave Relay MANET served as the network backbone during Project Convergence Capstone 5, a combined arms breach exercise that became the precursor to the Army's Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) architecture. Jon Patrick, VP of Business Development for Army and SOCOM at Persistent Systems, spent 26 years in DoD acquisition before crossing to industry. He tells Dave how two-year tranche buys reshape risk for bootstrapped companies, what it takes to scale from 150 to 750 network nodes, and where AI fits at the tactical edge. Topics discussed: How government language shifts reshape small business IR&D decisions Two-year tranche buys replacing base-plus-four contract structures MANET versus mesh networking at the tactical edge Scaling NGC2 from 150 nodes to 750 at brigade level Building a defense networking company for 18 years without VC AI addressing terminal data fatigue on tactical networks Going directly to SOCOM operators to find real requirements Financial-industry security as an alternative to Type 1 encryption Listen to more episodes:  Apple  Spotify  YouTube Website

    EP 112 — Persistent Systems' Jon Patrick On Winning $120M in Tactical Networking Without A Program Of Record

  7. Jul 17

    EP 111 — Vision Miner's Rob Lent On 9 Years Of Bootstrapping Accessible High-Temp 3D Printing

    Rob Lent, Co-Founder and COO of Vision Miner, has spent nine years making high-performance polymer 3D printing accessible to companies that used to need quarter-million-dollar machines. Materials like PEEK and ULTEM have been used in industry for over 40 years, but printing them in-house was out of reach for most. Rob walks Dave through bootstrapping from a bedroom printer to manufacturing their own IDEX machine in Ukraine, surviving eight months of wartime shipping shutdowns, and designing hardware around ITAR requirements based on nine years of customer needs. Topics discussed: Making PEEK and ULTEM 3D printing accessible to smaller companies Bootstrapping a hardware company with zero outside funding Manufacturing machines in Ukraine through wartime disruption Designing ITAR-conscious hardware with removable WiFi modules Why 3D printing ROI lives in the manufacturing process Nanopolymer adhesive built for PEEK that works on all plastics Emotional control as a founder's most critical leadership skill Comparing 3D printing adoption to semiconductors in the 1970s Listen to more episodes:  Apple  Spotify  YouTube Website

    EP 111 — Vision Miner's Rob Lent On 9 Years Of Bootstrapping Accessible High-Temp 3D Printing

  8. Jul 14

    EP 110 — AdlerAerospace’s Wilhelm Meya On The Broken Math Of Drone Defense

    Wilhelm Meya spent his first career building linguistic technology. Then he pivoted into aerospace, founded AdlerAerospace, and started integrating battle-tested Ukrainian and European drone technologies for U.S. and allied defense customers. Two and a half years in, the company builds heavy-lift UAVs, autonomous interceptors, and counter-UAS systems, and was selected for the Pentagon's Drone Dominance program and the DARPA Heavy Lift Challenge. Wilhelm tells Dave Graff why the only real answer to cheap long-distance strike drones is a cost-matched kinetic interceptor, how his team partners with automotive manufacturers to hit World War II-level production scale, and why the companies closest to the battlefield are outpacing Silicon Valley on solutions that actually work. Topics discussed: Integrating Ukrainian and European drone tech for NATO-standard defense systems Building the TALOS-J autonomous jet interceptor for sub-$100K engagements Partnering with automotive manufacturers to scale drone production Why magazine depth drives the need for cost-matched interceptors Layered air defense architecture combining jet and electric interceptors Mounting a micro gun on a heavy-lift UAV for kinetic counter-UAS Why electronic warfare and RF jamming are already obsolete against autonomous drones Lessons from Ukraine's weekly hardware iteration cycle vs. U.S. multi-year development Listen to more episodes:  Apple  Spotify  YouTube Website

    EP 110 — AdlerAerospace’s Wilhelm Meya On The Broken Math Of Drone Defense
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

The DIB Innovators podcast celebrates the brilliant minds behind innovation within the Defense Industrial Base. In each episode, host and co-founder of RADICL, David Graff will speak with DIB leaders who are driving technological advancements, championing our nation’s security, and shaping the future of defense technology. Brought to you by RADICL — Cybersecurity-as-a-Service purpose-built for small and mid-sized businesses in the Defense Industrial Base. Starting your CMMC journey? RADICL guides and accelerates your compliance—while reducing ransomware and other cyber risks—with a transparent, turn-key solution. www.radicl.com/cmmc_solved

Information

  • Creator
    RADICL
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    118
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © RADICL
  • Show Website
    DIB Innovators

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