Ben Reinhardt is the founder of Speculative Technologies “a nonprofit industrial research lab that’s working to unlock a wonderful, abundant future through technologies that don’t have a home in other institutions.”

He has previously worked at NASA and Bay Area startups/VC firms, founded a startup building robotics for eldercare, and helped entrepreneurs start companies in Singapore. Oh, and he has a Ph.D. in space robotics from Cornell University and is one of the few people with a B.Sc. in history!

Ben, who brings his expertise in emerging technologies to the OSV advisory council, joins the show to discuss why tech people don’t do philanthropy, when to trust a credential, why there aren’t more government moonshot programs, why academia is beholden to the new, and MUCH more!

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.

Important Links:

Show Notes:

Speculative Technologies: the four-stage roadmap
How early VC funding can affect incentives
From ‘eureka!’ to getting it out into the world
Market failure & institutional consolidation
Where are the moonshot programs?
The skills needed to run a research program
Why tech people don’t do philanthropy
Turning philanthropy into a status game
The hidden importance of materials & manufacturing
When to trust a credential
Agency & American culture
Lean ideas vs. fat ideas
Why academia is beholden to novelty
Ben as World Emperor
MORE!

Books Mentioned:

What Works on Wall Street, Fourth Edition: The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations that Transform the World; by David Deutsch
The Road; by Cormac McCarthy
The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (A Little) Craziness and (A Lot of) Success in America; by John D. Gartner
The Coffee Can portfolio; by Robert G. Kirby

Ben Reinhardt — Speculative Technologies (EP.248)

Infinite Loops