Ever wanted to hear the firsthand experience of a New Shepard astronaut? Well, today we're joined by Mason Angel, General Partner at Industrious Ventures, who was on Blue Origin’s most recent flight to space. Mason, with a background deeply rooted in industrial sectors like GE and Linde through his family, shares his unique journey and insights into investing in legacy industries, focusing on aerospace and defense.

Industrious Ventures, founded over four years ago, aims to revitalize these often-overlooked sectors by leveraging innovative technologies and substantial expertise. Our conversation delves into Mason's strategic vision and track record. We also explore:

The impact of a spaceflight experience and a renewed perspective on space tourism and the commercial space industry
Key investment areas within legacy industries
Future missions and the commercial potential of space

And much more…

• Chapters •

00:38 - Mason and Industrious Ventures

01:37 - Family expertise

02:33 - What is a legacy industry?

04:11 - Being a crew member of Blue Origin's Shepard

06:35 - Experience vs expectation of going into space

07:45 - What's the moment where you are not allowed to get off anymore?

09:04 - Training

11:28 - Weightlessness

13:37 - How does Industrious differ from other firms?

15:43 - State of space investment

18:45 - Why is there room for multiple launch companies?

19:54 - Investing in Stoke & Ursa Major

21:53 - Starship's economic impact

23:14 - Why is interest in the Moon increasing and is Mason thinking about investing in those companies?

24:57 - AstroForge

26:15 - Resources beyond He3

27:16 - Space stations today

31:40 - How has going to space affected Mason's perspective on the business of space?

33:00 - Investing beyond space

35:30 - Areas of the market that are underhyped

36:43 - Technologies that don't exist today that will in 10 years

38:24 - Prediction: Starship's first commercial launch

40:35 - What are LPs looking for from GPs today?

42:37 - If Mason wasn't doing space, what else would he be doing

• Show notes •

Industrious Ventures website — https://www.industrious.vc/

Mo's socials — https://twitter.com/itsmoislam

Payload’s socials — https://twitter.com/payloadspace / https://www.linkedin.com/company/payloadspace

Pathfinder archive — Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@payloadspace

Pathfinder archive — Listen: https://pod.payloadspace.com/episodes

• About us •

Pathfinder is brought to you by Payload, a modern space media brand built from the ground up for a new age of space exploration and commercialization. We deliver need-to-know news and insights daily to 19,000+ commercial, civil, and military space leaders. Payload is read by decision-makers at every leading new space company, along with c-suite leaders at all of the aerospace & defense primes. We’re also read on Capitol Hill, in the Pentagon, and at space agencies around the world.

Payload began as a weekly email sent to a few friends and coworkers. Today, we’re a team distributed across four time zones and two continents, publishing five media properties across multiple platforms:

1) Payload, our flagship daily newsletter, sends M-F @ 9am Eastern

2) Pathfinder publishes weekly on Tuesday mornings (pod.payloadspace.com)

3) Polaris, our weekly policy briefing, publishes weekly on Tuesdays

4) Payload Research, our weekly research and analysis piece, comes out on Wednesdays

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A View From Above, with Mason Angel (Industrious Ventures)

Valley of Depth