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The Merge
30 episodes
E60 – GPS-Free Navigation
Jul 12, 2026 · 44 min
How do systems operate when GPS disappears? Mike sits down with Kara Kramer, Vice President ofRaptor Sales at Vantor (formerly Maxar Intelligence), to discuss one of the most important challenges facing modern autonomous systems: operating when GPS is jammed, spoofed, or completely unavailable. We discuss vision-based navigation (VBN), 3D geospatialintelligence, and why resilient autonomy depends on more than just the drone itself. From electronic warfare to contested operations, this conversati…
E59 – Business Breakdown: Anduril
Jun 4, 2026 · 43 min
Anduril Industries raised $5 billion at a reported $61billion valuation—putting a nine-year-old defense tech company in the same conversation as legacy primes that have been building weapons for generations. How did they do it, what is their strategy, and does the math make sense? In this episode, Mike and Matthew take a deep dive inside Anduril’s products, revenue, contracts, and business strategy. They break down the Series H raise, the company’s rapid valuation climb, the difference between c…
E58 – Dcode the Pentagon Buying Machine
Apr 26, 2026 · 51 min
What does it actually take to get new technology into thehands of warfighters—and why is it still so hard? In this episode, Mike sits down with the co-founders ofDcode, Meagan Metzger and Meg Vorland, to unpack the reality behind defense innovation, acquisition reform, and the flow of capital into the sector. Dcode operates at a unique intersection—working withstartups, investors, and the Pentagon—giving them a rare, inside-out view of how the system really works. We break down why most acquisit…
E57 – The War on Bad Software (Defense Unicorns)
Mar 28, 2026 · 42 min
All modern hardware depends on good software, but in theU.S. military, most software sucks. Rob Slaughter, co-founder and CEO of Defense Unicorns, joins the show to unpack why this is happening and what they are doing to fix it. We dive into the rise of “software as a weapon system,” therole of open-source software in national security, and how Defense Unicorns is building an air-gapped, platform-agnostic software delivery model designed for real-world military environments. This episode is a mu…
E56 – The Fury Origin Story
Feb 1, 2026 · 54 min
This is the untold origin story of the Fury CollaborativeCombat Aircraft (CCA), as told by those who lived it. Scott Bledsoe and Joe Murray join Mike to talk about Fury’s very beginning—way back to 2016. Now known as Anduril’s YFQ-44, Fury originated as an SBIR project from Blue Force Technologies and may go on to become a poster child of SBIR success stories. But it’s not all good news. The experience—and the decision to sell to Anduril—motivated Scott and Joe to start a new type of investment…
E55 – Christine Fox: the REAL Charlie
Jan 18, 2026 · 42 min
There is a strange set of organizations that live betweenindustry and government called Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) and University Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs). They play an important—but largely misunderstood role—in national security. What better way to understand it all than with a guest who’sone of the most famous pop-culture examples: Christine Fox. She was the real person who was portrayed as ‘Charlie’,Maverick’s civilian love interest, in Top Gun! She…
E54 – Pryzm: AI to understand the Pentagon
Dec 14, 2025 · 56 min
Mike sits down with Matt Hawkins and Nick LaRovere,co-founders of Pryzm. Pryzm is building an Operating System for defense innovation—software that uses AI to generate capture intel to make sense of Pentagon budgets, Congressional legislation, program offices, and much more. It’s AI to understand the Pentagon. They help connect the dots between missions, markets, andpeople to power the future of national security. Links • Sign up for the newsletter! • Support us on Patreon! • Pryzm homepage h…
E53 – The Fighter Pilot Spirit
Dec 10, 2025 · 58 min
Chris "Snooze" Kurek, Rob “Trip” Raymond, and Erik“EZ” Brine chat with Mike “Pako” Benitez on all things fighter pilot culture—toast, roast, and lore. Better known as Dos Gringos, Snooze, and Trip put out 4albums of fighter pilot songs that are famous (and infamous) in squadrons around the world. EZ joined the duo to form Operation Encore in 2012, a non-profit that helps veterans get their music into the world. We dig into a century of fighter pilot history and traditions, from the origins of Do…
E53 – The Fighter Pilot Spirit
Nov 25, 2025 · 57 min
Chris "Snooze" Kurek, Rob “Trip” Raymond, and Erik“EZ” Brine chat with Mike “Pako” Benitez on all things fighter pilot culture—toast, roast, and lore. Better known as Dos Gringos, Snooze and Trip put out 4 albums of fighter pilot songs that are famous (and infamous) in squadrons around the world. EZ joined the duo to form Operation Encore in 2012, a non-profit that helps veterans get their music into the world. We dig into a century of fighter pilot history and traditions, from the origins of Do…
E52 – Top Secret Offices
Oct 25, 2025 · 52 min
Nooks co-founder and CEO Sean Blackman spills all thesecrets about what it takes to do classified business with the Pentagon. Nooks is a venture-backed startup founded in 2021 to solve amassive pain point: access to classified offices and networks to perform sensitive national security work. Nooks is attacking the problem in an innovative way called Classified-Infrastructure-as-a-Service (CIaaS), which is a subscription access to a nationwide network of classifiedworkspaces and IT. If you are in…
E51 – Red 6 and the Military Metaverse
Oct 5, 2025 · 58 min
Red 6 CEO and co-founder Dan Robinson discusses augmented reality for pilots, the military metaverse, and the future of high-end training and tactics development. Red 6 was founded in 2018 around a revolutionary approach to military flight training called ATARS—the Advanced Tactical Augmented Reality System—that creates virtual outdoor worlds to deliver threat-relevant,near-peer-level training scenarios. It’s much more than an augmented reality helmet—it's rethinking the entire pilot training an…
E50 – JDAM: the GPS-Guided Bomb
Sep 14, 2025 · 47 min
Mike sits down with Steve “Wingie” Wingfield to discuss the Joint Direct Attack Munition, aka the JDAM—the world’s first operational GPS-aided bomb. Wingie played a big role in the Air Force, doing weaponsflight testing and requirements writing, then went on to have another career at Boeing working on JDAM and other weapons. He’s one of the few people who got to see the entire storyarc, from the pain points in Desert Storm that started the whole thing, to other evolutions like Laser JDAM and ext…
E49 – Ursa Major Solid Rocket Motors
Aug 31, 2025 · 31 min
In this episode, Mike sits down with Dan Jablonsky, CEO ofUrsa Major, to discuss solid rocket motors and how Ursa Major is doing it differently. Once dominated by just two suppliers, America’s SRM propulsion base has been stretched thin—leaving gaps exposed by today’s conflicts. Dan explains how Ursa Major is tackling that challenge withmodular production, 3D printing, Highly Loaded Grain propellants, and advanced manufacturing using what they’ve learned from their liquid motor product lines. We…
The Future of Air Warfare: Offensive Electronic Attack (Sponsored)
Jul 13, 2025 · 26 min
Electronic warfare is a crucial element of armed conflict involving controlling and protecting the electromagnetic spectrum, which is vital for communication, navigation, and target identification. EW also permits the disruption and denial of adversaries' use of the spectrum, hindering their ability to operate effectively. Benjamin “Chuck” Angus, Director of Business Development in Naval Power at Raytheon, a business of RTX, joins us this week to discuss Raytheon's involvement in EW, specificall…
E48 – Golden Dome, DIU, and the Innovation Reckoning
Jun 22, 2025 · 54 min
In this episode, Mike and Jake catch up on defense techhappenings. Links • Sign up for the newsletter! • Support us on Patreon! • Website ---- Follow us on... • LinkedIn • Instagram • X • Facebook ---- 00:36 intro 03:31 defense tech investing 17:25 Anduril & Golden Dome 18:13 Golden Dome 25:51 frequency auctioning 28:12 Ukraine forcing a US reckoning 34:27 DIU criticism 42:24 the 4th offset? 46:39 Sun Tzu terrain 47:45 the torpedo 50:05 Ukraine drones and Israeli pagers
The Future of Air Warfare: Modeling & Simulation (Sponsored)
Jun 5, 2025 · 30 min
Tomorrow’s fight will be fast, complex, and contested. Victory won’t come from a single platform, weapon, or payload—it will depend on how well everything works together. That’s where modeling and simulation (M&S) matters. This week, Raytheon (an RTX company) joins us to discuss how they are leading the way with Rapid Campaign Analysis and Demonstration Environment (RCADE), a campaign-level M&S capability built to help decision-makers think beyond individual systems and enables them to see the e…
E47 – Cumming's Hellhound
Apr 27, 2025 · 38 min
Don’t miss our newsletter!That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! In this episode, Mike sits down with Sheila Cummings,founder, president, and CEO of Cummings Aerospace. Cummings Aero started in 2009 supporting the Huntsville,Alabama missile market, but recently decided to launch their own product—the Hellhound. The Hellhound S3 is a man-portable, 3D-printe,d jet-powered kamikaze drone...and we have the FIRST-PUBLIC views of the actual drone—audio and video…
The Future of Air Warfare: Radars (Sponsored)
Mar 3, 2025 · 38 min
Joe “Grip” Beissner, Director of Requirements and Capabilities for Radio Frequency Solutions at Raytheon, a business of RTX, joins us to discuss the cutting-edge AESA radars Raytheon delivers for our warfighters.
The Future of Air Warfare: Weapons (Sponsored)
Feb 23, 2025 · 22 min
Jon "Stormin" Norman, Vice President of Requirements & Capabilities at Raytheon, a business of RTX, joins us to discuss the cutting-edge air-to-air and -surface weapons and effectors Raytheon delivers for our warfighters.
E46 – Expendable Tech for F-35 Threat Training
Feb 16, 2025 · 53 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! In this episode, Mike sits down with Brett “Snappy”Abbamonte, a former Marine Corps F-35 pilot now at Advanced Strategic Insight (ASI) Inc. Snappy is the program manager for ELITE (ExpendableLower-cost Integrated Training Emitter), a compact, cost-effective system designed to mimic high-end surface-to-air missile (SAM) threats. Dive into how this innovative tech is reshaping training,enhanci…
E45 – Operational War w/ John Warden
Jan 17, 2025 · 1 hr 20 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! In this episode, Mike interviews retired Air Force Colonel John Warden. John is an Air Force pioneer who shaped how the modern world thinks about warfare—specifically the concepts of the operational level of war, parallel attack, and centers of gravity. He is most noted as the creator of Warden’s Five Rings and the architect of the Gulf War air campaign—but there’s much more than that. We ta…
E44 – Silent Arrow
Dec 22, 2024 · 43 min
Check out our newsletter, where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! In this episode, Mike interviews Chip Yates, founder of Yates Electrospace Corporation. With a background in racing, Chip has made a name for himself by setting numerous world records as a pioneer in electric-powered motorcycles and airplanes. His journey took a strategic turn when he encountered a complex military challenge, leading to the inception of his company. Chip pivoted to defense, launchi…
E43 – The Laser-Guided Bomb
Nov 26, 2024 · 38 min
Sign up for our newsletter, where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! Speaking of knowledge bombs, Mike hosts Ed Cobleigh to talk about Paveway: the laser-guided bomb. Ed flew 375 combat missions during the Vietnam War in the F-4 Phantom and was one of the first people to drop the Paveway laser-guided bomb in combat. He earned two Distinguished Flying Crosses and went on to attend Fighter Weapons School, where he remained in order to stand up the guided weapons div…
E42 – B-52 BUFF modernization
Oct 20, 2024 · 54 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! Mike hosts Col. Joseph Little, callsign “Little Joe,” to discuss how the US Air Force is modernizing the legendary B-52 BUFF to keep it flying into the 2050s—100 years after its first flight. Col Little is a B-52 Weapons Systems Officer, a US Air Force Weapons School graduate, a former test squadron commander, and currently serving as the Detachment 5 Commander of the Air Force Operational T…
E41 – Firestorm
Sep 15, 2024 · 42 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! Mike and Jake host Dan Magy, co-founder and CEO of Firestorm. Firestorm’s mission is to democratize the air by re-imaging the way drones are built. They developed a method to 3D-print modular drones at the point of need, using a combination of shipping-container-based factories and localized supply chains. Best of all, the drones themselves are modular—from props to jets, AI to sensors, etc.…
E40 – Air Force Weapons Czar
Aug 25, 2024 · 42 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! Mike and Jake host Andrew Hunter, the US Air Force’s chief weapons buyer. As the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (ATL), he oversees Air Force research, development and acquisition activities totaling an annual budget in excess of $60 billion for more than 550 acquisition programs. He is the principal adviser to the Secretary of the Air Force and…
E39 – Anduril & General Atomics CCAs
Jun 29, 2024 · 43 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! Mike hosts an exclusive episode to discuss the Air Force’s Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) program with the 2 companies selected to build the first platforms: Anduril and General Atomics. We discuss what the companies have in common and how they both view that as one of their superpowers. We also explore the origins of the CCA program, the origins of the winning vehicle design, how the p…
E38 – Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar: REAL defense innovation
Jun 16, 2024 · 54 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! That's where we drop weekly knowledge bombs to help you make sense of defense! Mike and Jake host Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar to talk about software-defined warfare, defense modernization, and all the things we’d change to drive innovation to help the warfighter. Shyam started as employee #13 at 23 and slowly climbed the ranks of the largest and fastest-growing US defense software company. No topic is off limits—including how and why Palantir sued the Army…and won. For a…
E37 – High Power Microwave Weapons
Jun 2, 2024 · 1 hr 10 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! Mike hosts Andy Lowery to dig deep into directed energy weapons—specifically high-power microwave (HPM) systems. Andy is the CEO of Epirus, a venture-backed defense tech startup inverting the cost equation of drone defense and swarm protection. We talk about the tech, how it affects electronics, and how Epirus’ flagship product—Leonidas—is designed with adaptability and scale in mind. Turns out that HPM systems share more in common with an F-35 radar and an EA-18 jamm…
E36 – Revolutionizing Ukraine's Defense Tech Industry
May 26, 2024 · 44 min
Don’t miss our newsletter! Mike hosts Perry Boyle to dive into Ukraine’s rapidly developing defense industry. Perry co-founded MITS Capital (Military Innovation Technology Solutions), a US venture that just established the first defense tech accelerator in Ukraine. MITS’ vision is to revolutionize Ukraine’s defense industry by investing in Ukrainian defense tech startups, nurturing and developing the ecosystem, and rapidly maturing and scaling military tech solutions to the front lines. They are…
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