The Challenge: The Future of Human Pilots in Aerial Combat Before we get granular about autonomous jets, let’s talk about Top Gun  for a second. Hollywood is good at two things: storytelling and captivating visuals. Despite the lack of authenticity in the films (as many current and former pilots pointed out), both succeeded in entertaining their audiences. Beyond the gripping dogfights and cavalier attitudes of the film’s popular alpha-male protagonists, both films serve as h

In 1962, John F. Kennedy gave a speech at Rice University, one that would be made famous by his declaration that, "We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard." Fast forward 7 years and we put a man on the moon. Unfortunately, following that triumph, the United States largely abandoned space exploration. An almost decade’s long innovation effort and nothing more to show for it outside of flights to t

If the U.S. can align its industrial policy, accelerate innovation, and build a workforce for the solar economy, it may not need to match China panel-for-panel. It just needs to offer its innovators a better version of the future.

The story of human ingenuity and innovation is a fascinating one. It spans millions of years and hundreds of thousands of evolutionary and revolutionary developments. And that is why it is clear to us that we live in the most exciting time in history.