Robin Seemangal is a co-founder of Space Agency, a new creative agency that spun out of Supercluster, a space-focused digital media platform created by GrandArmy and A24. In this interview, Robin discusses the genesis of Space Agency, how top space startups are using branding to win the war for talent, and more.

**On marketing to aerospace employees: "**A lot of space startups need SpaceX employees to leave and come and work in their shop. I hate to be that specific, but that’s where we are in the industry right now. It’s pretty well known that there are only a couple of feeder companies into these startups–they’re all founded by former Blue Origin or SpaceX employees. That’s a perpetual problem, there’s never enough talent in aerospace. So that’s the ground level of where these companies are coming from with their marketing and advertising goals.”

On branding the new space age: “We’re going back to the very basics here. These companies need a logo that looks good and is instantly recognizable. It’s what people are going to see in the newswire or on the launch livestream. That brand awareness is something that is shared by every industry, but the space industry is kind of just waking up to the importance of becoming a global brand that is recognized by everyday people.”

READ THE FULL INTERVIEW

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THE BIG PICTURE

This Startup Is Using AI to Unearth New Smells

“The $30 billion global fragrance industry relies on raw ingredients that are becoming increasingly difficult or controversial to source…Chemists at fragrance companies have figured out how to replicate some natural aromas, but it’s still a largely manual process, and many scents don’t have synthetic substitutes. With $60 million in an initial funding round led by New York-based Lux Capital and GV (Google Ventures), Osmo aims to create the next generation of aroma molecules for perfumes, shampoos, lotions, candles, and other everyday products.” (WIRED)

New DNA Biosensor Could Unlock Powerful, Low-Cost Clinical Diagnostics

“Like other DNA biosensors, the device takes advantage of the fact that a single DNA strand, when not paired with another within the familiar double helix, is primed for chemical bonding. Part of the device is coated with single strands of DNA. When these “probes” encounter DNA biomarkers that have a corresponding, or complementary, genetic sequence, the two strands bind, sending a signal that is picked up by the device.” (NIST)

NASA and DARPA to partner on nuclear thermal propulsion demonstration for Mars rocket

“Neither DARPA nor NASA have disclosed details about the demonstration mission itself, which uses a spacecraft called X-NTRV…the vehicle would operate in orbit at an altitude of at least 700 kilometers, and perhaps as high as 2,000 kilometers, to ensure that any radioactive materials would have decayed to acceptable levels before reentry.” (SpaceNews)

Global energy storage investment jumped 55% in 2022 as funds shifted from private equity to public markets

While overall corporate funding for energy storage increased to record levels in 2022, venture capital invested in energy storage declined by a little over one-third after hitting a record $8.8 billion in 2021.“Cost is where the challenge is,” Mercom CEO Raj Prabhu said. “To get to that next level of growth, the cost needs to come down.” (Utility Dive)

Deep Tech News

• **Researchers use diamonds for electrical power **(Arizona State University)

• Mercedes-Benz is first to get approval for Level 3 autonomous driving in US (Arena EV)

• US startup begins producing 40%-efficient thermophotovoltaic cells (PV Magazine)

• Oklo Readying to Deploy Commercial-Scale Nuclear Fuel Recycling Facility (POWER Magazine)

• **DMT for depression moves forward on positive PhaseIIa Data (**Biospace)

• The food systems that will feed Mars are set to transform food on Earth (The Conversation)

• Sunfish’s technology wants to bring affordability to assisted reproduction (TechCrunch)

• US startup unveils saltwater flow battery for large-scale storage (PV Magazine)

• **NuScale Power’s small modular reactor design is first in US to get NRC approval **(Utility Dive)

Crypto News

• **Arizona Senator Introduces Bill To Make Bitcoin Legal Tender In The State **(Bitcoin Magazine)

• Ethereum Name Service mulls initiating endowment fund with $17M (The Block)

• FBI Infiltrated Hive Network, Blocking Over $130M in Crypto Ransomware (Decrypt)

• New Hampshire Commission Recommends Statewide Bitcoin Mining Energy Plan (Bitcoin Magazine)

• Bank of America: CBDCs Could 'Revolutionize Global Financial Systems'(Decrypt)

• New tool lets Tornado Cash users privately show their funds were not illicit (The Block)

Peer Review

• Vaginal metabolites as early biomarkers of spontaneous preterm births (Nature Microbiology, 01*.*23)

• A brain-computer interface that turns neural activity into text 3.4x faster than previous work (bioarXiv, 01.23)

• Artificial pancreas successful in type 2 diabetes tests (Nature Medicine, 01.23)

• Transforming chaos into manufacturable forms with 3D printing (Chaos, 01.23)

• Power of cancer drugs may see boost by targeting newly identified pathway (Molecular Cell, 01.23)

• **Spin transport measured through molecular films now long enough to develop spintronic devices (**Solid State Communications, 01. 23)

• Plasma thrusters used on satellites could be much more powerful than previously believed (AIAA 01.23)

• A report on metal alloys that could support nuclear fusion energy (Scientific Reports, 01.23)

• Magnetoactive liquid-solid phase transitional matter (Matter, 01.23)

• **Building off the 'anti-laser,' researchers create a device that directs waves **(Science, 01.23)

• **Artificial human skin paves the way to new skin cancer therapy **(Science Signaling, 01.23)

• Faces created by AI now look more real than genuine photos (iScience, 01.23)

• **Bottlebrush-shaped nanoparticles can identify and deliver synergistic combinations of cancer drugs **(Nature Nanotechnology, 01.23)

• New AI tool makes speedy gene-editing possible (Nature Biotechnology, 01.23)

• Quantum physicists determine how to control two quantum light sources rather than one (Science, 01.23)

• How to protect perovskite solar cells in space (Nature Energy, 01.23)

• Boosting efficiency of genome editing procedures to modify initially inaccessible DNA sequences (eLife, 01.23)

Funding x M&A

DEEP TECH

• Construction robotics firm Kewazo raises $10M

• Pasqal raises $100M to build a neutral atom-based quantum computer

• Scythe raises $42M for its electric robotic mower

• Japan’s Terra Drone raises $14M Series C

• Mushroom protein company Meati Foods opens ‘mega’ facility; closes $22M

• Renaissance Fusion raises $16.4M to build nuclear fusion technology in Europe

• Scythe raises $42M for its electric robotic mower

• Memfault raises $24M to help companies manage their growing IoT device fleets

• Quindar raises $2.5M to revolutionize satellite mission management

CRYPTO

• QuickNode raises $60M at $800M valuation to become the ‘AWS of blockchain’

• Spatial Labs raises $10M to grow Web3 enabled consumer goods

• Blockstream Raises $125M for Mining

• Gemba, Metaverse training software used by Nike, raises $18M

• Mythical Games eyes $50M raise

• Web3 infrastructure firm Spatial Labs raises $10M

• Sui-based wallet raises $4.2M

• Blockchain-based storybook platform StoryCo raises $6M

• Castle Island, a16z founders back Escape Velocity's $25M fund

• Ex-FTX President raises $5M for DeFi company aimed at institutions

• Private sharding startup Calimero Network raises $8.5M

• World’s Largest Bitcoin ATM Software Platform Acquired By Bitstop Founders

Miscellanea

GPT-3 is the best journal I’ve ever used / A 3-D printed fish-gutting machine contains the secret to a less-globalized economy / A machine learning database for UFO sightings / The game theory of geoengineering / Can the metaverse save Tuvalu? / DeepMind CEO urges caution / Decoding Lunar Flashlight / An incomplete guide to stealth addresses / Worshipping at the altar of artificial intelligence / RISC-V is rewriting the economics of chip design / UAE astronaut not required to fast during Ramadan on ISS / Ferrari is engineering simulated engine sounds for its EVs / Vertical PV for clean energy and crop production / Wind Turbines Taller Than the Statue of Liberty Are Falling Over

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