LIVE from Seattle we sat down with Baiju Bhatt, who co-founded Robinhood, and now runs Cowboy Space, a startup building its own rockets with plans to send 20,000 data centers into orbit. We talk about why data centers in space could match the cost of ones built in Texas, how the upper stage of a rocket turns into a data center with solar panels bigger than a football field, and what a satellite named Reason 1 is doing with lasers to send power back to Earth.
Baiju also opens up about the book a high school chemistry teacher gave him, why Cowboy Space won’t hitch a ride on anyone else’s rocket, the $2 trillion Empire it is up against, why the first Big Iron launch is targeted for the end of 2028, and what happens when a rocket inevitably blows up. Plus the story of the four fingers he held up at Robinhood, why every part of Cowboy Space is named after a country song, and his rapid-fire picks for best brand, best business leader, and personal stock ticker. And what does he think the world looks like in 20 years if it all works?
Chapters
0:00 - Intro: Baiju Bhatt, Robinhood Co-Founder and Cowboy Space CEO
2:18 - Baiju Bhatt’s Four Fingers: Robinhood’s Plan to Knock Out a Big Four Bank
3:22 - Why Robinhood’s Co-Founder Started a Space Company: The Case for Mars
6:03 - Cowboy Space Explained: Data Centers in Space and Big Iron Express
6:56 - Why Data Centers in Space? Cowboy Space’s Cost Pitch vs. Texas
8:13 - Big Iron Rocket: 15,000kg Data Center With Football-Field Solar Panels
10:16 - Reason 1: Cowboy Space’s Satellite for Laser Power Beaming to Earth
12:37 - Why Cowboy Space Builds Its Own Rockets for 20,000 Satellites
13:55 - Cowboy Space vs. the Empire: Taking On a $2 Trillion Rocket Company
16:24 - Why Cowboy Space Has a Cowboy Brand and Country Song Rocket Names
17:59 - Elon Musk Says It’s a Good Time to Build Data Centers in Space
19:46 - What Happens When a Cowboy Space Rocket Explodes?
21:44 - Why Cowboy Space Chose Seattle: Kent Rocket Factory and Hiring
23:22 - Space Infrastructure in 20 Years: Where Cowboy Space Goes From Here
24:05 - Rapid Fire: Baiju Bhatt’s Favorite Brand, Business Leader, and Stock Ticker
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