Rendezvous Economics, with Austin Link (Co-Founder of Starfish Space)

Satellites are expensive and once launched, mostly untouchable.. That’s the problem Starfish Space is solving. The company is building Otter, a small, autonomous servicing vehicle capable of rendezvousing with, docking to, and moving other satellites in orbit.On this episode of Valley of Depth, I’m joined by Austin Link, co-founder of Starfish Space. Austin shares how a team of former Blue Origin engineers turned a bold idea into one of the most advanced orbital servicing programs in the world. We trace Starfish’s journey from recovering a tumbling spacecraft spinning 330 degrees per second, to preparing for the first commercial docking of an unprepared satellite in orbit. We also discuss:How Starfish closed the business case for on-orbit servicingWhat it takes to autonomously dock with a satellite moving faster than a bulletThe economics of life-extension and debris disposalLessons from the Otter Pup missionsThe dual-use future of orbital servicing for defense and resilienceThe long-term vision for a logistics layer in space…and more. • Chapters •00:00 – Intro00:59 – Starfish's mission03:02 – Why is now the time to be building on orbit satellite servicing04:44 – On orbit servicing with the rapid advancement of satellites07:29 – Why leave Blue Origin to start Starfish?09:18 – Convincing investors early on11:22 – Results from Starfish's first few missions13:40 – Why Starfish has fun with their names15:43 – How the team de-tumbled the satellite21:55 – Starfish's upcoming missions25:37 – When will Starfish start selling their systems?27:33 – Future business models and commercial vs government split30:08 – How Starfish helps customers price their ROI32:26 – Do regulations need to be placed in order for the market to thrive?35:14 – How Starfish differs from competitors36:29 – Current size of the satellite servicing market37:25 – Starfish's key strength40:19 – Insights on servicing from defense42:51 – What changes will happen if satellite servicing becomes routine?44:14 – Starfish's next phase in the business45:05 – Starfish's North Star46:19 – Overhyping the Kessler Syndrome47:41 – What does Austin do besides working on Starfish? • Show notes •Starfish’s website — https://www.starfishspace.com/Mo's socials — https://twitter.com/itsmoislamPayload’s socials — https://twitter.com/payloadspace / https://www.linkedin.com/company/payloadspaceIgnition’s socials — https://twitter.com/ignitionnuclear / https://www.linkedin.com/company/ignition-nuclear/Tectonic’s socials  — https://twitter.com/tectonicdefense / https://www.linkedin.com/company/tectonicdefense/Valley of Depth archive — Listen: https://pod.payloadspace.com/ • About us •Valley of Depth is a podcast about the technologies that matter — and the people building them. Brought to you by Arkaea Media, the team behind Payload (space), Ignition (nuclear energy), and Tectonic (defense tech), this show goes beyond headlines and hype. We talk to founders, investors, government officials, and military leaders shaping the future of national security and deep tech. From breakthrough science to strategic policy, we dive into the high-stakes decisions behind the world’s hardest technologies.Payload: www.payloadspace.comIgnition: www.ignition-news.comTectonic: www.tectonicdefense.com