The Tech Startup Trying To Open A Hotel On The Moon episode artwork

EPISODE · Feb 26, 2026 · 23 MIN

The Tech Startup Trying To Open A Hotel On The Moon

from Thinking On Paper · host Mark Fielding and Jeremy Gilbertson

A hotel on the Moon sounds like science fiction, but Skyler Chan argues it is really a test case for lunar habitats and off-world surface habitation. His company Gru wants to prove two basic things first: inflatable structures can hold pressure and temperature on the lunar surface, and lunar regolith can be turned into Moon bricks for radiation protection, landing pads, roads, warehouses, habitats, and eventually lunar bases. The conversation follows the economics of getting payloads to the Moon, ISRU, SpaceX, Bigelow-style inflatable modules, the 2029 test mission, the 2032 hotel target, and whether building on the Moon is the first step toward humans living on Mars.--⁠Listen to every podcast⁠Follow us on ⁠Instagram⁠Follow us on ⁠X⁠Follow Mark on ⁠LinkedIn⁠Follow Jeremy on ⁠LinkedIn⁠Read our ⁠Substack⁠Email: [email protected](00:00) Trailer(02:19) Building a Hotel (06:06) The Logistics(06:47) Economic Considerations (10:03) Merging Technologies(10:59) First Mission(13:15) Changing Perceptions(16:25) The Human Spirit (19:40) Responsibility

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Feb 26, 2026

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