Massive Signals

In this episode, we sit down with Aziz Gilani, general partner of Houston-based Mercury Fund, which manages over $750 million focused on disruptive technology startups outside Silicon Valley. Aziz shares his journey from intern to partner, Mercury's renewed focus on deep tech, and why incumbents across industries have never been more vulnerable to disruption. We dive deep into what separates tourists from true players in frontier tech, the scars from the 2008-2010 cleantech boom, and why the convergence of software and hardware is creating the most exciting hunting ground for venture capital in decades. In this episode:   The "Fresh Sheet" Era: The "cookie-cutter" SaaS playbook is dead; the new game is building net-new companies from a fresh sheet of paper.  Hunting Brittle Incumbents: Stagnant players in defense and energy are now vulnerable to rapid, deep-tech disruption.  The "CFO Top 5" Rule: You must solve one of a CFO's top five most urgent problems or you'll never survive the switching costs.  No Room for Tourists: Success requires a founder’s "right to win" through deep technical moats rather than surface-level industry interest.  The Power of Non-Consensus: The biggest winners are found in contrarian picks, not in deals where the entire partnership immediately agrees. Connect more with Aziz Gilani | Mercury Fund   Website: https://mercuryfund.com/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/texasvc/  Connect more with Massive Signals   Website: https://massive.vc/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arinewman  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidgmandell

In this episode, we sit down with Kevin Noertker, co-founder and CEO of Ampaire, a company building hybrid electric propulsion and onboard power systems for existing aircraft. Kevin shares his path from NASA JPL to a $200M aerospace program to the lunch pitch that changed everything. We cover why Ampaire bet on retrofits over clean-sheet designs, how a Hawaiian airport killed their plug-in strategy, and what happened when a signed $10M term sheet quietly became $250K. We also get into the SPAC they walked away from, the 18 months they ran cashflow breakeven, and why the most credible path to electric aviation looks nothing like the hype. In this episode:   The Customer Discovery Signal: One airline CEO's offhand question redirected Ampaire's entire product strategy.  The Infrastructure Reality Check: A single charger install in Hawaii took nine months and killed the plug-in roadmap.  The SPAC Inflection Point: Kevin saw the market turning before most and walked away while he still could.  The Ghost Term Sheet: A $10M commitment became $250K — and what that taught him about founder integrity.  The Default Alive Moment: When the raise fell through, they ran lean for 18 months and came out stronger.  One Engine, Three Markets: The same core technology unlocks commercial, defense, and regional jet revenue — without losing focus.  Connect more with Kevin Noertker | Ampaire   Website: https://www.ampaire.com/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinnoertker  Connect more with Massive Signals   Website: https://massive.vc/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arinewman  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidgmandell

In this episode, we sit down with Cody Simms, Managing Partner of MCJ Collective, an early-stage venture fund with over $115 million under management focused on climate and energy technology. Cody shares his journey from dot-com product manager to climate investor, how a podcast became the unlikely foundation for a venture fund, and why the energy transition is accelerating regardless of what’s happening in Washington. We dive deep into MCJ’s bets across fission, fusion, and software, the one founder behavior that predicts success every time, and why the climate tech conversation has quietly shifted from carbon offsets to national energy resilience. In this episode:   Climate Gets a Rebrand: ESG is out — energy resilience, grid reliability, and AI power demand are the new tailwinds. The Nuclear Moment: The technology was never the problem; project management was. Fusion Crosses the Line: Q > 1 turned fusion from a theory into an investable thesis. Small Fund, Big Round: Why ownership percentage isn’t the whole story in portfolio construction. The Data Center Pivot Problem: Too many companies are chasing data center demand the same way they chased crypto. Bet on the Founder First: Experienced operators move faster, talk straighter, and navigate complexity without hand-holding. Connect more with Cody Simms | MCJ   Website: https://mcj.vc  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/codysimms  Podcast: https://mcj.vc/media/podcast  Connect more with Massive Signals   Website: https://massive.vc/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arinewman  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidgmandell