Jacob Helberg, Delian Asparouhov, Christian Garrett
37 episodes
6 months ago
From heretical to mainstream: The Hill and the Valley Forum is a private bipartisan community of lawmakers and innovators committed to harnessing the power of technology to address America's most pressing national security challenges. In 2025, headliners of the conference included: Palantir CEO Alex Karp, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, Howard Lutnick, Anthropic Co-founder Jack Clark, OpenAI CPO Kevin Weil, Google CIO Ruth Porat, David Friedberg, Vinod Khosla, Josh Kushner, and more. The podcast is hosted by the co-hosts of The Hill & Valley Forum: Author and Under Secretary of State (E) Designate for the Trump administration Jacob Helberg, Principal at 137 Ventures Christian Garrett, and Partner at Founders Fund and Founder of Varda Space Industries Delian Asparouhov.
The Hill & Valley is a part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: turpentine.co
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From heretical to mainstream: The Hill and the Valley Forum is a private bipartisan community of lawmakers and innovators committed to harnessing the power of technology to address America's most pressing national security challenges. In 2025, headliners of the conference included: Palantir CEO Alex Karp, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, Howard Lutnick, Anthropic Co-founder Jack Clark, OpenAI CPO Kevin Weil, Google CIO Ruth Porat, David Friedberg, Vinod Khosla, Josh Kushner, and more. The podcast is hosted by the co-hosts of The Hill & Valley Forum: Author and Under Secretary of State (E) Designate for the Trump administration Jacob Helberg, Principal at 137 Ventures Christian Garrett, and Partner at Founders Fund and Founder of Varda Space Industries Delian Asparouhov.
The Hill & Valley is a part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: turpentine.co
Congressman Gabe Amo, 8VC’s Alex Moore, Saronic’s Rob Lehman, and Varun Gupta | Maritime Power Reimagined: The Naval Edge in a Dangerous World
The Hill & Valley Forum Podcast
23 minutes
6 months ago
Congressman Gabe Amo, 8VC’s Alex Moore, Saronic’s Rob Lehman, and Varun Gupta | Maritime Power Reimagined: The Naval Edge in a Dangerous World
In this session from the Hill & Valley Forum 2025, Congressman Gabe Amo (RI), Saronic's Co-Founder & CCO Rob Lehman, 8VC partner Alex Moore, and Caffeinated Capital GP Varun Gupta explore how autonomous surface vessels and AI-driven maritime systems could help the US counter China's substantial naval buildup. The conversation highlights the potential for a transformative "hybrid fleet" combining traditional naval assets with unmanned systems, and examines how American shipbuilding can be revitalized through private investment and public-private partnerships.
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Timestamps:
(00:00) Alex Moore on how elite Silicon Valley engineers are entering the naval space
(00:27) America's maritime challenges and China's naval advantage
(01:29) Congressman Gabe Amo on the strategic imbalance in the Indo-Pacific and funding predictability challenges
(03:51) Rob Lehman explaining Saronic's approach to unmanned vessels enhancing the Navy's hybrid fleet concept
(06:38) Alex Moore on the compounding nature of maritime AI and autonomous software stacks
(09:14) Congressman Amo discussing underwater drone development in Rhode Island's maritime industry
(11:58) The evolution of maritime dominance from battleships to distributed autonomous systems
(15:19) Discussion of America's withered shipbuilding industrial base compared to Asian competitors
(17:38) Rob Lehman detailing Saronic's $250 million investment in Gulf Craft and plans for Port Alpha
(20:17) The emergence of tech startups entering naval defense and shipbuilding after decades of Silicon Valley neglect
The Hill & Valley Forum Podcast
From heretical to mainstream: The Hill and the Valley Forum is a private bipartisan community of lawmakers and innovators committed to harnessing the power of technology to address America's most pressing national security challenges. In 2025, headliners of the conference included: Palantir CEO Alex Karp, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, Howard Lutnick, Anthropic Co-founder Jack Clark, OpenAI CPO Kevin Weil, Google CIO Ruth Porat, David Friedberg, Vinod Khosla, Josh Kushner, and more. The podcast is hosted by the co-hosts of The Hill & Valley Forum: Author and Under Secretary of State (E) Designate for the Trump administration Jacob Helberg, Principal at 137 Ventures Christian Garrett, and Partner at Founders Fund and Founder of Varda Space Industries Delian Asparouhov.
The Hill & Valley is a part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: turpentine.co
