EP 71 — Skydio’s Mark Valentine on How Sanctions Freed Them from Supply Chain Dependence
What happens when China sanctions your drone company? For Skydio, it became the catalyst for complete supply chain independence and battle-tested technology that now guides Ukrainian artillery strikes. Mark Valentine, Global Head of National Security Strategy, breaks down the story for Dave: when their drones in Ukraine failed due to single-band radios and GPS dependence, his team made 36 field visits over two years, embedded Ukrainian engineers, and developed Asimov software enabling complete GPS-jammed operation with frequency-hopping radios.
But the real revelation isn't military, it's…
The skinny
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