{"id":1352,"date":"2025-08-28T18:49:44","date_gmt":"2025-08-28T18:49:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/?p=1352"},"modified":"2025-08-28T18:49:44","modified_gmt":"2025-08-28T18:49:44","slug":"from-the-floor-takeaways-from-fed-supernova-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/2025\/08\/28\/from-the-floor-takeaways-from-fed-supernova-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"From the floor: Takeaways from Fed Supernova 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Last week, our team attended <a href=\"https:\/\/fedsupernova.com\/\">Fed Supernova<\/a>, an annual event hosted by our accelerator partner <a href=\"https:\/\/capitalfactory.com\/\">Capital Factory<\/a>. It brings together innovators, government leaders, startups, and investors focused on driving innovation across sectors such as aerospace, energy, and advanced manufacturing.<\/p>\n<p>Here are some of the notable highlights we took away:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Space: dual-use technologies and new launch hubs <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>There is growing interest in surrounding dual-use for space technologies &#8211; hardware and solutions that serve both public and private sector needs, with investment resources prioritizing these applications.<\/li>\n<li>Due to the pending shortage of space launch sites in the US, Texas is prioritizing the development of new launch sites. This could position Texas as a future hub for space startups, offering the infrastructure and ecosystem necessary for growth.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>DARPA: connecting startups to accelerators <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Programs like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.darpa.mil\/news\/2024\/regional-commercial-accelerators\">DARPA\u2019s Commercial Accelerators<\/a> are forging new pathways for startups. By collaborating with accelerators (such as Capital Factory), these programs enable rapid commercialization and scaling of startup technologies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Drones: evolution and focus shifting <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Drone technology continues to evolve at an unprecedented pace. With platforms becoming outdated in a matter of months, the most successful startups will prioritize components for drone production more so than on drone platforms as a whole. This strategy allows them to stay agile and meet the rapidly changing needs of the market.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Investment: open to more arenas<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>There has been a notable shift in the investment landscape in recent years. US venture capital firms are increasingly open to startups working in traditionally government-focused sectors, including international companies. VCs see value in streamlining manufacturing processes, signaling a broader trend toward modernizing and scaling critical infrastructure.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Energy: a rise in nuclear innovation<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Nuclear energy was another popular topic, particularly small modular reactors. These technologies are gaining traction for their potential to provide reliable, on-site energy. One example initiative is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defense.gov\/News\/Releases\/Release\/Article\/3915633\/dod-breaks-ground-on-project-pele-a-mobile-nuclear-reactor-for-energy-resiliency\/\">Project Pele<\/a>, an Idaho National Laboratory (INL) project developing a portable nuclear reactor that could have wide-ranging applications.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The conference sparked interesting discussions about the mobilization of resources and the future of national innovation. As the ecosystem continues to evolve, it will be fascinating to watch how public-private partnerships and regional hubs like Texas shape the landscape for startups and emerging technologies.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ll be back in Austin in October for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.austintech.com\/\">Austin Tech Week<\/a> and we\u2019ll look forward to connecting with more from the ecosystem!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"overview-image\"><img src=\"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/files\/2025\/08\/Fed-Supernova.png\" class=\"img-responsive attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" \/><\/div>\n<p>Last week, our team attended Fed Supernova, an annual event hosted by our accelerator partner Capital Factory. It brings together innovators, government leaders, startups, and investors focused on&#8230; <a class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/2025\/08\/28\/from-the-floor-takeaways-from-fed-supernova-2025\/\">read more >><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":173,"featured_media":1358,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1352"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/173"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1352"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1364,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1352\/revisions\/1364"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1358"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.mathworks.com\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}