Roid Rage A Lawyer Has Entered The Chat
Apr 10, 2025
Join Krystle Caponio, the new Chief Business Officer at AstroForge and seasoned aerospace executive, as she dives into her fascinating journey into asteroid mining. With over 15 years in the space industry, she shares how her experiences at SpaceX and other startups shaped her decision to join AstroForge. Discover what success looks like in asteroid mining, the misconceptions surrounding it, and how Krystle's multifaceted role will drive this audacious mission forward. She even prompts the hosts to uncover their motivations for this groundbreaking industry!
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From Law School To SpaceX
- Krystle moved from law school into the dot-com B2B media world, then joined SpaceX as their ~800th employee and worked broadly across regulatory and engineering issues.
- She spent six and a half years at SpaceX learning startup pace and hands-on hardware exposure before moving to early-stage satellite startups.
Building Functions At A Ground-Floor Startup
- Krystle joined Terran Orbital as first GC to build legal, HR, and early finance functions from scratch.
- That ground-floor experience taught her board dynamics and cross-functional leadership at startups.
Joining A Tiny Team To Build A Space Station
- Krystle joined Vast after meeting Jed McCaleb and working with a tiny founding team of about five people to pursue a private space station.
- She described Jed as a problem-solver whose vision made the risky project attractive.