Government Funding Channels for the Space Defense Industry

With 20 years of in-house general counsel experience, Randy Segal brings an individual perspective to every matter she handles, both as your outside counsel and as someone who has walked in your shoes. With a focus on satellite, wireless, drone, and technology transactions, Randy provides commercially practical solutions in industries where technological change is ever-present. Randy’s practice often involves multi-level chess games, where every move needs to be considered from a multitude of angles to be successful.

As a result, Randy’s practice is reflected in three segments. First, as co-leader of the Space and Satellite practice, Randy has handled many types of transactions, from day-to-day matters to the most complex international transactions for industry operators, investors, and technology providers. She has been involved in taking companies public, advising on acquisitions, divestitures, and complex cross-border joint ventures, as well as large satellite system development, deployments and funding.

Second, as an advisor to technology investors and their portfolio companies, Randy has advised on transactions focused on big data analytics, IT, wireless systems, spectrum licenses, environmental analytics, wireless proximity analysis, drone technology, terrestrial positioning, and other innovative technologies.

Third, Randy provides “strand of pearls” advice to global clients, working seamlessly with our international offices to develop familiar, comfortable and “right-sized” solutions. Randy’s extensive cross-border experience has resulted in an extensive tool-kit of resolutions for the most complex of legal regimes. Randy’s transactional and advisory experience is both deep and broad, working throughout North and South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East and on the most complex of international programs and legal issues.

Tom Gillespie serves as a Partner on In-Q-Tel’s Investment Team and as Investment Lead for In-Q-Tel’s Field Technologies Practice, where he is responsible for identifying technologies that address challenges faced by the Intelligence Community. He is the Investment Team partner associated with IQT’s commercial space initiative, CosmiQ Works, and he has led a number of IQT’s investments in commercial space ventures, including launch vehicles, small satellite constellations, and space situational awareness. In addition, he has led IQT investments in the areas of robotics, materials, power sources, and autonomous systems, as well as several analytics investments.

Prior to IQT, Gillespie was a Strategy Consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton, serving clients in the financial services, aerospace, and government (national security and defense) sectors. Previously, he co-founded LaunchFuel, a venture commercialization firm that created, developed, and advised early-stage technology businesses; Gillespie also directed numerous business and technology strategy projects with Global 2000 clients for AT&T Solutions. Earlier experience includes positions in international privatization and the United States Congress, where he focused on financial services, telecommunications, space, and foreign affairs issue areas.

Gillespie earned a B.A. from Stanford University and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Ryan Lewis is a Partner at SRI Ventures, where he invests in early-stage companies focused on deep tech such as artificial intelligence. He is also focused on startups developing dual-use technologies for commercial and government applications.  He is also the Co-Chair of the Defense Technology Council for the Global Corporate Venture (GCV) organization. Prior to joining SRI Ventures, Ryan was the Senior Practice Manager of AI for AWS National Security. Before he joined AWS, Ryan was Senior Vice President and Director at In-Q-Tel, where he founded and led an applied research lab focused developing and open sourcing AI algorithms and associated software. Ryan holds a bachelor’s degree from Truman State University, where graduated valedictorian, a master’s degree from the University of Maryland School of Public Policy, where he was named a Memorial Fellow, and graduate certificate from the MIT Sloan School of Management. He is currently a Senior Associate (Non-Resident) at the Center for Strategic and International Studies with the International Security Program.

Ric Mommer leads commercial engagement and investor relations activities for DIU’s space portfolio, working with non-traditional companies, venture capitalists and private equity investors. His specialties include telecommunications, advanced computing, stored energy and propulsion.  Prior to DIU, Ric has worked at Apple, Philips Electronics, Nokia and Intel Corporation where he held leadership roles in Global Sales, Business Development and Corporate Development.  Ric is a graduate of the University of Iowa’s Tippie School of Business.