In this episode of DeepTech Unleashed, host Christian Noske sits down with Hélène Huby, the co-founder and CEO of The Exploration Company. Founded in 2021, the company is on a mission to democratise access to space by developing Nyx, a reusable and in-orbit refillable cargo spacecraft designed to fly to any space station.

Hélène shares her remarkable journey from serving as a top executive at Airbus and ArianeGroup—where she led the Orion European Service Module programme—to declining a promotion to start her own venture from scratch with just four people and €50,000. Now, with over €300 million raised and a team of 450, the company is positioned as the European answer to SpaceX and is the first European firm to sign a Space Act agreement with NASA. The conversation explores the strategic development of a global company with European roots, the vital importance of international collaboration, and the unique challenges of scaling a hardware powerhouse in the space industry.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

• The Alternative to SpaceX: Why the global space industry requires competition and diversity beyond a single dominant player to ensure sovereignty and choice.
• Strategic Regional Excellence: How Hélène’s team leverages specific engineering strengths across Germany (avionics/software), France (re-entry/engines), and Italy (life support/mechanisms).
• From Corporate to Startup: The risks and mental shift involved in leaving an executive role at a global giant to "write space history" independently.
• The Power of Collaboration: Insights into the landmark NASA Space Act agreement and the vision for a universal vehicle that serves humanity globally.
• Hiring for Innovation: How to integrate the expertise of veterans from SpaceX and Airbus with the agile mindset of new talent to avoid recreating old corporate structures.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to DeepTech Unleashed and The Exploration Company

01:13 The Vision Behind The Exploration Company

04:28 Building a Global Company with European Roots

10:28 Competing with SpaceX and the Need for Alternatives

17:25 Cultivating a Unique Company Culture

20:49 Navigating Regulation and Funding Challenges

27:06 Best Practices for Space Startups

30:20 The Role of ESA in Supporting Startups

34:44 Leadership Style and Personal Insights

40:02 Moments of Magic in the Journey

42:47 Personal Life and Balancing Work

About the Guest: Hélène Huby

Hélène Huby is the co-founder and CEO of The Exploration Company. A former executive at Airbus and ArianeGroup, she led the Orion European Service Module programme and has been involved in some of the most complex European space programmes, including Ariane and ATV. Under her leadership, The Exploration Company has become one of the fastest-growing space firms in Europe, focused on developing reusable spacecraft that provide universal access to space.

Follow Hélène on LinkedIn HERE

Find out more about The Exploration Company at: exploration.space

About the Host: Christian Noske

Christian Noske is a Partner at NGP Capital, where he focuses on industrial tech, enterprise software, and deep tech investments. With a wealth of experience in the venture capital landscape, Christian is dedicated to supporting founders who are solving complex technical challenges. Through DeepTech Unleashed, he brings listeners behind the scenes of the world’s most ambitious startups to uncover the human stories behind the hardware and code.

Follow Christian Noske on LinkedIn HERE

Find out more about NGP Capital at: ngpcap.com

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In this episode of DeepTech Unleashed, host Debjit Mukerji sits down with Igor Marinelli, founder and CEO of Tractian. Tractian is a category leader in Physical AI, providing an end-to-end industrial monitoring platform that helps maintenance teams avoid unplanned downtime and operate with greater precision.

Igor shares his vision for the future of physical AI and the playbook that has fueled Tractian’s rapid growth and its ability to solve critical “pain” for some of the world’s largest manufacturers.

Episode Chapters:

02:15 Introduction to DeepTech Unleashed

04:33 Origin Story of Tractian

08:05 Ignorance as an Innovation Advantage

08:43 Decoding the Customer’s Pain—and not Product—Drives Sales

12:46 Iterate and Focus for Killer Product Development

16:52 Physical AI: Data and the Human Dimension

22:24 Managing Data at Scale and the Physical Testing Edge

33:04 A Zero-Complacency Culture and Setting Your Own Benchmarks

37:55 The Ultrasound Revolution: SmartTrac UG2

41:59 Empower Great Product Ideas Decisively and Directly (No Layers)

46:21 Sales Execution Is About Knowing How to Hire

55:18 When Fundraising, Focus on People—not Terms

1:01:28 With Great Capital Comes Great Responsibility

About the Host: Debjit Mukerji:

Debjit Mukerji is a Partner at NGP Capital, based in Palo Alto, California. A technologist at heart and engineer by training, Debjit partners with founders creating new categories or redefining existing ones with cutting-edge technology to help them navigate the complexities of global scaling. He has been a partner to Tractian since its seed round, supporting the company’s expansion across the US and international markets.

Follow Debjit Mukerji https://www.linkedin.com/in/debjit-mukerji-9884502

Find out more about NGP Capital at ngpcap.com

About the Guest: Igor Marinelli:

Igor Marinelli is founder and CEO of Tractian. A mechanical engineer by training, Igor has a deep-rooted passion for the industrial sector, having witnessed the impact of machine failures firsthand through his father’s 35-year career in manufacturing. Under his leadership, Tractian has grown into a leading Physical AI company and one of North America’s fastest-growing tech companies, securing significant investment to help industrial enterprises digitalize their maintenance operations and eliminate unplanned downtime.

Follow Igor Marinelli here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/igmarinelli

Find out more about Tractian here: tractian.com

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In this episode of DeepTech Unleashed, host Christian Noske sits down with Peter Leek, founder and chief scientific officer of Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC). OQC is a pioneer in the quantum space, having developed three generations of quantum computers that are currently deployed in data centres across the UK, Japan, Spain, and New York City.

Peter shares his 20-year journey as a scientist and “dreamer” who turned complex physics research into a commercial reality. The conversation explores the technical breakthroughs that make OQC’s hardware unique, the challenges of navigating the intense “hype cycle” of quantum technology, and the company’s ambitious goal to enable the first useful quantum applications by the end of the decade through its new OQC TITAN system.

The discussion dives deep into the philosophy of “bold innovation,” the engineering hurdles of 3D circuit integration, and the evolving leadership dynamics within a high-growth deep tech startup.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

The Scalability Breakthrough: How OQC uses a simple, innovative approach to 3D circuit integration to overcome the “wiring bottleneck” that limits traditional 2D quantum processors.

Hype vs. Reality: Why quantum computing is both the most consequential and over-hyped technology of our time, and how to balance scientific excitement with pragmatic expectations.

Bold Innovation: The importance of taking “calculated risks” on technical ideas that experts in the field might initially question.

The Logical Era: What it means to move beyond experimental quantum systems into hardware purpose-built for real-world commercial impact.

From Founder to CSO: Peter’s personal evolution from a career scientist to a founder, and the importance of building a leadership team with complementary skills.

About the Guest: Peter Leek

Peter Leek is the Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC). A career scientist with over 20 years of experience in quantum computing research, Peter holds a PhD in physics and founded OQC to translate his unique intellectual property into world-changing technology. Under his scientific leadership, OQC has become a global leader in superconducting circuits, deploying scalable quantum systems to data centres and supercomputing centres worldwide.

Follow Peter Leek HERE

Find out more about Oxford Quantum Circuits at oxfordquantumcircuits.com

About the Host: Christian Noske

Christian Noske is a Partner at NGP Capital, where he focuses on industrial tech, enterprise software, and deep tech investments. With a wealth of experience in the venture capital landscape, Christian is dedicated to supporting founders who are solving complex technical challenges. Through DeepTech Unleashed, he brings listeners behind the scenes of the world’s most ambitious startups to uncover the human stories behind the hardware and code.

Follow Christian Noske HERE

Find out more about NGP Capital here: ngpcap.com

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In this episode of DeepTech Unleashed, host Christian Noske sits down with Theodor Nielsen, founder and CEO of NIL Technology (NILT). From a 2006 “school project” at the Technical University of Denmark to becoming a global leader in meta-optics, Theodor shares the raw, 19-year journey of building a company that achieved one of the largest European deep tech exits to date.

Beyond the breakthrough nanostructures and flat optics, Theodor dives into the “softer side” of leadership. He reveals his framework for high-speed decision-making, how he manages the “constant companion” of CEO doubt by trusting his team, and why he focused on building a “real company” rather than an exit strategy.

Key Takeaways:

The 70/30 Decision Rule: Why 70% of decisions don’t actually matter—and why speed is more valuable than perfection for the majority of a CEO’s choices.

Doubt as a Leadership Tool: How to distinguish between healthy “positive paranoia” and paralyzing doubt, and why sharing your insecurities with your team fosters a more powerful executional force.

The “Lab to Fab” Strategy: The strategic pivot from being a technology provider to a manufacturing leader in meta-optics, and why NILT chose to build its own fabs.

Building a “Real Company”: Why focusing on unique technology and real value naturally leads to successful acquisitions, even when you aren’t actively looking to sell.

Moments of Magic: From the thrill of the first profitable budget to hitting the “impossible” 92% efficiency record for meta-lenses that proved their technology was ready for the world.

Chapters:

00:00 – The Journey of NIL Technology: From University to Global Leader

10:48 – Decision-Making in Deep Tech Leadership: Speed vs. Accuracy

27:00 – Building Trust: Why it's important to trust your team with your doubt

30:59 – Navigating the Exit: The story behind the landmark acquisition

37:56 – Lessons on Owning Your Vision and Storyline

41:15 – Moments of Magic: Breaking efficiency records in the lab

45:01 – Future Tech: Climate Change, Health, and Space Exploration

About The Guest:

Theodor Nielsen is the Founder and CEO of NIL Technology (NILT). A trained engineer from the Technical University of Denmark, he has spent nearly two decades pioneering nano-imprint lithography and meta-optics solutions that are now revolutionising 3D sensing, AR/VR displays, and consumer electronics.

Find out more about NIL Technology HERE

Follow Theodor Nielsen HERE

About The Host:

Christian Noske is a Partner at NGP Capital, where he focuses on industrial tech, enterprise software, and deep tech investments. With a wealth of experience in the venture capital landscape, Christian is dedicated to supporting founders who are solving complex technical challenges. Through DeepTech Unleashed, he brings listeners behind the scenes of the world’s most ambitious startups to uncover the human stories behind the hardware and code.

Follow Christian Noske HERE

To learn more about NGP Capital’s work with Deep Tech founders, visit ngpcap.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of DeepTech Unleashed, hosted by Christian Noske, Partner at NGP Capital, explores the “new age of nuclear innovation” with Antoine Guyot, co-founder and CEO of Jimmy, a French company that designs and operates micro-nuclear reactors to provide industrial clients with decarbonized process heat at a lower cost than fossil fuels.

While Germany has historically been skeptical of nuclear energy, France is leading a shift toward a new generation of decentralised, micro-nuclear reactors. Antoine shares how Jimmy is decarbonising industrial process heat—a massive, often overlooked source of emissions—by designing and operating micro-reactors that provide low-cost, carbon-free energy directly to industrial sites.

Key topics discussed in this episode include:

The Nuclear Stigma: Why moving toward nuclear systems requires a “jump of faith” for a society that often only sees nuclear through the lens of cinema.

Decarbonising Industry: The challenge of replacing fossil fuels in industrial heating, which Jimmy addresses by providing carbon-free heat at a lower cost than traditional methods.

Nuclear as a Product: Jimmy’s innovative approach to making nuclear technology “simpler” and more accessible for industrial clients by treating it as a standard industrial tool rather than a massive infrastructure project.

Overcoming Deep Tech Challenges: Insights into the “moments of magic” and the hard-won breakthroughs necessary to scale a high-stakes energy startup.

The Future of Engineering: Why Antoine believes the fusion of nuclear physics and artificial intelligence will define the next decade of engineering breakthroughs.

Chapters:

00:00 The Dawn of Nuclear Innovation

09:54 Navigating Regulatory Challenges

20:05 Market Dynamics and Opportunities

30:14 Building Trust and Education

39:58 The Future of Nuclear and Beyond

About the Guest:

Antoine Guyot is the co-founder and CEO of Jimmy, a French company at the forefront of the new nuclear era. Backed by over €32 million in French government grants and €20 million in VC investment, Jimmy is proving that micro-reactors are a vital tool for achieving a decarbonised future.

Antoine graduated from Ecole Polytechnique, the top engineering school in France. After working in strategic consulting, he became interested in the nuclear field, particularly in how cheap uranium could help decarbonise industrial heat, which is mostly generated using fossil fuels. Jimmy’s mission is to provide industrials with cheap, decarbonised process heat, thus massively helping to decarbonise industries in France and Europe.

About the Host:

Christian Noske is a Partner at NGP Capital, specialising in Deep Tech investments that shape a better future.

To learn more about NGP Capital’s work with Deep Tech founders, visit ngpcap.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

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In this episode of DeepTech Unleashed, host Christian Noske sits down with Jonas Schneider, founder of Daedalus and one of Europe’s most visionary deep-tech builders. From being the first engineer at OpenAI to now spearheading Europe’s AI-powered manufacturing renaissance, Jonas shares an insider’s perspective on how software, robotics, and human craftsmanship will reshape the continent’s industrial backbone.

Jonas unpacks why Europe’s strength in complex, high-precision industrial parts is both its biggest advantage and its biggest bottleneck — and how Daedalus is using AI-driven, asset-light factories to preserve artisan-level quality while massively scaling production. He explains why every high-end industrial part is “a mini-project”, why the real bottleneck is human cognitive load rather than machines, and how software can capture decades of tacit manufacturing knowledge before it’s lost.

Together, Christian and Jonas explore:

Europe’s unique opportunity to lead in high-complexity manufacturing, not mass production

The clash — and fusion — between Silicon Valley’s “move fast” culture and German precision craftsmanship

Why CNC shops often run at only 15–20% machine utilization, and how Daedalus is already doubling that

The demographic time bomb threatening Europe’s industrial ecosystem

How AI co-pilots, automation, and integrated digital factories unlock new productivity

What Europe still lacks to build globally dominant deep-tech companies — and how to fix it

Jonas’s take on AI hype vs. reality, and the long-term technologies he’s personally most excited about

This episode is a rare deep dive into the future of European industry from someone who helped build the future of AI.

Chapters:

00:00 The Challenge of Manufacturing Innovation

06:03 Silicon Valley vs. Traditional Manufacturing

11:58 The Concept of Asset-Light Manufacturing

18:11 Software's Role in Modern Manufacturing

23:59 Building Resilience in European Manufacturing

27:31 The Hidden Champions of European Manufacturing

30:51 Navigating the European Industrial Ecosystem

34:28 Bridging the Gap: Risk Appetite in Europe

36:41 Integrating Blue Collar and White Collar Workers

42:05 Moments of Magic in Innovation

48:01 AI: Hype vs. Usefulness

51:20 Future Technologies: Dreams of Tomorrow

Find out more about Daedalus here: www.daedalus.de

Follow Jonas Schneider here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonas-schneider

Find out more about NGP Capital here: www.ngpcap.com

Follow Christian Noske here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-noske

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