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Rational Optimist Podcast

Rational Optimist Podcast

Written by: Dan Steinhart
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Say no to fearmongering and join us every Friday for the Rational Optimist Podcast. You'll discover incredible things happening that everyone should know but most people don't... from the revival of supersonic flight and nuclear power, to the revolution in biotech now underway. You'll also get authentic opinions on today's headlines from the perspective of two guys (Stephen McBride and Dan Steinhart) who unapologetically love humanity, technology, capitalism, and prosperity.© 2024 Rational Optimist Society. All rights reserved. Economics Personal Finance Politics & Government
Episodes
  • How $500 Drones Are Forcing America to Reinvent Its Military | ROP #59
    Nov 5 2025

    A handful of $500 drones recently caused $5 billion in damage to a fleet of Russian strategic bombers. This is the new reality of warfare, and America is not ready. In this episode, CX2 founder Nathan explains how the cheap drone revolution is forcing the US to completely reinvent its military playbook.

    We dive deep into the invisible battlefield of electronic warfare, why our multi-million dollar missiles are now being defeated by simple GPS jammers, the secret strategy of "shooting the archer, not the arrow," and how a new generation of founders is building the decentralized, autonomous systems that will define the future of American power.

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    48 mins
  • America's Drone Market is About to Collapse (And It's a Good Thing) | ROP #58
    Oct 29 2025

    China's DJI owns 90% of the US commercial drone market. A nationwide ban is about to make them illegal, threatening to collapse the industry overnight. Thoron founder Thayne Kollmorgen says: good.

    In this episode, he reveals the brutal truths behind America's failure - from the "open source honey trap" that kills innovation to the product design flaws that put US companies an "order of magnitude" behind. He also lays out the Tesla-inspired playbook a new generation of American founders is using to finally build a true competitor and win the drone war.

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    50 mins
  • Founder's Guide to Winning the New Space Race | ROP #57
    Oct 22 2025

    A new generation of founders is winning the new space race, and they're doing it by breaking one simple rule. In this founder's guide, A-ray Labs founder Andrew Peterson reveals the one broken "cost-plus" law that crippled the defense industry for 50 years and created the opportunity of a lifetime.

    We ran out of time just as we were about to dive into Andrew's incredible 3D mapping technology - we'll have to get him back for Part 2!

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    39 mins
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