The Saturday Morning Newsletter #65
The End of Coffee, Tea, Cocoa, and Wine, Evolution Is To Blame For Our Health Problems, and $500M to Compete With SpaceX
This Week I’m Tracking: 17 developments across the sectors shaping our future
Reading Time: 7 minutes of curated insights
Your weekly pulse check: The most important events in venture capital, energy, space, economics, intellectual property, philosophy, and more. I distill the most important developments across sectors I track, saving you hours of research while keeping you ahead of the curve.
New to these updates? They pair with our bi-weekly Brainwave analyses for comprehensive sector coverage. Wednesday’s deep dive explored life’s biggest questions - catch up here.
Let’s dive in.
#1: Boldr
Description: Boldr is a residential power plant startup.
Why Is This Company Interesting? Boldr recently raised $3.2M in venture capital funding. There’s no doubt that the U.S. power grid is under strain as demand continues to increase. Boldr’s technology leverages previously untapped sources of energy (HVAC, EV, and more) to deploy distributed peak capacity in times of need. Their solution is a mix of software and hardware solutions, leaving some to question the extent to which it can be rapidly and effectively deployed.
#2: Stoke Space
Description: Stoke Space is a developer of reusable rockets.
Why Is This Company Interesting? Stoke Space recently raised $510M in venture capital funding. Stoke is developing reusable rockets that will continue to improve space affordability and access. As we’ve seen with SpaceX over the last couple of years, reusable rockets are definitely the future, and the company capable of providing them at 10x lower costs and quicker will be the winner. Stoke believes it is that company.
#3: Mondra
Description: Mondra is helping food producers and retailers track emissions and climate risks.
Why Is This Company Interesting? Mondra recently raised $13.3M in venture capital funding. Mondra is striving to provide product-level supply chain information to help producers, suppliers, and businesses become more informed about potential climate risks. This enables purchasers to predict changes, build resilience, and have further confidence in the future.
#4: HyImpulse
Description: HyImpulse is a microlauncher startup.
Why Is This Company Interesting? HyImpulse recently raised $15M in venture capital funding. HyImpulse is a developer of small satellite launch hardware, primarily powered by paraffin fuels. Paraffin fuels are an alternative to existing rocket fuels on the market, providing a safer and more efficient output while causing lower environmental emissions.
#5: Altrove
Description: Altrove is an alternative materials startup.
Why Is This Company Interesting? Altrove recently raised $10M in venture capital funding. Altrove is developing new materials to substitute for critical materials necessary for products across the globe. Many of these current materials have dwindling supply chains, so alternatives are beginning to be explored to ensure future capacity and supply chain resilience. Altrove provides a great solution at a lower cost than the current materials being used.
World Nuclear Association: The State of Nuclear in 2025
Nuclear capacity is on pace to beat the 2050 target set at COP 28 to triple nuclear capacity. The threshold set during those meetings was 1200 GW, and the current aggregated capacity across all countries is slated to be 1428 GW. What’s driving these increases? Economic development, growing populations, and demand from data centers.
Tech Xplore: Vertical Solar Panels and Crops
A new study performed at Aarhus University has found a surprising result: crops (specifically, they studied wheat and grass-clover mixtures) grow just as well between vertical solar panels as they do in open fields. What does this mean? One of the biggest downsides of solar panels is that they take up real estate (whether on roofs, in fields, or in other locations). This way will allow solar panels to be integrated with existing infrastructure seamlessly.
Earth: It May Be Too Late to Save Luxury Crops
Climate change is threatening the future of luxury crops such as coffee, cocoa, tea, and wine. These crops need very specific temperature ranges, rainfall patterns, and soil profiles. Climate change is raising temperatures, causing further uncertain rainfall patterns, and shifting conditions in many ecosystems across the globe. The solution? Growers need to adapt their practices and underlying crop varieties to prepare for these changes.
X: Mazama Energy Unveils the World’s Hottest Enhanced Geothermal System
Most people don’t think about geothermal startups at all since they haven’t been consequential to the global energy mix yet. Recently, Mazama Energy created the world’s hottest enhanced geothermal system, reaching unprecedented temperatures. These will enable the extraction of 10x more power density, use 75% less water, and drill 80% fewer wells than current approaches.
Vulcan Elements: $1.4B Partnership With US Government
Vulcan Elements announced a $1.4B partnership with the US Government and ReElement Technologies to scale into a 100% vertically-integrated, domestic rare earth magnet supply chain. This can propel the United States in the 21st century and enable the next era of electrification, economic dynamism, and national security.
Space: US Military Wants to Track ‘Potential Threats’ Coming From The Moon
The Moon is quickly becoming the destination of the current space race. Given this, the US military is looking for new technologies to keep track of spacecraft and other objects flying around in space. DARPA has issued a solicitation for any new ways to track objects using space-based detection. This continues the trend of public-private partnerships in the space industry.
Nuclear Newswire: The Race To Put Nuclear On The Moon
The United States, Russia, and China are all racing to be the first nation to put a nuclear reactor on the moon to power a lunar base. Russia and China are collaborating, aiming to deploy a reactor to power their Lunar Research Station. The US estimates it can accomplish this feat by 2030, 5 years ahead of the Russia-China partnership. However, many are skeptical given current nuclear technology and space rocket technology.
Apex Space: Project Shadow
Apex unveiled Project Shadow, a space-based interceptor, launching commercially in June 2026. These devices identify missiles and shoot them down before they do any damage. As part of his grand plan, Trump is hoping to build a “Golden Dome” over the US, and Apex believes their technology could be integral to this project.
Pitchbook: Longer VC Hold Times Make Liquidity Alternatives Inevitable
Current market dynamics are stretching fund liquidity timelines to be years longer than previously expected. Cashing out early has traditionally been frowned on, but funds are beginning to resort to these solutions to provide some returns as the majority of funds continue to be held longer than historical averages. Additionally, there’s pressure from employees and founders to monetize options and stock shares, so funds are feeling the intensity from all angles.
The New York Times: This Is How The Economy Comes Crashing Down
From a 5,000-foot view, the US economy looks healthy and robust. Stock markets are around record highs. However, when you dive deeper into the underlying trends, there are pieces failing. For instance, small businesses have been hit tremendously by the new tariffs implemented. Traditionally, they accounted for one-third of the value of the goods imported into the US and account for 97% of the importing companies in America. This trend, among many others, signals that there aren’t all good economic headwinds for the US currently.
Entrepreneur: 3 Lessons Founders Must Understand About IP
Here are the 3 lessons, as summarized in the article:
Innovation without adequate protection is fragile. And in the digital age, those who take intellectual property are the ones who endure. Entrepreneurs must act early to formalize ownership, register trademarks, and establish licensing rights.
Ownership alone isn’t enough. Responsible licensing and collaboration allow brands to expand their reach and generate new revenue streams while maintaining control over quality and representation.
Entrepreneurs must enforce IP with purpose. Taking action shows that authenticity and fairness matter.
New Atlas: According to Science, We’re Evolving Too Slow
This article caught my eye as I was browsing through potential inclusions for this article.
It’s a powerful message: we’re growing and developing faster than we can evolve and keep up.
What does that mean? Current research suggests that human biology is struggling to keep pace with changes in our world. The studies found that many of the chronic stress-related health issues we face today are predictable results of trying to fit our current evolved state (not much more than our Stone or Bronze age ancestors) into a world that isn’t built like that.
Put simply, the world we experience today is having an impact on our mental and physical health, and that’s a result of our biology.
There are many signs that humans haven’t had time to adapt to the rapid changes in the world over the last century. To cite some examples, this includes declining global fertility rates, rising chronic inflammatory conditions, and other health trends.
Whether or not you trust the science behind all of this (which is very rigorous and I would recommend a deeper investigation if you are interested), this explains many of the root causes of problems we face today.
That’s a wrap on this week’s roundup.
Found this analysis valuable? The best way to support Brainwaves is to share it with someone who’d benefit from these insights.
Drew Jackson
Founder & Writer
Share This Article
Keep Exploring
Next Deep Dive: Year in Review - 11/27
Previous Editions: View the archive here
Stay Connected
New to Brainwaves? Join thousands of readers getting bi-weekly deep dives into the forces reshaping our world.
Sponsor This Newsletter: Reach an engaged audience of forward-thinking readers. Email us for details.
Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal opinions, not financial advice. This content is educational only. Investment decisions carry risks - always consult professionals and do your own research. All sponsorships are clearly disclosed.
© 2025 Brainwaves. All rights reserved.