It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s… technically a flying boat!
When challenged to imagine how to electrify aviation, Billy Thalheimer, CEO and co-founder of REGENT Craft, and his team set to work looking at what has been done with hydroplanes before – and what emerging technologies are available today that change the equation for what is possible and economically achievable.

“Building with atoms is harder than building with bits. You can’t just revert to your last code push,” Mr. Thalheimer told us. “Early on, it was really just finding those investors that ‘got’ tough tech.” And such investors he did find, bringing in allied capital with hands-on operational experience running manufacturing, aviation, and maritime businesses.

REGENT Craft is settling into its expanding headquarters in Rhode Island, where the team enjoys the benefits of its specially-chosen locale: access to the U.S.A’s top naval composites experts, aerospace giants, and deep-rooted talent pools in avionics, software, and other key capabilities needed to make nontraditional vessels glide above the seas.

With the potential to fundamentally change how goods and people are shuttled along coastal communities globally, REGENT has been carefully fusing together a team of interdisciplinary specialists. While it may not be the astronaut career Mr. Thalheimer originally envisioned, it sure is an exciting ride!

P.S. Thank you to our episode sponsor, The End Effector! JMill will be decoding deep tech over there, so join the mailing list to get read-in.

P.P.S. Thank you to our tough tech champions. Mariemma, you're our newest Pioneer! We really appreciate your support! If you’d like to follow Mariemma’s example, take a look at our pay-if-you-can membership options so you can help us bring Tough Tech Today to more folks!

The blue parts of our planet are beautiful yet stunningly punishing for even our toughest of technologies.

Dark, crushing, unexplored, and unknown – the depths of the seas are where an explorer like Jeff Smith has devoted his career to understanding. As the Vice President and General Manager of Autonomous and Undersea Systems at Saab, Inc., Smith has experience developing submersibles of nearly every shape and size, including some of the most advanced systems for remotely-operated and autonomous research vessels. 

A distinguished figure in the undersea robotics realm, Smith brings a wealth of experience from his involvement in innovative startups and contributions to significant projects supporting the US Navy and other long-standing partners in ocean exploration. His journey, inspired by childhood memories of Jacques Cousteau's adventures, has led him to a career where his passion for the seas intersects with cutting-edge technology, embodying the adage that when you do what you love, it hardly feels like work.

Our conversation with Smith offers an insightful look into the challenges and opportunities within ‘blue technologies’. He highlights the critical role of autonomy and robotics in probing and protecting over 70% of the Earth's surface covered by oceans. His work developing cost-effective undersea systems underscores the importance of practical approaches in advancing our understanding and capabilities in marine environments. Smith also shares his entrepreneurial journey, from his start with a credit card and a dream to building Riptide Autonomous Solutions (acquired by BAE Systems), a major force in the unmanned undersea vehicle space. 

This episode not only peers into the technical aspects of undersea exploration but also touches on the broader implications for environmental conservation and defense. Smith’s emphasis on the need for continued innovation, especially in battery technology and onboard machine intelligence, points to a future where autonomous undersea vehicles play a pivotal role in addressing some of the planet's most pressing challenges. This conversation with Jeff Smith not only educates but also inspires, reminding us of the vast, unexplored frontiers beneath the waves and the tough tech required to navigate them safely.

P.S. Thank you to our episode sponsor, The End Effector! JMill will be decoding deep tech over there, so join the mailing list to get read-in.

P.P.S. Thank you to our tough tech champions. We really appreciate your support! If you’d like to follow Erika’s example, take a look at our pay-if-you-can membership options so you can help us bring Tough Tech Today to more folks!

Tough Tech Today is transitioning seasons, recapping our Season 3 themes exploring the tough tech domains of biology, space, and fusion energy. We are also preparing for the show's fourth season and we are really excited for it!

Upcoming themes:

• Blue tech – The advanced technologies of the maritime industry. Incredible machines, sustainable oceans, and mysteries to solve in our planet's seas.
• Quantum sciences – A wild world where physics gets weird, we are super curious about opportunities in computing, sensing, and communication.
• Artificial Intelligence – While it was only fairly recently that "A.I." has debuted on the pop-culture zeitgeist, for years tech trailblazers have been developing incredible applications of machine intelligence to solve our world's toughest challenges.

Thank you, our Season 3 guests!

• BioTech
  • New Equilibrium Biosciences - Virginia Burger
  • Elevian - Mark Allen
  • Concerto Biosciences - Cheri Ackerman
• Space
  • Space Capital - Chad Anderson
  • Mithril Technologies - Scarlett Koller
  • Arkenstone Ventures/USAF USSF - Preston Dunlap
• Fusion
  • Proxima Fusion - Francesco Sciortino
  • TDK Ventures / Type One Energy - Tina Tosukhowong
  • Focused Energy - Thomas Forner and Pravesh Patel

P.S. Thank you to our tough tech champions. We really appreciate your support! If you’d like to level-up your support of our work, take a look at our pay-if-you-can membership options so you can help us bring Tough Tech Today to more folks!