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Robinhood co-founder Baiju Bhatt is betting on space solar | Equity Podcast

As the interest in both space and solar grows, one startup aims to merge the two industries. By tapping into the momentum of the commercial space industry and the increasing demand for renewable energy, Robinhood co-founder Baiju Bhatt is on a mission to make space-based solar power a reality with his latest startup: Aetherflux ()…

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As the interest in both space and solar grows, one startup aims to merge the two industries. By tapping into the momentum of the commercial space industry and the increasing demand for renewable energy, Robinhood co-founder Baiju Bhatt is on a mission to make space-based solar power a reality with his latest startup: Aetherflux () .

Today on Equity () , Rebecca Bellan caught up with Bhatt to talk about his transition from fintech to deep tech and why he believes now is the right time to scatter solar power-collecting satellites across the skies. 

Listen to the full episode to hear more about:

• How Aetherflux approached funding as a bootstrapped startup (for now), and what investor interest in space-based solar looks like.

• The challenge of scaling tech that’s literally out of this world.

• And Bellan and Bhatt’s idea for a Burning Man light show.

Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday. 

Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts () , Overcast () , Spotify () and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X () and Threads () , at @EquityPod. For the full episode transcript, for those who prefer reading over listening, check out our full archive of episodes here () .

Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. We’d also like to thank TechCrunch’s audience development team. Thank you so much for listening, and we’ll talk to you next time.

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1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. @gtleshow

    February 11, 2025 at 11:27 pm

    Craftsmanship challenges in manufacturing are nothing new, but the real conversation should be about how automation and AI-driven quality control are evolving to minimize these issues. Hopefully, the industry starts focusing more on scalable solutions rather than just identifying the same old problems.

    Reply

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On one hand, US-based, Black-founded startups have already raised $643M, 70% of what was raised in the entirety of last year.

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