The Startup Defense
The Startup Defense explores the intersection of commercial technology and defense innovation. Callye Keen (Kform) talks with expert guests about the latest needs and trends in the defense industry and how startup companies are driving innovation and change. From concept to field, The Startup Defense covers artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, mission computing, autonomous systems, and the manufacturing necessary to make technology real.
The Startup Defense
Rapid Innovation, Manufacturing Transparency, and Authentise with Andre Wegner
Andre Wegner believes the biggest choke-point in defense manufacturing isn’t hardware—it’s the months (or years) lost inside data-starved black boxes. He and host Callye Keen unpack how capturing every shred of context across design, engineering, and shop-floor workflows—then feeding it to AI—can turn a decade-long program into a months-long sprint. If you care about rebuilding U.S. industrial agility, hit play.
Topics We Cover
- Why “idea → part” speed is now a national-security metric
- The cost of invisible data: 16k+ parts “too expensive to reverse engineer”
- Creating a new category
Key Takeaways
- Transparency beats paperwork. Drawings alone can’t scale or automate production; live context must flow from concept through machining.
- AI makes the unsexy sexy. Large language models can surface risks and bottlenecks instantly—if the data exhaust is captured.
- Own the ability to build. You don’t truly own IP when the know-how to make it sits outside your walls.
Chapters
- 00:00 | Welcome & guest intro
- 02:58 | The Authentise journey—from secure print streaming to DoD prime
- 05:12 | Obsessing over months-not-years product cycles
- 10:18 | The “blind-men & elephant” parable of fragmented manufacturing data
- 17:21 | Why the golden-thread metaphor fails in a multidimensional world
- 23:40 | Naming a new category: Continuous Engineering Operations
- 26:17 | $700 pocket sculptures & reframing value
- 31:58 | Cheap drones, culture change, and AI-enabled transparency
- 34:48 | Closing thoughts & future collaboration
Resources & Links
- Authentise — https://authentise.com
- Kform — https://kform.com
Connect
“You don’t really own your IP if you can’t make it.” — Callye Keen
Enjoyed the episode? Follow The Startup Defense and share it with a fellow builder. Powered by Kform—defense tech transformation from concept to production.
