Goat Rodeo

This Episode: The Goat Rodeo crew is joined by Phil Divinski (CEO) and Jerad Watlington (COO), the duo behind Jeddoc, for a brutally honest look at FPV’s on the battlefield, bottom-up innovation, and why the acquisition system keeps tripping over itself. The guys kick things off debating MRE supremacy before diving into the real questions: Why can’t senior enlisted fly drones on major bases? Why a...

This Episode: The Goat Rodeo crew is joined by Brad Palm, COO at Dreadnode, for a deep dive into the realities of AI in defense. The team breaks down the myth of the soldiers Ironman suit, why true innovation starts with the end user, and how private industry continues to outpace the Pentagon. They also hit on Canada’s massive defense spending boost, the shifting landscape of international defense...

This Episode: The Goat Rodeo crew is back, diving into Trump’s Asia tour, defense alliances, and the evolving balance of power in the Indo-Pacific. The team unpacks Japan and South Korea’s deepening military partnerships with the U.S., the growing importance of foreign military sales, and what it means for America’s long-term China strategy. From Seoul’s defense ambitions to the counter-drone arms...

This Episode: The Goat Rodeo crew digs into the rise of the “hyper-enabled soldier” — what’s real, what’s hype, and how much of it actually helps the warfighter. Fresh off AUSA, they talk about Anduril’s new EagleEye headset, the limits of wearable tech, and why human capability still anchors every fight. Also on deck: JP Morgan’s new defense fund, Firestorm’s big win, and how investors can naviga...

This Episode: This week, the Goat Rodeo crew is joined by Chris Miller, an American Special Forces Colonel who went on to serve as Acting United States Secretary of Defense. We cover everything from Rip-Its to today’s flashpoints: Russia and Ukraine, Israel and Palestine, and Taiwan and China. Along the way, Chris reminds us of a hard truth: the technology and players may change, but the nature of...

This Episode: The Goat Rodeo crew kicks things off with cowboy hats in Michigan, record-breaking Zach Bryan concerts, and Dave’s take on a Power-flavored Rip-It (“tastes like combat and victory”) before diving headfirst into the week’s chaos. At the center: the government shutdown. What does it mean for the NDAA, DoD budgets, and startups trying to break in? Simon sees gridlock, Dave breaks down h...

This Episode: Dave may be the coolest guy at Home Depot, but even he can’t get excited about CENTCOM opening yet another innovation shop. The crew unpacks whether China is truly expansionist, how much Taiwan really hates the mainland, and what role the U.S. should play if Beijing decides to make a move. They also dive into venture capital flowing into Ukraine and Taiwan, the booming global market...

Goat Rodeo #27 – Russian Drones in Poland, $290M for Divergent, and Shutdown Watch This Episode: Garrett checks in from Taiwan, Simon’s flying the flag for Taiwanese punk, and the crew dives right into a string of escalations: more than 10 Russian drones were shot down over Poland, a provocation with massive implications for U.S. defense companies and foreign military sales. On the home front, the...

This Episode: Xi, Putin, Modi, and Kim hug it out in China. Was it a signal of realignment, or just optics? Garrett isn’t convinced, but Simon digs into why India’s presence matters. Back in the Western Hemisphere, the crew unpacks U.S. strikes on narco targets. Are they legal? Are they moral? Are we poking a sleeping bear? And what does it mean for SOUTHCOM and NORTHCOM as resources start to flow...

No full episode this week - just an update from Garrett!

This Episode: We kick things off with the Putin-Trump summit in Alaska and ask what the B-2 flyover really meant. We also dig into Russia’s strike on the FLEX facility in Ukraine, where American employees were critically injured, and what this may mean for U.S. posture in INDOPACOM and beyond. Back at home, the crew talks about the rise of DIY drones. With Oceanside PD and military labs building t...

This Episode: For the first time ever, all three hosts are together in person at Reveal HQ in Bozeman, Montana. This week, they brought some heat. The team digs into the latest headlines including the rumored Trump / Putin meeting in Alaska, growing tensions around U.S. strategic posturing, and a wild new NVIDIA deal that gives the U.S. government a 15% revenue share on chip sales to China.  They...

This Episode: Defense investing is taking off, literally and figuratively. This week, the crew is joined by Garrett Asta from Houlihan Lokey to break down the current boom in venture, private equity, and public markets across the defense and space sectors. With more VC-backed companies showing up than ever before, it's clear: the market is hot. But is it overheating? We unpack the signals driving...

This Episode: China’s racing to put 30,000 satellites in orbit. The White House just dropped a sweeping AI action plan. And OpenAI and its partners are reportedly putting $500B toward next-gen data centers. The question is: can the U.S. keep up? We break down the global battle for tech dominance—across space, compute, and policy. From the energy demands of AI infrastructure to whether a single com...

This Week: We’re joined by Alex Martin, CEO of Clearspeed—a voice-based risk screening company that’s been quietly making waves in national security, intelligence, and defense. A fellow Marine and GWOT-era vet, Alex has seen firsthand how hard it is to stay on mission when DoD priorities shift and contracting obstacles pile up.  We talk with Alex about the limitations of legacy tools like the poly...

This episode: Are we witnessing a Middle East cooldown—or just a pause between strikes? A new Western-friendly president in Syria sparks debate (plus, Garrett’s tinfoil theory you don’t want to miss). Meanwhile, Firestorm Labs closes a $47M Series A and earns big love from the team for what could be a breakthrough in distributed, mobile drone manufacturing—giving warfighters the tools to innovate...

This episode: Congress wants to slash requirement validation timelines from years to months. With the SPEED Act and a proposed RAPID directorate on the table, the DoD is eyeing an overhaul of its acquisition system, aiming to reduce the average 800-day process down to 90 days. The crew breaks down what these reforms could realistically change, where optimism collides with bureaucracy, and why even...

This episode: As the kids take over at home, Congress is (maybe) passing one of the biggest defense budget bills in history. The crew unpacks the latest on the “Big Beautiful Bill,” the parliamentarian gutting it, and why reconciliation has never failed (until maybe now). Dave breaks down a hidden gem in the bill: $690M for Budget Activity #9, aimed at counter-drone, drone effects, and electronic...

This episode: U.S. struck Iran with B-2’s, and the ceasefire seems very fragile. Garrett, Simon, and Dave unpack the latest strikes, Iranian posturing, and what it means for deterrence. Meanwhile, NATO makes waves with a new 5% defense spending pledge (sort of), and defense innovation dollars keep flowing. The team digs into Obviant’s $7M raise, the challenge of scaling neo-primes, and why so much...

This episode: Israel’s latest strikes on Iranian nuclear and missile sites show just how deep their long game goes—decades of tradecraft, infiltration, and information warfare. Garrett, Simon, and Dave unpack what makes Israel’s influence operations so effective, and whether Iran’s regime is finally starting to crack. Meanwhile, OpenAI just landed a $200M Pentagon contract, signaling a new chapter...

This episode: Garrett’s got a fancy espresso in hand and a new 6.5 Creedmoor rifle in the safe. Simon lays out why he expects the DoD budget to tighten. And Dave breaks down why the House Armed Services Committee thinks acquisition needs a reboot—with the SPEED Act leading the charge. The crew covers where the defense budget is actually changing (hint: it’s not shrinking overall, but it is shiftin...

This episode: Chris Naganuma joins the crew fresh off a trip to Ukraine, where he’s been working directly with frontline units, advising on drone tactics and strike operations against Russian targets. With a background spanning foreign military sales, pro shooting, OSINT analysis, and ground-level battlefield advising, Chris brings firsthand insight from a warzone most people only follow online. W...

This episode: We open with Memorial Day and the heavy reality that veteran suicide remains a crisis—one that’s still not widely understood or acknowledged by the broader public. The crew reflects on service, loss, and what it means to carry that forward. We also dig into new legislative movement in Texas, where lawmakers have funded ibogaine treatment trials for veterans—a major moment for the “Ri...

This episode: Dave survived a cross-country move, Simon’s channeling ugly punk energy, and the crew gets real about one of the most critical parts of defense tech: systems integration. Who should actually own it? Legacy primes? New primes? The govvies? It’s complex, exhausting work. We dig into where smaller companies fit, and why integration and compliance remain two of the biggest hurdles in the...

This episode: Les Craig, General Partner at Next Frontier Capital, joins the crew to talk defense venture trends, budget dysfunction, and whether innovation theater is masking a system in need of real change. From AI hype to institutional inertia, Les offers a candid look at how the funding landscape is shifting—and what startups (and policymakers) keep getting wrong. The crew also digs into defen...