Strategic Horizon
SpaceTech
Summit
An invitation-only executive forum convening issuers, capital providers, policymakers, innovators, and industry leaders to explore the financing, infrastructure, and strategic partnerships shaping the future of commercial space.
Status
Thank you for joining us
Driving the Next Frontier of Space Innovation
The inaugural Strategic Horizon SpaceTech Summit convenes institutional investors, family offices, and space-industry leaders for a curated day of dealmaking, strategic dialogue, and direct access to high-growth opportunities.
Hosted at Nixon Peabody LLP in the heart of New York, this inaugural edition sets the standard for transactional forums at the intersection of space and capital markets.
Space Infrastructure
Capital formation in LEO, launch, satellite, and propulsion systems.
Commercialization
SPAC structures, pre-IPO pathways, and institutional equity raising.
Policy & Regulation
OBBBA, Spaceport PABs, dual-use technology, and regulatory frameworks.
Emerging Technologies
AI, satellite intelligence, propulsion innovation, and orbital data platforms.
Global Collaboration
Cross-border partnerships, international capital, and sovereign space programs.
Summit Agenda
Thursday, September 10, 2026 · 8:00 AM – 6:30 PM ET
Nixon Peabody LLP · Tower 46, 55 West 46th Street, New York, NY 10036
Registration & Continental Breakfast
Delegate check-in, continental breakfast, and pre-summit networking.
Welcome Remarks
Speakers:
Sadhvee S. Hansraj, Chief Strategy Officer, Intro-act Strategic Horizon Summit
Peter Wright, Founder, Intro-act, LLC
Panel 1: Assessing the Risks of Investing in Space
A frank evaluation of capital intensity, extended horizons to liquidity, regulatory hurdles, and operational tail risks unique to early and growth-stage space tech ventures. Senior venture capitalists address overall portfolio construction, exit environment realities, and their allocation strategies.
Moderator:
Loren Grush, Space Reporter, Bloomberg News
Panelists:
J.D. Russell, Founder and CEO, Alpha Funds; Commercial Astronaut
Michael Vinter, Executive Vice President, Aon Space
Steve Wolfe, Deputy Executive Director, Global Spaceport Alliance
Panel 2: LEO, Satellites, & Constellations: The Street View on Space
An operational and commercial snapshot of low Earth orbit (LEO) dynamics, hardware unit economics, launch cadence bottlenecks, and satellite constellation monetization.
Moderator:
Brian Monnin, Co-Founder & Chief Commercial Officer, Sophia Space
Panelists:
Kamal Masud, Managing Director, Roth Capital
Patrick McCarthy, Managing Director, Space & Defense Technology, Oppenheimer
Michael Mealling, General Partner, Starbridge Venture Capital
Gregg Pendy, Director of Equity Research, Clear Street, LLC
Panel 3: Defense & Logistics: Dual-Use Acceleration for Space Infrastructure
An exploration of defense tech integration, government procurement, and how dual-use civil/defense capabilities accelerate private capital adoption in space logistics.
Moderator:
Major General Ferdinand B. “Fred” Stoss III, USAF (Ret.), Editor-in-Chief, GEOIntelligence Group, Bancroft Capital
Panelists:
Jim Bridenstine, CEO; Former NASA Administrator, Quantum Space
General Anthony J. Cotton, USAF (Ret.), CEO, Nebraska Strategic Defense Authority; Former Commander, U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM)
Carol Goldstein, CFO and CAO, Lonestar Data Holdings Inc.
Matt Jenkins, Chief Space Systems Officer, Vantor
Lunch | Nixon Peabody Café
Across from the 24th Floor reception area.
Fireside Chat: An Author and An Astronaut
A conversation exploring the Overview Effect — the cognitive shift astronauts experience viewing Earth from orbit — and what it means for strategy, collaboration, and the commercial space economy.
Speakers:
Frank White, SpaceTech Curator, Intro-act, LLC; Author of The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution
Michael López-Alegría, Chief Astronaut, SVP of Human Spaceflight, Axiom Space
Featured Remarks: Industrializing Competitive Endurance
Perspective shift into national strategy and commercial power.
Speaker:
Jim Bridenstine, CEO; Former NASA Administrator, Quantum Space
Keynote Address: Space as the New High Ground
Speaker:
General Anthony J. Cotton, USAF (Ret.), CEO, Nebraska Strategic Defense Authority; Former Commander, U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM)
Panel 4: Equity Capital Markets: Public Markets Readiness for SpaceTech Issuers
A deep dive into public market readiness, SPAC vs. traditional IPO structures, PIPE financing, and institutional investor appetite for pure-play space issuers.
Moderator:
Peter Wright, Partner & President, PartnerCap Securities
Panelists:
Giovanni Caruso, Partner, Loeb and Loeb
Brian Dobson, Managing Director, Disruptive Technology Equity Research, Clear Street, LLC
Rose Levy, Senior Vice President, Pace Public Relations
Chris Brandes, Partner, CFGI
Panel 5: Spaceport Bonds: A Critical New Capital Raising Tool for Issuers
An inside look at innovative fixed-income and municipal/project bond financing mechanisms designed to fund commercial launch sites and ground infrastructure.
Moderator:
Armand R. Pastine, Senior Managing Director, Celadon Financial Group
Panelists:
Sean Garin, Partner, Public Finance Practice, Dinsmore & Shohl LLP
Johnny Hutchinson, Special Tax Partner, Project Finance & Public Finance, Nixon Peabody LLP
T.J. Mancuso, Partner, Kline Alvarado Veio, P.C.
Barbie Peek, CBDO, Port of Huntsville / Huntsville International Air and Spaceport
Kostas Poulakidas, Shareholder, Project Financing and Infrastructure Practice, Greenberg Traurig
Panel 6: The Investor Lens: Building Bankable Space Infrastructure
(Please note: Chatham House Rule applies to this session.) Institutional investors synthesize summit insights to address overall portfolio construction and project finance strategies for commercial space assets with a specific focus on spaceport bonds.
Moderator:
Nic Malas, Managing Director, Bancroft Capital
Panelists:
Danford Peterson, Co-Portfolio Manager and CIO, Foundation Infrastructure
James Schwartz, Managing Director, Head of Municipal Credit Research, BlackRock
Terence M. Smith, Chairman and CEO, Smith Research and Gradings
Tom Weyl, Managing Director, Head of Municipal Solutions, Celadon Financial Group
Cocktail Reception & Book Signing with Frank White, Author of The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution
The Overview Effect® is a registered trademark owned by Frank White. Continued dialogue and relationship-building.
Leading voices from capital markets, institutional investment, and the global space industry.
Sadhvee S. Hansraj
Chief Strategy Officer
Intro-act Strategic Horizon Summit
Sadhvee S. Hansraj is Head of Strategic Initiatives at Intro-act Strategic Solutions, where she leads the Strategic Horizon Summit, an institutional platform that convenes issuers, investors, innovators, policymakers, and industry leaders to explore emerging opportunities in capital formation and the future economy.
Armand R. Pastine
Senior Managing Director
Celadon Financial Group
Armand R. Pastine is a Senior Managing Director at Celadon Financial Group, specialising in fixed income and municipal finance.
Peter Wright
Partner & President
PartnerCap Securities
Peter Wright is Managing Partner of Partner Capital Group and co-founder of Intro-act, LLC. With deep roots in capital markets and deal structuring, Peter founded Intro-act to bridge institutional capital with breakthrough industries through purpose-built, invitation-curated summits.
Michael Vinter
Executive Vice President
Aon Space
J.D. Russell
Founder and CEO
Alpha Funds; Commercial Astronaut
Gregg Pendy
Director of Equity Research
Clear Street, LLC
Michael Mealling
General Partner
Starbridge Venture Capital
Patrick McCarthy
Managing Director, Space & Defense Technology
Oppenheimer
Patrick J. McCarthy is a Managing Director and Equity Research Analyst at Oppenheimer & Co., covering the Defense Technology and National Security Space sectors.
Major General Ferdinand B. “Fred” Stoss III
USAF (Ret.), Editor-in-Chief, GEOIntelligence Group
Bancroft Capital
General Anthony J. Cotton
USAF (Ret.), CEO, Nebraska Strategic Defense Authority; Former Commander, U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM)
Jim Bridenstine
CEO; Former NASA Administrator
Quantum Space
Jim Bridenstine has dedicated his life to public service, first as a Navy pilot, then as a U.S. Congressman, and then as NASA Administrator.
Carol Goldstein
CFO and CAO
Lonestar Data Holdings Inc.
Steve Wolfe
Deputy Executive Director
Global Spaceport Alliance
Frank White
SpaceTech Curator
Intro-act, LLC; Author of The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution
Frank White is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College, a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and a Rhodes Scholar.
Michael López-Alegría
Chief Astronaut, SVP of Human Spaceflight
Axiom Space
Brian Dobson
Managing Director, Disruptive Technology Equity Research
Clear Street, LLC
Giovanni Caruso
Partner
Loeb and Loeb
Rose Levy
Senior Vice President
Pace Public Relations
Johnny Hutchinson
Special Tax Partner, Project Finance & Public Finance
Nixon Peabody LLP
Johnny Hutchinson is a Tax Partner at Nixon Peabody LLP, where he leads the firm's OBBBA structuring practice.
Sean Garin
Partner, Public Finance Practice
Dinsmore & Shohl LLP
Kostas Poulakidas
Shareholder, Project Financing and Infrastructure Practice
Greenberg Traurig
Kostas Poulakidas is a Shareholder with Greenberg Traurig's Public Finance & Infrastructure Practice, where he advises clients on complex infrastructure, project finance, public-private partnerships, and economic development strategy.
T.J. Mancuso
Partner
Kline Alvarado Veio, P.C.
Barbie Peek
CBDO
Port of Huntsville / Huntsville International Air and Spaceport
Nic Malas
Managing Director
Bancroft Capital
Tom Weyl
Managing Director, Head of Municipal Solutions
Celadon Financial Group
Thomas Weyl heads Municipal Solutions at Celadon Financial Group, where he focuses on structuring and executing tax-exempt bond financings across infrastructure, transportation, and space-related municipal markets.
Danford Peterson
Co-Portfolio Manager and CIO
Foundation Infrastructure
Danford Peterson is Co-Portfolio Manager and CIO of Foundation Credit, a fixed income investment firm with expertise in high-yield municipal credit, infrastructure P3s, and institutional credit underwriting.
Brian Monnin
Co-Founder & Chief Commercial Officer
Sophia Space
Brian Monnin is co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Sophia Space, where he leads product strategy and go-to-market for orbital compute "TILE" systems that move AI workloads into orbit for civil, defense, and commercial customers.
Matt Jenkins
Chief Space Systems Officer
Vantor
Terence M. Smith
Chairman and CEO
Smith Research and Gradings
James Schwartz
Managing Director, Head of Municipal Credit Research
BlackRock
Loren Grush
Space Reporter
Bloomberg News
Chris Brandes
Partner
CFGI
Built for
Serious
Participants
A curated audience. A single day. No intermediaries.
Every seat at the Strategic Horizon Summit represents a decision-maker with the mandate, capital, and conviction to act on what they hear in the room.
Who Attends
A Curated
Audience
This Summit does not publish an open registration. Each attendee category is held to a defined profile — every conversation at the event carries real transactional weight.
I.
✦Institutional Investors
Pension funds, endowments, sovereign wealth, and asset managers allocating capital into high-growth sectors.
II.
✦Family Offices
Single- and multi-family offices seeking direct investment and alternative allocation opportunities.
III.
✦Capital Markets Professionals
Investment bankers, equity capital markets teams, research analysts, and M&A advisors.
IV.
✦Industry Executives
CEOs, CFOs, and operators building and scaling companies across the sector.
V.
✦Policy & Regulatory Leaders
Regulators, agency advisors, and policy counsel shaping the legal and national-security landscape.
VI.
✦Venture & Growth Investors
Venture capital and growth equity investors focused on deep tech and dual-use technology.
The most valuable thing in the room
is not what is on stage.
It is who is sitting next to you.
Intro-act · Strategic Horizon Series
Why Attend
What you
take from
the room
Four things every attendee leaves with — regardless of sector, mandate, or seniority.
Direct deal flow access
No intermediaries. Every company presenting has been reviewed for financial readiness and sector fit before they take the stage.
Calibrated peer conversations
The attendee profile is managed with the same discipline as the agenda. The room is built so every conversation is worth having.
Sector intelligence you can act on
Panels are moderated to surface real views on valuations, exit timelines, and where capital is concentrating across the commercial space value chain.
Intro-act platform access
Registered attendees gain platform access for pre-summit outreach and curated meeting scheduling ahead of September 10.
Sponsoring Organizations
The institutions underwriting this convening — capital markets leaders committed to advancing the sector and the conversations that shape it.
