EP 71 — Skydio’s Mark Valentine on How Sanctions Freed Them from Supply Chain Dependence

When China sanctioned Skydio, it forced complete supply chain independence — and battle-tested technology that now guides Ukrainian artillery strikes. Mark Valentine, Global Head of National Security Strategy at Skydio, shares how spectacular drone failures in Ukraine drove breakthrough GPS-denied navigation and frequency-hopping capabilities. From F-16 pilot to Microsoft's SecDef Fellow to leading Skydio's national security strategy, Mark breaks down why New York City's 600 dock-based drones outperform military's one-to-one operator approach, and how Microsoft's "learn-it-all" culture translates to defense innovation.

Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
01:03 Early tech background and Air Force Academy
02:15 Electronic warfare specialization in F-16s
02:56 Secretary of Defense Fellows Program at Microsoft
05:28 Transition from military to Microsoft full-time
06:44 Scale AI experience and building federal business
08:50 Leadership differences between big companies and startups
15:04 Skydio's founding story and Adam Bry's vision
18:07 Computer vision breakthrough and multi-agent capabilities
23:22 Ukraine deployment failures and black eye moment
28:19 In-house technology vs partnerships approach
32:51 Biggest misconceptions about drone AI
40:41 Why law enforcement outpaces military drone adoption
43:03 Counter-drone technology and policy challenges
46:03 Chinese sanctions and supply chain independence
49:03 Future vision for military autonomous operations
51:03 Multi-domain robotics integration potential
52:20 Closing thoughts