# Shooting for the moon with Steve Altemus of Intuitive Machines

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2023-12-21
- Length: 37m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines

## Summary

Steve Altemus, co-founder and CEO of Intuitive Machines, explains how he left NASA in 2013 to build a commercial space company focused on lunar exploration. He details the development of the NovaC-1 lander, the company's business model of selling payload delivery services for roughly $1 million per kilogram, and their partnership with SpaceX using Falcon 9 rockets. Altemus discusses the technical challenges of landing on the moon's rugged terrain, the legal framework of the Artemis Accords, and his strategy of accepting failure as a necessary part of iterating toward reliable lunar infrastructure.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines#t=0) Introduction: Steve Altemus and Intuitive Machines
- [1:27](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines#t=87) Leaving NASA and the 1000-Day Robot Challenge
- [4:57](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines#t=297) Early Ventures: Drones, Healthcare, and Oil & Gas
- [9:50](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines#t=590) The Case for Lunar Mining and Water Ice
- [18:14](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines#t=1094) Designing and Testing the NovaC-1 Lander
- [21:26](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines#t=1286) Business Model: Payload Delivery and SpaceX Partnership
- [25:39](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines#t=1539) Artemis Accords and Lunar Property Rights
- [27:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-21-shooting-for-the-moon-with-steve-altemus-of-intuitive-machines#t=1662) Launch Window, Falcon 9 Integration, and Failure Strategy

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Mechanical engineering](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/mechanical-engineering)
- [Policy, trade & tariffs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/policy-trade-and-tariffs)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Energy & climate tech](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/energy-and-climate-tech)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Intuitive Machines (company)
- NASA (company)
- SpaceX (company)
- Blue Origin (company)
- NovaC-1 (product)
- Falcon 9 (product)
- Artemis Accords (other)
- Hero Bread (product)
- U.S. Bank (company)

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- [Psst...Hey buddy, wanna buy an Octopus?](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2025-10-09-psst-hey-buddy-wanna-buy-an-octopus) (The Amp Hour)
- [Recalling Apollo 11 | What, Exactly, Is a Car? | AI Benchmarks](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2019-07-19-recalling-apollo-11-what-exactly-is-a-car-ai-benchmarks) (EE Times Current)
- [Redefining the Imaginable in Space Exploration & Communication](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2021-08-17-redefining-the-imaginable-in-space-exploration-communication) (Over the Air)
- [153: Space Nerf Gun](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-05-25-153-space-nerf-gun) (Embedded.fm)

## Citing this page

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