A West Texas childhood led Melanie Stricklan to surveillance aircraft, a space startup, and the crowded business of keeping satellites apart. Now the Slingshot Aerospace co-founder is bringing that experience to national security programs at Vast.
The Austin-born startup cast too wide a net, killed its original geospatial business, then bought the eyes and memory needed to make orbit legible. Now its software helps satellite operators dodge debris and Space Force Guardians rehearse a conflict that has not happened yet.