It must have been a surreal feeling for Livestream co-founder Max Haot, to sell off his successful internet company and venture into space exploration with Launcher, something that doesn't necessarily bring in big revenues but is filled with so much exciting possibilities. But why would he exchange something that is more stable for something has so much uncertainty?
Despite Livestream’s rise, a deep interest in space exploration and rocketry still lingered for Haot. “Literally a month after starting Livestream, I found SpaceX, and I found Elon Musk. I was like, ‘How is this possible? How is it possible that this internet guy, like myself, can make this jump?”
With his interest and ambition in space technology, he jumped ship and established the space startup Launcher. The company plans to eventually sell engines to the market however they are in no hurry to do so because they want to produce the best possible product through extensive research and development, a strategy which is quite different from the rest of the industry.
Instead of trying to sell engines as soon as possible, Launcher is counting on a market culture that will value efficiency and quality overall in the long-run. “Our goal is to build the highest-performance, lowest-cost per pound of payload — not lowest-cost by itself — engine of its class. Which is 23,000 lbs,” Haot explains.
The company’s long haul plan might be a tough sell to certain investors, but Launcher is determined to stick to its slow-and-steady approach.
(Image credit: Launcher)