Waerospaceharton Aerospace Ventures: Reimagining the Industrial Base

This event is hosted by Wharton Aerospace
Save the Date!  October 16, 2025, with an evening reception on October 15.  

 

 

 

Join us for a transformative conference on Reimagining the American Industrial Base, where founders, funders and policy makers engage in discussions on rebuilding America in our uniquely American way.  We will address critical challenges and opportunities in an era of global competition. As supply chain disruptions expose vulnerabilities, we’ll explore strategies to recreate, recapitalize, and reimagine how to approach these challenges.


register-now

 

What to Expect:

  • Address China’s weaponization of the periodic table—controlling rare earth elements vital to defense tech—demands innovative resource strategies, from recycling to substitution.
  • Spotlight Maritime - from startups to incumbents
  • Feature new investment models and discuss accelerating investment trends.
  • Discuss new manufacturing paradigms, like convergent manufacturing, integrating additive and subtractive processes to accelerate production and reduce costs.


Speakers

  • Dino Mavrookas Founder/CEO Saronic, WG’17
  • Alan Krutz/ Director International Trade Agency
  • Ron Epstein / Aerospace & Defense Analyst Bank of America, WG’01

 

Panels

  • China’s Weaponization of the Periodic Table
  • Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance/ Maritime Defense Tech
  • Shipbuilding in Asia - a Comparison
  • A time for Industrial Policy
  • Defense Tech Ventures: Scaling Defense Tech - a PE View
  • Critical Minerals and Rare Earths - Factory of the Future


Event Details
Reception: Wednesday, October 15, 2025
Conference: Date: Thursday, October 16, 2025

Location: Taft Law Firm 200 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Suite 500 Washington, D.C

 

This is our 14th Wharton Aerospace Ventures, the first having started in 2012 -with Steve Blank opening, to address and deal with the disruption our industry would and will encounter.  Wharton Aerospace is an association of senior executives and invited guests with shared commitments to the commercial aerospace & defense industries. We conduct by-invitation-only, Chatham House Rule annual conferences to foster closer ties between the Wharton School, our Wharton Aerospace participants and the innovation & industrial bases.