Search a title or topic

Over 20 million podcasts, powered by 

Player FM logo
Artwork

Content provided by Arkaea Media (Payload | Ignition | Tectonic) and Payload | Ignition | Tectonic. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Arkaea Media (Payload | Ignition | Tectonic) and Payload | Ignition | Tectonic or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://podcastplayer.com/legal.
Player FM - Podcast App
Go offline with the Player FM app!

Built for Complexity, with John Conafay (CEO of Integrate)

49:00
 
Share
 

Manage episode 494487345 series 3357613
Content provided by Arkaea Media (Payload | Ignition | Tectonic) and Payload | Ignition | Tectonic. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Arkaea Media (Payload | Ignition | Tectonic) and Payload | Ignition | Tectonic or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://podcastplayer.com/legal.

Welcome to a special Tuesday-edition of Valley of Depth, powered by Integrate.

John Conafay spent years inside the space and defense worlds, from Spire to Astranis to the U.S. Air Force, and saw the same problem everywhere: complex programs were managed with spreadsheets, slide decks, and…crossed fingers.

So in 2022, he founded Integrate to fix it. What started as a scrappy startup with five engineers has since landed what he describes as one of the largest software contracts in Space Force history. We discuss:

  • Why defense programs are still run on outdated, fragmented tools
  • What Integrate actually does and how it’s different from Smartsheet or Microsoft Project
  • How Conafay won a $25M Space Force contract
  • The architecture choices behind real-time collaboration in classified environments
  • Why internal tools and status quo software can’t scale with complexity

And much, much more…

• Chapters •

00:00 – Intro

01:57 – John's background

02:59 – What is Integrate?

04:02 – Pain points in complex project management

06:08 – John's interest in aerospace

10:01 – Core product at Integrate

11:20 – Why tools weren't implemented before

12:50 – DoD project management & efficiency loss

14:29 – Multiplayer coordination approach

16:19 – Hardest integration problem

17:40 – Security architecture

20:17 – Go-to-market & government entry

22:18 – $25M Space Force contract

26:14 – Future Space Force goals

27:59 – Government vs commercial customers

29:16 – Pricing

30:13 – Profitability, team, funding, scaling

32:23 – Ideal investor

33:20 – Competitors

34:50 – Competing with internal tools

36:01 – 10-year product vision

37:36 – Strategic risks in the next decade

39:42 – Hardest part of building Integrate

41:34 – Misconceptions about working with the DoD

42:55 – Advice for founders & younger self

43:53 – John in another life

• Show notes •

John’s socials — https://x.com/jconafay

Integrate’s socials —https://x.com/Integrate_co

Integrate’s website — https://integrate.co/

Mo's socials — https://twitter.com/itsmoislam

Payload’s socials — https://twitter.com/payloadspace / https://www.linkedin.com/company/payloadspace

Ignition’s socials — https://twitter.com/ignitionnuclear /

https://www.linkedin.com/company/ignition-nuclear/

Tectonic’s socials — https://twitter.com/tectonicdefense / https://www.linkedin.com/company/tectonicdefense/

Valley of Depth archive — Listen: https://pod.payloadspace.com/

• About us •

Valley of Depth is a podcast about the technologies that matter — and the people building them. Brought to you by Arkaea Media, the team behind Payload (space), Ignition (nuclear energy), and Tectonic (defense tech), this show goes beyond headlines and hype. We talk to founders, investors, government officials, and military leaders shaping the future of national security and deep tech. From breakthrough science to strategic policy, we dive into the high-stakes decisions behind the world’s hardest technologies.

  continue reading

141 episodes

Artwork
iconShare
 
Manage episode 494487345 series 3357613
Content provided by Arkaea Media (Payload | Ignition | Tectonic) and Payload | Ignition | Tectonic. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Arkaea Media (Payload | Ignition | Tectonic) and Payload | Ignition | Tectonic or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://podcastplayer.com/legal.

Welcome to a special Tuesday-edition of Valley of Depth, powered by Integrate.

John Conafay spent years inside the space and defense worlds, from Spire to Astranis to the U.S. Air Force, and saw the same problem everywhere: complex programs were managed with spreadsheets, slide decks, and…crossed fingers.

So in 2022, he founded Integrate to fix it. What started as a scrappy startup with five engineers has since landed what he describes as one of the largest software contracts in Space Force history. We discuss:

  • Why defense programs are still run on outdated, fragmented tools
  • What Integrate actually does and how it’s different from Smartsheet or Microsoft Project
  • How Conafay won a $25M Space Force contract
  • The architecture choices behind real-time collaboration in classified environments
  • Why internal tools and status quo software can’t scale with complexity

And much, much more…

• Chapters •

00:00 – Intro

01:57 – John's background

02:59 – What is Integrate?

04:02 – Pain points in complex project management

06:08 – John's interest in aerospace

10:01 – Core product at Integrate

11:20 – Why tools weren't implemented before

12:50 – DoD project management & efficiency loss

14:29 – Multiplayer coordination approach

16:19 – Hardest integration problem

17:40 – Security architecture

20:17 – Go-to-market & government entry

22:18 – $25M Space Force contract

26:14 – Future Space Force goals

27:59 – Government vs commercial customers

29:16 – Pricing

30:13 – Profitability, team, funding, scaling

32:23 – Ideal investor

33:20 – Competitors

34:50 – Competing with internal tools

36:01 – 10-year product vision

37:36 – Strategic risks in the next decade

39:42 – Hardest part of building Integrate

41:34 – Misconceptions about working with the DoD

42:55 – Advice for founders & younger self

43:53 – John in another life

• Show notes •

John’s socials — https://x.com/jconafay

Integrate’s socials —https://x.com/Integrate_co

Integrate’s website — https://integrate.co/

Mo's socials — https://twitter.com/itsmoislam

Payload’s socials — https://twitter.com/payloadspace / https://www.linkedin.com/company/payloadspace

Ignition’s socials — https://twitter.com/ignitionnuclear /

https://www.linkedin.com/company/ignition-nuclear/

Tectonic’s socials — https://twitter.com/tectonicdefense / https://www.linkedin.com/company/tectonicdefense/

Valley of Depth archive — Listen: https://pod.payloadspace.com/

• About us •

Valley of Depth is a podcast about the technologies that matter — and the people building them. Brought to you by Arkaea Media, the team behind Payload (space), Ignition (nuclear energy), and Tectonic (defense tech), this show goes beyond headlines and hype. We talk to founders, investors, government officials, and military leaders shaping the future of national security and deep tech. From breakthrough science to strategic policy, we dive into the high-stakes decisions behind the world’s hardest technologies.

  continue reading

141 episodes

All episodes

×
 
Loading …

Welcome to Player FM!

Player FM is scanning the web for high-quality podcasts for you to enjoy right now. It's the best podcast app and works on Android, iPhone, and the web. Signup to sync subscriptions across devices.

 

Copyright 2025 | Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | | Copyright
Listen to this show while you explore
Play