Based on our interview with Patrick Chase

Origin 

Empire Space didn’t begin with a business plan. It began with a shared question.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, while working in a legislative office, the organization’s co-founder, Patrick Chase, began writing freelance pieces for space-related publications. A self-proclaimed space nerd, Patrick studied political science in college and went on to work in government, including in legislative offices, political campaigns, and mayoral races.

One article exploring New York’s contributions to the space sector caught the attention of Evan Lerner, an aerospace engineer and fellow enthusiast. That piece sparked a series of conversations, email exchanges, and spreadsheet-building marathons.

“We wanted to understand: if New York wants to be part of the space future, what does it actually have today?”

Over the next year and a half, they uncovered far more than they expected. There were elite university programs, emerging startups, aerospace suppliers, and research labs all across the state. Many of them were operating in isolation, unaware of one another’s work. 

That research eventually became Empire Space, a nonprofit created to map and strengthen New York’s growing space ecosystem.

The Purpose

Empire Space started with data. Patrick and Evan wanted to identify the people, institutions, and companies doing space-related work across New York.

But the project quickly became more than a spreadsheet. They realized the ecosystem didn’t just need visibility. It needed connection, language, and shared purpose.

“People across the state were working on space tech and had no idea their neighbors were too,” Patrick said during our conversation. “There was no shared sense of identity. That’s what we wanted to change.”

Empire Space now maintains a growing database of over 1,500 entries, covering everything from research labs to aerospace suppliers. The team publishes insights, hosts events, supports ecosystem education, and engages with international partners such as the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce. It also provides nonpartisan briefings to policymakers, helping them better understand the economic potential of the industry.

Why New York Has a Role in Space

New York might not be a launch site like Florida or Texas, but it has other advantages that are becoming increasingly vital to the future of the space economy.

It is home to major research institutions. It has access to global capital. And it excels in areas like medicine, data analytics, finance, robotics, and satellite-based applications.

“We’re not trying to turn New York into a launch state,” Patrick explained. “We’re trying to help it lead in the parts of the industry where it already excels. That includes satellite data, Earth observation, medical innovation, and the finance and insurance systems that make space businesses possible.”

What’s Next

Empire Space is currently organizing Space Week NY 2026. It is expanding its in-person gatherings, exploring co-sponsored events, and continuing to build the connective tissue across New York’s space community.

One of its major goals is to help move New York from its current mid-tier position into the top five states for space-related economic impact.

According to NASA’s annual reports, New York currently ranks in the mid-teens. Patrick believes it has the ingredients to move much higher. It just needs to put the pieces together in the right way.

The Bigger Picture

Patrick sees a long-term shift in how the space economy functions. While government involvement in space may have already reached its peak, aside from defense spending, private investment continues to grow. 

Many are targeting sub-sectors like materials science, climate technology, and agriculture. Space-based infrastructure already plays a critical role in these industries, especially when it comes to real-time satellite data.

“Space impacts every industry,” Patrick said. “Farmers need better data to manage their crops. That depends on satellites. Medical researchers are developing tools to keep people healthy in zero gravity. That depends on research infrastructure. Whether the impact is primary or secondary, almost every sector has a role to play.”

A big thank you to our guest speakers and everyone who attended our first Think Series event, “Think Like a Founder” at Perkins Coie. Every founder’s journey is unique. They’re filled with different challenges and obstacles, especially when you’re bringing a bold vision to life.

The Think Series is designed to unpack the minds of thinkers and builders, spotlighting the methodical steps they’ve taken to turn their long-term vision into reality.

Our guests speakers:

• Neil Chatterjee - Co-founder and CEO of Andrena, the company behind DAWN, a decentralized broadband protocol. DAWN reimagines internet access by enabling households to buy and sell bandwidth locally, effectively becoming mini ISPs. It uses blockchain and wireless mesh networks to power a user-driven internet infrastructure.

• John Levy - Co-founder and CEO of SEEQC (Scalable Energy Efficient Quantum Computing), is leading the charge on building the world’s first fully digital quantum computing platform. Designed to integrate with classical systems, SEEQC recently debuted a landmark innovation: the first quantum-classical interface, launched in partnership with Nvidia at GTC 2025’s inaugural Quantum Day.

Think Journal Recap 📓

We’ve turned their insights into one-page infographics for those of you on the go. If you want to explore the ideas further, you can also check out the full articles.

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We’re not a news site churning out daily or weekly content, but we do want to highlight people building interesting things. If that’s you, please reach out! If it’s a good fit, we’d love to feature you in the next Think Journal entries.

♟️ Some more Chess Bites for you:

The Open Sicilian Defense

Chess Pieces Value

Thank You to Our Event Partners:

Perkins Coie is a leading international law firm, known for its expertise in corporate law, litigation, intellectual property, and privacy and security. They provide legal advice and services to a broad range of clients, including innovative companies, industry leaders, and public and not-for-profit organizations. 

DAWN is a decentralized wireless network for delivering Internet service. Through the protocol and hardware, property owners or residents have the opportunity to buy and sell Internet capacity in the area around them – empowering users to operate as their own Internet provider.

Tilden is a non-alcoholic brand founded by Mariah Wood and Vanessa Royle. They created Tilden to offer sophisticated, ready-to-pour non-alcoholic cocktails that deliver the full sensory experience of a cocktail without alcohol, sugar overload, or artificial ingredients .

Think Journal Entry:

Who is Neil Chatterjee?
Neil Chatterjee is the CEO and co-founder of Andrena, a wireless ISP that aims to disrupt traditional internet delivery by providing affordable, high-speed broadband through wireless infrastructure. After building Andrena, Neil saw the potential for a more transformative approach to internet access, which led to the founding of Dawn. 

What is Dawn?
Dawn is building a decentralized broadband network, where internet access is provided by the people rather than just telecom giants. Instead of relying on expensive centralized infrastructure, Dawn lets everyday households become part of a mesh network that delivers fast, reliable internet through secure, peer-to-peer connectivity.

How It Works

Mesh With Your Neighbors
Your home router becomes a node in a neighborhood mesh network. Rather than sharing your Wi-Fi password, Dawn routes encrypted data through participating homes, keeping everyone’s info private while improving speed and coverage.

Validate with a Browser Extension
Earn tokens by downloading a Chrome extension. As a validator, your device helps confirm that bandwidth and internet speeds are what the broadcaster claims they are, keeping the network honest and efficient. No advanced setup needed.

Why Dawn?

Save Money with Wholesale Access
Dawn aggregates community demand to purchase bandwidth at wholesale rates. Users can access fast internet at a fraction of the cost.

Earn Rewards
Households that share resources or validate network activity receive token rewards

Secure by Default
All data is encrypted. Neighbors help move your data, not read it.

Low Barrier to Entry
You don’t need a rack of servers. Just a router, and you're part of the network.

Leveraging the Crypto Community

Neil thinks one of the biggest strengths in crypto is being able to tap into a huge market of people who want to deploy infrastructure. This means you don’t need a traditional sales pipeline, you can rely on users to install hardware and help validate the network.

Vision:

Moving from wires to wireless to expand access and coverage, while significantly reducing cost.  

Like every house would have a toaster or fridge, Neil envisions each house would have a small black box. This would enable them to participate in the protocol by lending out their internet (AirBnB of Internet). 

Glossary

• ISP (Internet Service Provider): A company that sells internet access (e.g., Verizon, Comcast).
  

• Mesh Network: A group of devices that connect directly to each other to route data without relying on a central provider.
  

• Node: A device that contributes to Dawn’s network by sharing resources like bandwidth, storage, or compute.
  

• Validator: A participant who verifies that internet service (like speed or uptime) matches what’s being claimed to ensure quality and trust in the network.
  

• Bandwidth: The amount of data that can be transmitted over a network in a set period; more bandwidth means faster internet.
  

• Token Rewards: Digital incentives earned by contributing to the network (e.g., sharing bandwidth, validating performance).
  

• Encrypted Data: Information encoded to prevent unauthorized access; ensures privacy while data moves through the mesh.
  

• Wholesale Bandwidth: Internet bought in bulk at lower rates, passed on to users for cost savings.
  

Think Journal Entry:

Background: 

All classical computers today are binary and run on transistors, tiny switches that process data as 0s and 1s. They’re fast but are limited in handling complex, real-world systems, especially those that are NP hard or classically intractable.

Quantum computers take a different approach: they mimic how nature works using the principles of quantum mechanics. This allows them to simulate molecules, materials, and risk systems far more accurately. They are especially powerful in fields like medicine (drug discovery), clean energy (materials design, fusion modeling), and finance (portfolio optimization, risk analysis). 

Deep Roots in Superconductors

SEEQC was spun out of HYPRES in 2019. HYPRES is a company that’s been developing superconducting electronics for decades, mostly for the U.S. government. Over time and based on superconducting supercomputing development during the IARPA C3 program, they realized their core tech could be useful for not only high-speed classical computing but also quantum systems.

What Enables SEEQC’s Chip to Work and Scale?

1. Superconducting Materials:
SEEQC’s chips use superconducting Josephson junctions that have zero electrical resistance at cryogenic temperatures,. This allows for fast signal transmission, low energy loss, and with the materials mature and well-studied, allows more reliable fabrication at scale. Energy comparisons between required operations with room temperature electronics for “normal” superconducting quantum computers enable SEEQC’s chips to work at 1 billion times more energy efficient basis with industry standards.

2. Integrated Digital and Quantum Layers:
SEEQC’s platform is unique because it integrates both the quantum processor and the classical control electronics packaged as a multi-chip-module. on a single cryogenic chip. This means that there is no need to send signals back and forth between room temperature and cryogenically cold systems (a common bottleneck in other architectures). SEEQC’s systems are digital and do not require analogue operations.

3. Cryogenic Operation (Below ~4K):
By operating everything at extremely low temperatures (using dilution refrigerators), SEEQC maintains quantum coherence (keeping qubits stable and usable) and supports low-power, high-speed classical logic at the same time at 10-20 milliKelvin.

4. SFQ Logic (Single Flux Quantum):
Instead of relying on analog signals or complicated conversions, SEEQC uses digital logic (SFQ) to control the quantum system with much less power and greater precision.  For example, typical quantum computers use analogue microwave pulses to control and readout qubits compared to SEEQC that uses digital pulses.  Because SEEQC’s signals are digital, it has overcome the issue of crosstalk, one of the largest sources of noise in a quantum computer.

This combination means SEEQC’s platform is not only more compact and power-efficient, but also well-positioned to scale. SEEQC isn’t just making better quantum chips, they’re trying to build the architecture that quantum computing needs to be useful in the real world.

Classical + Quantum: Built to Coexist

Classical computers are great at straightforward tasks like calculating 2 + 3 = 5 or managing spreadsheets. They’re fast, dependable, and perfect for well-defined problems.

Quantum computers are built for a different purpose: they model how nature behaves. This makes them ideal for tackling complex, uncertain problems like simulating molecules for new medicines or optimizing energy grids.

The future isn’t classical or quantum, it’s both.
SEEQC’s approach allows classical and quantum systems to work in tandem. The classical side handles control and logic. The quantum side explores complex patterns and possibilities. By putting them together at the hardware level, SEEQC makes these systems faster, more efficient, and ready for real-world use.

Also, SEEQC’s digital chips can be connected directly to other digital chips, especially NVIDIA’s GPUs, to create the computing infrastructure for quantum AI and AI assisted quantum computing for qubit calibration and real time error correction.

Vision: Become the processor leader for the next computing era

Founder Advice from John Levy

Focus on your long-term vision and how it can move the world. If you can clearly communicate that to investors, you’ll find people who are willing to back you, even in deep tech and hardware.

Glossary

Analog Signals: Continuous signals (like a wave) used in traditional electronics, as opposed to digital signals which are binary (on/off).

Classical Computer: The standard kind of computer that processes information as 0s and 1s using transistors.

Cryogenic Temperatures: Extremely low temperatures, often below -270°C (or around 4 Kelvin), used to reduce energy loss and maintain quantum states.

Crosstalk: Unwanted interference between signals, like two radio stations overlapping, which can cause errors in computing systems.

Dilution Refrigerator: A special cooling system used to reach cryogenic temperatures (close to absolute zero) to keep quantum systems stable.

Digital Logic: A way of processing information using binary states (0s and 1s), making systems more reliable and scalable.

Josephson Junction: A type of electronic component made from superconducting materials that can carry current with zero resistance, crucial for quantum circuits.

Multi-Chip Module: A package that combines several chips (both quantum and classical) into one unit to improve performance and reduce communication delays.

NP-Hard / Classically Intractable: Problems that are so complex that even the fastest traditional computers can’t solve them efficiently (e.g., optimizing large portfolios or simulating molecules).

Quantum Coherence: The delicate state where quantum bits (qubits) can exist in multiple states at once; necessary for quantum computation to work correctly.

Quantum Computer: A new type of computer that uses quantum mechanics to solve complex problems much faster than classical computers can.

Quantum Mechanics: A branch of physics that explains how particles behave at the atomic and subatomic levels; it underpins how quantum computers operate.

Qubit: The basic unit of quantum information, similar to a bit in classical computing, but it can exist in multiple states at once.

SFQ Logic (Single Flux Quantum): A low-energy, ultra-fast digital signaling technique used in superconducting electronics, ideal for controlling quantum systems with precision.

Superconducting Materials: Materials that conduct electricity with zero resistance when cooled to very low temperatures, enabling fast, energy-efficient computing.

Transistor: A tiny electronic switch used in classical computers to process data.

There are variations within variations of the Sicilian Defense, as mentioned in Chess Bites 1.

2 broad categories of the Sicilian Defense are the Open Sicilian Defense and the Closed Sicilian Defense.

Let’s take a look at the Open Sicilian Defense:

Open Sicilian Defense

This variation is characterized by White's d4 move, which opens up the center of the board. As we delve into the many variations in this category, you will see how this will create more tactical opportunities and chaos in the game development.

Below are some common variations of the Open Sicilian Defense:

• The Najdorf Variation

• The Scheveningen Variation

• The Dragon Variation

• The Sveshnikov Variation.

We’ll dive deeper into each variation in another Chess Bites!

This system, rather than absolute rules, is used to evaluate your position in the game. Depending on the situation on the board, the knight and bishop may increase in value relative to each other.