AllegisCyber Capital’s Bob Ackerman on Advancing Innovation Through Government and Start-Up Partnerships

On today’s episode of the Defense Tech Builders podcast, Josh speaks with Bob Ackerman, Founder and Managing Director of AllegisCyber Capital and Co-Founder of DataTribe. They discuss the ways in which these companies are helping to start and grow new companies in cyber and data science, and what it looks like for start-ups to work with the government on furthering innovation. They also discuss what start-ups should know when pursuing a government contract, how the relationship between private/government partnerships has changed, and current defense tech trends.

Topics discussed:

• How Bob founded his first company — which created the original iPhone — and what Silicon Valley was like back in the 1980s and 1990s.
• Bob's journey from operator to investor, and why he believes more VCs should have lived operator experience in order to be better mentors and coaches.
• How AllegisCyber Capital was founded as the first cyber venture firm, and how DataTribe is a foundry for new companies in cyber and data science.
• How sentiments have changed around private/government partnership, and how the government has built relationships with innovators when they realized they couldn't do everything themselves.
• Advice for start-ups who may be looking to pursue a government contract on how to get their foot in the door.
• Current and future trends in defense tech on which the government will be looking for innovators and start-ups to partner with.