Suing Your Way to the Stars: Legal Strategies for Success

Welcome Back & Blue Origin's Legal Challenge

Greetings, and welcome to this week’s review! I’ve returned after a period of disconnection, stepping away from my phone, Twitter, and the constant stream of news.

While I found the break restorative, I genuinely enjoyed the process of compiling this newsletter. Though Greg capably managed things in my absence, I don’t anticipate relinquishing control of this column again in the near future.

Numerous events transpired during the week, making it difficult to select a single focus. Ultimately, I’ve decided to concentrate on the lawsuit filed by Bezos’s Blue Origin against NASA.

For those accessing this on the TechCrunch website, you can subscribe to receive this directly in your inbox via the newsletter page. You can also find me on Twitter at @lucasmtny.

The Core of the Dispute

The legal action stems from NASA’s decision to award a contract for lunar lander development to SpaceX. Blue Origin contends that NASA unfairly favored SpaceX in the selection process.

Specifically, Blue Origin argues that NASA didn’t adequately address significant flaws in SpaceX’s proposal during the evaluation. They believe a fair assessment would have yielded a different outcome.

This isn’t the first challenge from Blue Origin. Previously, they lodged a protest with the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which was ultimately dismissed.

Key Arguments Presented by Blue Origin

Here’s a breakdown of the main points raised by Blue Origin in their lawsuit:

• Unfair Evaluation: They claim NASA didn’t properly scrutinize the risks associated with SpaceX’s approach.
• Single-Source Selection: Blue Origin asserts that awarding the contract to a single provider – SpaceX – limits competition and innovation.
• Delayed Decision-Making: The lawsuit alleges that NASA’s delayed responses to Blue Origin’s questions hindered their ability to effectively compete.

The outcome of this lawsuit could have substantial implications for the future of lunar exploration and the competitive landscape of the space industry. It remains to be seen how the courts will rule on this matter.

A Significant Development

My intention was to focus this week’s newsletter on OnlyFans and their surprising decision to prohibit sexually explicit content, aiming to maintain positive relationships with payment processors. However, I found myself composing an article for TechCrunch instead. You can find a link to it if you are interested.

Furthermore, during my time away, I missed the extensive discussions surrounding Apple’s contentious child sexual abuse material detection software. This software appears to potentially undermine the assumed privacy of personal devices. I share the concern of many others regarding this development, despite Apple’s stated goal of preventing an even more problematic outcome. I plan to discuss this further with experts in decentralized computing in the coming weeks, exploring the risks of our heavy dependence on a few large tech companies with limited consumer influence. For now, I recommend reading the reporting by TechCrunch’s Zack Whittaker on this subject, as I anticipate revisiting it in the future.

Let's move forward! To the central topic.

Generally, federal government organizations do not garner widespread admiration. While significant achievements have been made through federal funding and the dedication of public employees, many agencies are viewed as bureaucratic and lack strong public support. NASA, however, holds a more respected position, particularly among technologists. The American space agency has consistently enjoyed bipartisan support, along with its objective of returning astronauts to the lunar surface by 2024.

This leads us to recent news. While considerable attention was given to Jeff Bezos’s spaceflight, complete with his cowboy hat and champagne, less focus was placed on his space company’s lawsuit against NASA. This legal action will reportedly delay the development of a new lunar lander, potentially jeopardizing NASA’s timeline for a lunar return.

Blue Origin, Bezos’s space venture, is contesting the awarding of a government contract to Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which secured a $2.89 billion contract to construct a lunar lander. This contract was initially granted in April, and Blue Origin had already filed a protest with the Government Accountability Office. This occurred prior to Bezos’s public offer of a $2 billion discount to NASA, following congressional budget reductions that hindered the possibility of awarding multiple contracts. These efforts were ultimately unsuccessful in persuading NASA, leading Blue Origin to pursue legal action against the agency.

This dispute prompted social media users to resurface a quote from a 2019 speech by Bezos – as documented by Gizmodo – where he expressed his criticism of how bureaucracy and self-interest have hindered NASA’s progress:

A representative for Blue Origin described the lawsuit as “an effort to address the deficiencies in the acquisition process identified in NASA’s Human Landing System.” However, the lawsuit appears to underscore the importance of this contract to Blue Origin’s ability to attract and retain skilled personnel. It remains to be seen whether the company can mitigate the reputational damage from suing NASA and delaying the United States’ return to the moon.

Recent Tech News Highlights

Below are some of the most noteworthy TechCrunch news items from this past week:

OnlyFans has announced a ban on “sexually explicit content.” This decision sparked considerable reaction, as it impacts a significant portion of the platform’s user base. The change reportedly stems from pressure exerted by banking and payment processing partners.

Elon Musk presented the “Tesla Bot.” The unveiling involved a person in a spandex suit demonstrating robotic movements, generating widespread media coverage. Despite the publicity, the actual realization of a functional prototype, promised for next year, remains highly uncertain.

Facebook launched a virtual reality meeting simulator. This new application aims to replicate the experience of workplace meetings within a VR environment. Notably, this product was developed without explicit user demand, but received substantial promotional efforts from the company.

Social media companies are addressing the Taliban’s presence. In the wake of the Taliban’s control of Afghanistan, platforms are facing scrutiny regarding their policies on accounts associated with Taliban representatives. This situation presents a complex challenge for these organizations.

Facebook published its inaugural content transparency report. The report details the data with the greatest reach on the platform over a three-month period. Interestingly, the most widely-seen posts appear relatively harmless, differing from lists based on engagement which often feature content from right-wing sources.

U.S. safety regulators initiated an investigation into Tesla Autopilot. This inquiry focuses on the frequency of collisions involving Tesla vehicles using Autopilot and stationary emergency vehicles. This investigation occurs as Tesla focuses on developing humanoid robots.

 

Featured Articles

This week’s selection of noteworthy articles sourced from our Extra Crunch subscription is presented below.

Several compelling pieces have been identified for their insightful coverage of emerging trends and key industry players.

Nuro and the Autonomous Vehicle Landscape

Nuro, founded by former Google self-driving project employees Dave Ferguson and Jiajun Zhu, is gaining significant traction in the autonomous vehicle sector.

The company currently holds a valuation of $5 billion and has established partnerships with prominent organizations like FedEx, Domino’s, and Walmart.

Their progress in navigating the complex regulatory environment for autonomous vehicles has been particularly noteworthy.

Effective Strategies for Pitching to Venture Capitalists

A successful fundraising round hinges on an entrepreneur’s ability to effectively manage the entire process.

Founders should prioritize transparency and direct communication, recognizing that meetings with venture capitalists offer value beyond just potential funding.

Understanding the broader benefits of investor interactions is crucial for maximizing fundraising success.

Understanding Corporate Development and Acquisitions

Companies considering acquisition should anticipate extensive engagement with corporate development teams.

The current market conditions, characterized by strong stock performance, substantial capital availability, and low-cost debt, are fostering a highly active environment for mergers and acquisitions.

This presents a favorable landscape for businesses seeking to be acquired.

Thank you for your time. We will connect again next week.

Lucas M.