Archives

Orion

Nujoud Merancy, Mission Planning and Analysis Lead for the Orion spacecraft, talks about what Orion is, how it will work, what kinds of tests are being done, and where in space it will go. HWHAP Episode 17.

Spacesuits

Les Padilla, Hardware Manager of the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU), talks about spacesuits: how they work, what they’re made of, how they’ve evolved over time, and what they’ll look like in the future. HWHAP Episode 16.

Live from Space: Astronaut Photography

In a live recording from space, astronauts Randy “Komrade” Bresnik, Paolo Nespoli, Joe Acaba, and Mark “Sabot” Vande Hei talk about about photography and the view of Earth from the International Space Station. HWHAP Episode 15.

Robotic Arms in Space

Tim Braithwaite, Liaison Manager for the Canadian Space Agency, talks about robotic arms in space: how they were conceived and developed, how they work today, and how the technology is useful on Earth. HWHAP Episode 14.

Episode 46: Blue Bottle Coffee

Today our heroes cover a deal that might have more impact on life in Silicon Valley than AI, wearables and AR/VR combined… Nestle’s acquisition of Blue Bottle Coffee. Will hipster entrepreneurs and the VCs who love/need them continue to line up around the block for their minimalist coffee experience of choice, now that it’s owned by the Nesquik Bunny? Is this the beginning of Blue Bottle pod machines filling the empty counter space left by Juicero’s demise in VC offices throughout South Park? We investigate.

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More Acquired!

© Copyright 2015-2026 ACQ, LLC

Topics Covered Include:

  • The rise of “Third Wave” coffee
  • Blue Bottle founder James Freeman’s “classical” (music) influences 
  • Venture capital and the coffee business 
  • Achieving liquidity when companies and founders’ don’t want to go public, and don’t want to sell their stakes 
  • Nestle’s position in single-serve coffee market and potential brand impact of Blue Bottle 

The Carve Out:

Before His First Flight

Mark Vande Hei, U.S. astronaut, shares stories of his training and tips he learned from fellow astronauts before launching to the International Space Station for the first time on September 12, 2017. HWHAP Episode 13.

Leading Human Space Exploration

Ellen Ochoa, Director of the NASA Johnson Space Center, talks about human space exploration: what we’re doing here in Texas to make it a possibility, how we’re working with commercial and international partners, and what the future has in store for a human presence in space. HWHAP Episode 12.

Mission Control

Mary Lawrence, Flight Director in Mission Control Houston, talks about what it’s like inside Mission Control, what it takes to be a flight controller and flight director, how mission control has evolved, and what it may look like in the future. HWHAP Episode 11.

Episode 45: HTC, Google and the Future of Mobile

Acquired is back and live on the scene! After months of speculation, Google announces today their acquisition (err, “Cooperation Agreement”) of a large portion of HTC’s hardware division. What does this mean for the future of mobile? Can Google transform itself into a vertically integrated device company and compete directly with Apple? Most importantly, when will we see more  Beats Android handsets??? (We hope never) 

Sponsors:

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© Copyright 2015-2026 ACQ, LLC

Topics Covered Include: 

  • The origins of HTC as a Taiwanese OEM, dating back to the Compaq iPAQ and Palm Treo 650!
  • HTC’s long history with Google, starting as the manufacturer of the first Android phone, the HTC Dream / T-Mobile G1
  • HTC’s ownership of Beats, for a hot minute
  • Google’s own winding history in hardware, with its Motorola acquisition in 2011 and divestiture in 2014
  • Google & HTC’s joint work on the Pixel smartphones in 2016
  • And much analysis and speculation on what this means for Google, Apple, Samsung, vertical vs horizontal business models and more!

  The Carve Out: 

Episode 44: AOL – Time Warner (with the Internet History Podcast)

On this extra-long episode of Acquired, Brian McCullough from the Internet History Podcast returns to discuss perhaps the most (in)famous merger of all time: AOL – Time Warner. Who doesn’t remember the soothing sounds of 56k modems and the timeless phrase, “You’ve Got Mail”? Join us all as we unpack how one of the biggest ISP’s of the 90’s tried to take over the world… and fell far short. 

Sponsors:

More Acquired!

© Copyright 2015-2026 ACQ, LLC

Topics Covered Include: 

  • AOL’s status in the 90’s / early 00’s
  • Explaining just what it is that AOL did at the height of their popularity
  • How AOL pioneered a number of internet paradigms
  • AOL’s persistent money troubles and bailouts from other companies
  • Steve Case foreseeing the coming era of broadband, inspiring AOL to pursue working with a cable company
  • Ebay vs. Time Warner in a down-to-the-wire war for a merger with AOL
  • Why the money dried up for AOL after their merger with Time Warner
  • AOL and its value in the post-Time-Warner era
  • Speculating about what would have happened had AOL and others stayed independent businesses
  • And much discussion on how to grade this one…

  The Carve Out: