After I finished my master's degree, I moved to a company called Aerospace Corporation, a big think tank for the U.S. Air Force and the National Reconnaissance Office.
I left Aerospace because I wanted to go build, and put spacecraft together.
Consolidating to the point of monopoly has never served the consumer - ever.
You can't be on the cusp of innovation and at the forefront of technology if you're wearing blinders. If you don't have an exploration program where you're exploring your world here on Earth, underwater, and in space, then you're wearing blinders and handicapping yourself.
I never felt any issues whatsoever about being a woman in Tech.
I saw what government programs were and how they were executed. In some cases, they were executed beautifully, but in others, there was tremendous waste.
I don't like to camp. Early on, Mars is going to be camping. I think there are people far better suited to do that than me. But when the first Holiday Inn Express shows up, maybe I'll go.
SpaceX is a flat organization. Anyone gets to talk to anyone, and the best idea wins - even if it comes from an intern.
I'd love to go to space. I would love to peek out a giant window and look back at the blue marble. There's no question; I'd love to do that.
From my perspective, it's really risk management to ensure that humans have the ability to go somewhere else in case there were to be some huge disaster on Earth.
There was a lot of risk taken in the Mercury and Apollo eras, and we don't take those risks anymore. We've designed the systems to eliminate risk, which makes it take forever and cost too much money.
