001: Steve Blank - Entrepreneur, Educator, & Prankster

Steve Blank came to Silicon Valley after serving in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. Over nearly six decades, he witnessed the advent of the internet, built multiple companies, and developed “the scientific method for entrepreneurship” - the lean startup methodology.  Steve then applied all he had learned as an entrepreneur to a new form of service to the country, building the Hacking for Defense program that is now taught at more than 60 universities. 

In this episode, Steve covers his Air Force service, fixing electronic warfare equipment on aircraft during the Vietnam War, and then how he emerged on the nascent tech scene in Silicon Valley. He discusses how elite universities like Stanford, Harvard, and MIT contributed to national defense from World War II through the Cold War, and how that history is often forgotten.  We also hear, for the first time he has ever discussed publicly, how Steve turned off gravity at Keesler Air Force Base.

Steve also talks about the critical need for young, talented people to find ways to serve their country and their community. Given technological advances in AI, access to space, synthetic biology, and autonomy, Steve argues that “this is the most exciting time ever to be an entrepreneur.”

This episode is hosted by Jeff Phaneuf and Josh Pickering. . 

Full bio:

Steve Blank is an adjunct professor at Stanford and a co-founder of the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation. Steve consults for the National Security establishment on innovation methods, processes, policies, and doctrine.

His book The Four Steps to the Epiphany is credited with launching the Lean Startup movement. He created the curriculum for the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps. At Stanford he co-created the Department of Defense Hacking for Defense and Department of State Hacking for Diplomacy curriculums.

His book The Four Steps to the Epiphany is credited with launching the Lean Startup movement. He created the curriculum for the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps. At Stanford he co-created the Department of Defense Hacking for Defense and Department of State Hacking for Diplomacy curriculums.

His follow-on book The Startup Owner’s Manual described a process for turning ideas into scale and his Harvard Business Review cover story redefined how large organizations can innovate at speed.