AIP Policy Innovation Fellow @JacobSmagula has a new piece in @tsr with Chad McElroy, arguing that the road to the asteroid belt runs through the Moon. The machines that let a crew survive at the lunar south pole (drills, excavators, smelters, solar cells made from regolith) are the same capabilities asteroid mining will demand. Using them on the Moon first means they can be tested under real operational pressure before sending them further afield to mine asteroids. Read more: thespacereview.com/article/5…

Earlier this week, @JacobSmagula started his fellowship working as a congressional staffer in the offices of Rep. @RepRitchie. He spent the spring learning policy fundamentals and regulatory frameworks for crypto, AI, and more. This is what he says to say about the AIP fellowship training and his transition to working on the Hill!

Today, @JacobSmagula and Hugo Swangstu start the next phase of their AIP Policy Fellowship: working as congressional staff in the offices of Reps @RepRitchie and @repscfigures – two Congressional leaders actively engaged on technology policy. Jacob and Hugo have spent the spring learning policy fundamentals and regulatory frameworks for crypto, AI, and more. Now, they'll put that knowledge to work on the Hill, alongside some of the best. Stay tuned! We'll be sharing their learnings.