Podcast Summary: "The Defense Tech Revolution is Here"

Call Me Back with Dan Senor
August 24, 2025 | Guest: Josh Wolfe (Lux Capital)
Summary compiled for listeners who want key insights from the conversation led by Michal Levram and Yonatan Adiri on the “What’s Yous Number?” podcast, replayed and contextualized by Dan Senor.

Episode Overview

This episode explores the rapidly evolving world of defense technology and its intersection with geopolitics, entrepreneurship, and Israeli innovation. Josh Wolfe, co-founder of Lux Capital, joins hosts Michal Levram and Yonatan Adiri to discuss venture capital’s approach to deep-tech investing, the resurgence of defense tech, the shifting cultural landscape around military innovation, and the unique strengths and challenges for Israeli startups post-October 7th. The conversation is candid, strategic, and occasionally philosophical about war, peace, and technology.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Genesis and Ethos of Lux Capital

• Founding Vision: Inspired by a lifelong passion for science fiction and a belief that the gap between sci-fi and reality (“sci-fact”) is shrinking.
• Investment Focus:
  • 1/3: Healthcare, biotech, medtech
  • 1/3: Aerospace, defense, industrial manufacturing
  • 1/3: “Core technology” (excluding mainstream tech like social media)
• Unique Approach:
  • Openness in sharing investment theses to attract like-minded entrepreneurs.
  • Intellectual competitiveness: “I like to understand what is the consensus in a market and what's the variant perception. What are the things that people haven't figured out and then I have to understand why they haven't figured out.” (Wolfe, 03:15)

2. Thesis-Driven Venture Capital & Contrarianism

• Elemental Energy: Early conviction in nuclear power (dubbing it “elemental energy”) before it re-entered popular consideration.
  • Invested in nuclear waste cleanup company, Curion: “If nuclear energy was discovered today, people would be running around like, oh my God, this is magic.” (05:11)
• Contrarian Credibility: Embraces ideas that are initially unpopular; wants consensus to arrive later.

3. The Anduril Story: Betting on the Defense Tech Shift

• Early Investment:
  • Decision rooted not in spreadsheets, but in people—specifically Palmer Luckey’s vision and attitude.
  • “Chips on shoulders put chips in pockets.” (Wolfe, 07:43)
  • Success story: Anduril’s meteoric rise from ~$60M valuation to $30B in 7 years.
• Cultural Impact:
  • Anduril made defense tech “cool” for top engineering talent again, reshaping the industry’s image.
  • “We're not going to be one of the big cost plus contractors. We're going to use large equity dollars... to fund programs, win competitively, and deliver to the war fighters.” (Wolfe, 09:51)
• The Israel Comparison:
  • Compulsory service imparts a unique edge, sense of camaraderie and purpose.

4. Broader Trends in Defense Tech

• Defense spending consolidation in the US (from 50 players to 5 major contractors), and the need to disrupt an oligopolistic industry.
• New peer adversaries (China, Russia, Iran, North Korea) are driving renewed focus on innovation.
• “Thesis is unfortunately the world is not a kumbaya safe place...you need better people with better technology.” (Wolfe, 11:56)

5. Culture, Purpose, and the New Generation

• A renewed sense of mission seen among engineers and entrepreneurs, reminiscent of the WWII “greatest generation.”
• “Culture pushes forward talent, which attracts capital... external exogenous threats to your livelihood motivates people to say, wait a second, we have to do something.” (Wolfe, 14:30)

6. Moral & Ethical Dimensions

• First principle for investment: Do investments reduce human suffering?
• Precision tech in warfare can be a moral good: “The higher your resolution technologically to discriminate...the higher your moral resolution to be able to make good decisions.” (Wolfe, 17:10)
• Empathy for anti-war protestors, but belief they’re “on the wrong side of history.”

7. Israel as a Defense Tech Powerhouse

• New post-October 7 founders emerging with clear, mission-driven motives.
• Upstarts will face skepticism from incumbents – the “Gandhi progression” of ridicule, resistance, then adoption.
  • “First they laugh at you, then they fight you, then they join you, then you win.” (Wolfe, paraphrasing Gandhi, 19:45)
• Next-generation Israeli defense startups focused on large, attritable systems (e.g., drone swarms).
  • “Small startups… have to be fast and nimble...inspired by every single person I met.” (Wolfe, 19:45)

8. Market and Policy Dynamics

• Rapid fielding and procurement reforms required in both US and Israel to keep pace with innovation.
• Israel’s defense tech is in high demand globally, especially after display of capability during recent conflicts (David’s Sling, Arrow 3).

9. Global Politics, Backlash, and Information War

• Isolating dynamics for Israel: Boycotts, European export bans, and anti-defense protests are present but not yet impacting investment.
  • “We have not had a single concern from a limited partner about investments in Israel.” (Wolfe, 24:58)
• Wolfe: Israel may win “the kinetic war,” but is losing the “information propaganda war.”
  • “It was so clearly an information operation...” (Wolfe, 25:26)
• Israel’s innovation and resilience seen as a model for democratic societies facing radical extremism.

10. New Strategic Alliances

• Abraham Accords, India–Israel (I2U2), India Middle East Europe Corridor (IMEC) are reshaping the region.
• “The flow of talent, infrastructure, capital, energy, technology... is really optimistic for the world and I think it will be a peace corridor.” (Wolfe, 29:33)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Contrarian Investing
  “There's a five year psychological bias where everybody wants to be invested today where they should have been five years ago ... we actually want people to agree with us just later.” — Josh Wolfe [05:11]
• On Defense Tech Culture
  “You get what you celebrate and we celebrate celebrities... I think now you're starting to see a return to people saying, wait a second, I want to do matter that matters.” — Josh Wolfe [09:51]
• On the Morality of Tech in War
  “The higher your resolution [to discriminate], the higher your moral resolution to be able to make good decisions.” — Josh Wolfe [17:10]
• On Information Warfare
  “Israel was going to win the kinetic war and they were probably going to lose the information propaganda war.” — Josh Wolfe [25:26]
• On IMEC and Geopolitical Optimism
  “The flow of talent, infrastructure, capital, energy, technology ... will be a peace corridor.” — Josh Wolfe [29:33]

Timestamps for Major Segments

• Lux Capital’s Investment Ethos (03:15–05:11)
• Being Contrarian & Elemental Energy/Nuclear (05:11–07:20)
• Anduril Founding & Defense Tech Boom (07:20–09:51)
• Defense Tech Culture Shift & Israel (09:51–11:39)
• Global Threats and Oligopoly in Defense (11:56–13:49)
• Culture, Purpose, and Venture Capital Origins (13:49–16:39)
• Moral Framework for Investing in Defense (17:10–19:24)
• Israel’s Defense Tech Edge & Startup Dynamics (19:45–22:39)
• Procurement, Demand, and Israeli Startups (22:39–24:15)
• Investment Climate Amid Isolation & Propaganda Wars (24:58–28:40)
• Alliances: Abraham Accords, IMEC, India, UAE (29:33–30:50)

Tone & Takeaways

The conversation is candid, occasionally irreverent, and highly informed by Wolfe’s insider experience, ethical considerations, and optimism regarding both Israeli and global defense innovation. The tone balances sober acknowledgment of real threats with a belief in technological and cultural renewal.

Bottom Line:
Defense tech, long neglected in the West, is seeing a renaissance—driven by new threats, inspired founders, and a dramatic shift in the cultural meaning of working on “matter that matters.” Israel, with its unique national character and recent trials, stands at the forefront—attracting both capital and admiration, even as it navigates political and informational headwinds.