Infleqtion CEO Matthew Kinsella on the Business of Quantum Sensing and the Road Ahead (CCCX) With capital pouring into quantum computing, the question is no longer if it will arrive, but what other parts of the quantum world are already here? This week, we speak with Matthew Kinsella, CEO of Infleqtion. It announced a $1.8 billion business combination with Churchill Capital Corp. X (NASDAQ: CCCX) in September. Infleqtion has already commercialized a line of quantum sensing devices for defense applications, which has put it ahead of many in the quantum pack in terms of revenue. Matthew explains why the company has decided to carve out a place for itself in this area of critical technology while still simultaneously working to advance its computing technology and where he thinks the industry could be headed. Which quantum computer will win? And, how much more addressable work is out there already in the quantum sensing market once Infleqtion is able to put this deal’s proceeds to work?
A conversation on nuclear’s next wave with Giordano Morichi of Terra Innovatum and Gus Garcia of GSR III Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: GSRT) Developers of small, modular nuclear reactors have been among the most prized stocks of 2025 given their potential to be big players in the energy mix as data center demand booms. This demand is massive, but when it comes to nuclear reactor design, Terra Innovatum believes it’s a matter of the smaller the better. This week, we speak with Giordano Morichi, Chief Business Development Officer and Head of Investor Relations at Terra Innovatum, and Gus Garcia, Co-CEO of GSR III Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:GSRT). The two announced a $475 million business combination April and are now nearing the end of their merger process. Giordano explains why the unique size of Terra Innovatum’s 1 MW reactor designs make it a more competitive fit for a host of applications, and how its fuel source could get it to market faster initially and more efficiently over time. Gus gets into how these factors have the potential to compound Terra Innovatum’s advantages and why the major gains made by the company’s listed peers has made its valuation even more attractive since the deal was struck.
This week, we sit down with Dynamix Corporation (NASDAQ:ETHM) CEO and Chair Andrejka Bernatova, who is about to list her third SPAC in the past four years with one business combination already completed and another pending. She tells us how it has been quite the ride through the last two SPAC cycles and where she thinks SPACs at times went wrong during the last one. Right now, she is focused on completing Dynamix’s combination with crypto treasury firm The Ether Machine. She explains why her team zeroed in on Ethereum as the cryptocurrency with the most promise and how that vision was informed by her team’s history of dealmaking in the oil and gas space. How will these crypto treasury plays continue to differentiate as they become more numerous? And, what opportunities does she see around the bend for Dynamix III?
SPACs have been highly active lately in taking public a new generation of nuclear technology companies, but in order for those companies to meet the power demand being driven by the boom in datacenter deployments, they are going to need a steady supply of uranium. This week, we speak with Mark Mukhidja, CEO of uranium mining firm Eagle Energy Metals, and Chris Sorrells, Chairman and CEO of Spring Valley Acquisition Corp. II (NASDAQ:SVII). The two announced a $312 million dollar combination back in July that would create a unique stock that is a pure play on US-based uranium production. Mark explains how the US went from being a leading uranium producer to one that imports nearly all of its uranium and how Eagle Energy’s Aurora project has the potential to start turning that around. Chris tells us why this upstream nuclear play is a logical follow-up to Spring Valley I’s successful combination with small nuclear reactor developer NuScale (NYSE:SMR) and why he believes this transaction is structured with both Eagle Energy’s short-term and long-term financing needs in mind.
This week, we return to the subject of autonomous trucking with a SPAC target that already logged months of its trucks operating autonomously in an industrial setting with rollouts on public highways and defense applications inbound. That company is Kodiak, which announced a $2.6 billion combination with Ares Acquisition Corporation II (NYSE:AACT) in April. Kodiak CEO Don Burnette joins us to explain how the company has sought to blaze a trail to commercialization for the company while burning a fraction of the R&D cash that some of its peers have to get to this same point. Don explains how the company has looked to apply that same capital efficiency to the structure of its SPAC combination and what opportunities he sees on the other side of the company’s drive into the public markets.
In this SPACInsider Podcast REPLAY, we go back to January 2022 when the abrupt end of 2021’s SPAC euphoria was setting in, and new strategies were needed to weather the storm. We sat down with Niccolo de Masi of the dMY SPACs to get his takes on how SPACs were going to roll with the punches and his own vision for when a refreshed SPAC cycle would reemerge. Now that SPACs are back, which of these predictions came to fruition and what lessons from the down market have teams brought into the new cycle? Give it a listen
An in-depth discussion with Sebastian Bea, President & Head of Investments at ReserveOne, and Vik Mittal, Managing Member at Meteora Capital Partners If there has been one hot summer trend among SPACs, it has been the crypto treasury business combination. To help better understand this new genre of SPAC deal, we sat down with Sebastian Bea, President and Head of Investments at ReserveOne, which announced a $1 billion combination with M3-Brigade Acquisition V Corp (Nasdaq: MBAV) last month. We're also joined by Vik Mittal, Managing Member at Meteora Capital Partners. They discuss why this particular play has come to the forefront of the market now and how the market has reacted as more and more entries of this deal type have been announced. Sebastian also explains how ReserveOne plans to generate returns greater than the value of its underlying assets and are earmarking a portion of its portfolio for private investments. How will ReserveOne and other companies of this type continue to differentiate themselves as their cohort grows? And what happens if the US government changes its attitude on crypto once again? ---- IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES: This podcast is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, a recommendation to buy or sell securities, or a solicitation of any kind. The views and opinions expressed by the guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of their respective firms or affiliates. Past performance discussed is not indicative of future results. All investments involve risk, including potential loss of principal. Any performance figures mentioned have not been independently verified and may not reflect actual client experiences or net returns after fees and expenses. The guests may have financial interests in companies, securities, or investment strategies discussed. Sebastian Pedro Bea is associated with the M3-Brigade V/ReserveOne transaction mentioned in this discussion. Vik Mittal serves as Managing Member of Meteora Capital, LLC and principal of numerous SPACs. These relationships may create conflicts of interest. Nothing in this podcast should be construed as personalized investment advice. Listeners should consult with qualified financial professionals before making investment decisions. Market predictions and forward-looking statements are speculative and subject to significant uncertainty.
What many of the biggest trends in emerging technology today have in common is that they require significantly more electricity and reliable means of receiving it efficiently. This week, we speak with Simon Irish, CEO of nuclear plant developer Terrestrial Energy, and Shawn Matthews, CEO and Chairman of HCM II Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:HOND). The two announced a $1.3 billion combination in March. Terrestrial Energy is developing designs for small modular nuclear reactors that produce heat for industrial clients along with power. Simon explains why he believes this approach is tailor-made for the demands of the times and how he sees the technology scaling. Shawn discusses how the public markets have picked up enthusiasm for nuclear power lately and how this helped informed his evaluation of the opportunity with Terrestrial Energy.
Harry You, Brandon Sun, and Vik Mittal break down the SPAC landscape On this special edition of the SPACInsider Podcast, we bring together a panel of SPAC veterans to explore the state of the market from the perspectives of sponsors, investors, and underwriters. Joining us are serial SPAC sponsor Harry You, Brandon Sun, Head of SPAC Investment Banking at Cohen & Company, and Vik Mittal, Managing Director at Meteora Capital. Together, they unpack how the complexion of the 2025 SPAC market is shifting and which strategies are rising to the top. How have crypto-focused deals reshaped the landscape, and how many more iterations of that playbook can succeed? We also get into how macro headwinds and tailwinds affect the traditional IPO window and SPAC deal flow, and whether activity is poised to accelerate in the second half of the year. It’s a wide-ranging, mid-year pulse check-in on SPACs. Give it a listen. ------------- IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES: This podcast is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, a recommendation to buy or sell securities, or a solicitation of any kind. The views and opinions expressed by the guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of their respective firms or affiliates. Past performance discussed is not indicative of future results. All investments involve risk, including potential loss of principal. Any performance figures mentioned have not been independently verified and may not reflect actual client experiences or net returns after fees and expenses. The guests may have financial interests in companies, securities, or investment strategies discussed. Harry You is associated with multiple SPACs mentioned in this discussion. Vik Mittal serves dual roles as Managing Member of Meteora Capital, LLC and CFO of Berto Acquisition Corp. Brandon Sun represents Cohen & Company Capital Markets. These relationships may create conflicts of interest. Nothing in this podcast should be construed as personalized investment advice. Listeners should consult with qualified financial professionals before making investment decisions. Market predictions and forward-looking statements are speculative and subject to significant uncertainty.
This week, we speak with Kyivstar CEO Oleksandr Komarov about the company’s $2.2 billion dollar combination with Cohen Circle Acquisition Corp. I (NASDAQ:CCIR). Few companies have been had to forge themselves in the flames recently quite like Ukraine’s leading telecom and digital services provider Kyivstar. Now, Kyivstar is not only telling that story but pitching it to public market investors. Oleksandr explains how the company has maintained high EBITDA margins despite the many disruptions unleashed by Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. He gets into why he decided now was the right time to make Kyivstar the first pureplay Ukraine stock to be listed in the US, and how its listing would give investors a chance to participate in the company’s industry consolidation plans as well as the eventual reconstruction of Ukraine.
After years of investment and excitement, the dawn of self-driving cars and trucks is now here. The question now is which business model among autonomous driving technology companies will win out? This week, we speak with David Liu, CEO of autonomous trucking company Plus. Plus announced a $1.3 billion combination with Churchill Capital Corp. IX (NASDAQ:CCIX) last month. David explains how both Plus’ strategy and the autonomous driving landscape have changed since the company last considered a SPAC listing and why the company is betting on a software-first approach - partnering with truck manufacturers rather than building hardware in-house. He also breaks down how this model could position Plus for better scalability and higher margins in the years ahead.
CEO Marc Nemati and Colombier II’s Omeed Malik break down the deal, timing, and the strategy. Despite its moniker as the “the everything store” you can’t buy everything on Amazon, and firearms are one of those things. But, GrabAGun has spent years building a platform for regulated online firearms purchases, and soon, consumers will be able to buy GrabAGun stock as well. This week, we speak with Marc Nemati, CEO of GrabAGun and Omeed Malik, CEO and Chairman of Colombier Acquisition Corp. II (NYSE:CLBR). The two announced a $197 million dollar combination in January of this year that is now nearing close. Marc explains why GrabAGun’s platform and the inroads it has already made with Gen Z consumers would be difficult to replicate. And, why a public listing presents a unique opportunity in the traditionally fragmented and illiquid space. Omeed lays out how the market has already reacted to the transaction as well as others that share a similar investment thesis, and how Colombier II has built its strategy around the enthusiasm the parties are already seeing. Note: Subsequent to this interview, the Registration Statement on Form S-4 filed by GrabAGun Digital Holdings Inc. was declared effective. Trading using the PEW ticker is anticipated to occur as soon as practicable following the July 15, 2025 shareholders' meeting.
On this week’s SPACInsider REPLAY, we revisit a 2022 conversation with Harry Sloan of the Eagle SPACs. At the time, Harry had already completed seven SPACs and was closing in on his eighth. As markets cooled and the SPAC boom waned, Harry offered a prescient take on where the market was headed—and what a “post-boom” SPAC cycle might look like. Two years later, his words still resonate. Tune in for a thoughtful look back at a key inflection point in SPAC history.
Tariffs, Trade Routes, and Tech: Freightos’ View from the Cargo Frontlines 2025 is shaping up to be a wild year for global trade, and few companies have a vantage point on the impacts of every-changing tariff policy quite like digital cargo-booking platform Freightos (NASDAQ:CRGO). This week, we catch up with Freightos CEO Zvi Schreiber. He shares how the shifting trade flows are showing up in Freightos’ numbers, and how companies are adjusting to meet the new challenges. Zvi also discusses why the shipping industry has long resisted digitization and how Freightos has made headway since closing its combination with Gesher I in January 2023.
This week, we sit down with Rick Hendrix and Adam Fishman from the Live Oak SPAC team. Rick Hendrix is the Founder of Live Oak Merchant Partners, and Chairman and CEO of Live Oak Acquisition Corp. V (NASDAQ:LOKV). In addition, he is an operating executive at Crestview Partners, a New York-based middle market focused private equity firm. Adam Fishman is a Managing Partner at Live Oak Merchant and President and CFO of Live Oak V. Adam joined Live Oak right before Live Oak II was launched and has been an executive on each of the SPACs since. Together they discuss how the SPAC climate has changed and how they choose to position their team relative to the broader market. Where are the big opportunities now, and what are some of the transaction terms and structures they would and would not consider? Give it a listen
This week, we return to another episode from 2021, when we spoke with Will Marshall, Co-founder and CEO of Planet Labs(NYSE:PL). Planet provides data services drawn from its fleet of about 200 satellites that generate a complete image of the earth's surface every day. It just celebrated its first quarter of EBITDA profitability, but at the time, it was still working to close its combination with dMY Technology Group IV. Niccolo de Masi, who at the time steered dMY IV, also joined to explain the investment case for Planet and the private space industry more broadly. Many of those space ventures that combined with SPACs are now booming despite equity market headwinds. But, what did the pathway to the stars look like four years ago, and what challenges remain?
In this SPACInsider Podcast Replay, we go back to 2021, when we spoke with Chris Urmson, CEO and Chairman of autonomous truck technology firm Aurora (NASDAQ:AUR). At the time, Aurora was working to close its $10 billion business combination with Reinvent Technology Y. Chris laid out how the company planned to approach the commercialization of its self-driving heavy truck business model and what challenges still laid ahead for it and other developers of autonomous technology. Now, Aurora is preparing to debut its driverless trucks along the Dallas-to-Houston freight route later this month, with plans to extend on to El Paso and Phoenix, Arizona before year’s end. Now that this debut is finally at hand, take a listen to what the road ahead for Aurora looked like four years ago and why it was kicking off that journey with a SPAC.
This week, in a special edition of the SPACInsider Podcast, we focus on the private markets with PM Insights Founder and CEO Nick Fusco. Nick weighs in with his thoughts on the major trends shaping private market valuations today and how the market has evolved since the pandemic years. Plus, how difficult is it to gain reliable data on private funding rounds and what lessons can be learned for SPACs making their own valuation decisions while on the hunt for a deal? PM Insights is a secondary market pricing and analytics provider focusing on private market company stocks.
Quantum computing has been one of the hottest investment topics in the past two months and three of the leading listed companies in the space are de-SPACs. But, how close is quantum computing to generating real value and what capabilities are still years away? This week, we speak with Alan Baratz, CEO of D-Wave (NYSE:QBTS), which went public in a business combination with DPCM Capital in 2022. Alan explains how D-Wave’s quantum computers are already doing commercial work and generating revenue by solving complex business optimization problems for clients. He also gives a primer on what investors should look for in the quantum industry news as they try to parse real progress from incremental research. How did D-Wave itself emerge from a post-listing capital crunch to announce record bookings in 2024 and start out 2025 with over $300 million in cash on hand? Give it a listen.
In this special follow-up edition of the SPACInsider Podcast, we check back in with Dimitre Genov, Ed Kovary, and Nick Skibo, who last joined us at the end of Q3 2024, to assess the state of the SPAC market in 2025 and the key dynamics shaping the landscape. Our panel brings together perspectives from across the SPAC ecosystem—banking, investing, and advisory—to provide a well-rounded view of the latest market shifts. Joining us are: Ed Kovary, Head of SPAC Capital Markets at BTIG Nick Skibo, Managing Partner at Gritstone Asset Management Dimitre Genov, Managing Director at Brookline Capital Markets, advising SPAC sponsors on IPOs and de-SPAC transactions Together, they break down early indicators of SPAC activity for the year ahead, discuss trends such as warrants versus rights, overfunding, and transaction deadlines, and analyze how the new administration’s regulatory changes, particularly at the SEC, could impact dealmakers. Tune in for an in-depth discussion on the 2025 SPAC market.