The man behind Jeff Bezos’ next lunar guidance system talks future tech

Draper, the MIT spin-off engineering lab, is famed for developing the Apollo 11 Guidance Computer (not Draper Esprit, I hasten to add). Ken Gabriel, President and CEO, also recently made a major announcement. Blue Origin has now partnered with Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman to build elements of the company’s human-rated lunar lander, and Draper will lead the development of the lander’s avionics and guidance systems, with an aim to be ready to land a crew on the moon by 2024.

“While Blue Origin is the prime contractor, Lockheed Martin is building the ascent stage, Northrop Grumman is building the transfer element and Draper is doing the GNC (guidance, navigation and control),” Blue Origin CEO and founder Jeff Bezos said, announcing the move at the International Astronautical Congress in Washington. Blue Origin is competing for a NASA contract to develop a crewed lunar lander, or Human Landing System, for the Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the surface of the moon by the end of 2024.

TechCrunch sat down to chat with Gabriel, who previously he co-founded Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group, to tlak about what he sees coming up in the future for the most advanced technologies. Prior to this, he was Deputy and Acting Director of the famed DARPA in the U.S. Department of Defense. During his tenure, DARPA advanced capabilities in hypersonics, offensive and defensive cyber, and big data analytics for intelligence and national security.