A Fireside Chat with a GPS Pioneer
Join us for an extraordinary fireside chat with one of the pioneering minds behind the Global Positioning System (GPS) — a technology that quietly powers our everyday lives. From navigating road trips, food deliveries, and dating apps to global banking, utility grids, and emergency response, GPS is woven into the fabric of modern civilization. But what happens when this invisible infrastructure falters or faces disruption, whether from natural causes or intentional jamming? In this engaging session, we’ll peel back the layers of Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT) innovation, explore stories from its creation, and examine the surprising extent of our digital dependency — including what goes dark when these systems go down, and the things we can do to keep them working. Engineers, innovators, and curious minds will leave with a richer appreciation for the tech we take for granted and fresh insights on building resilient systems for the future.
PANELIST:
Steve Poizner, Co-Founder & CEO, oneNav, Inc. – a businessman, technology entrepreneur, and former California Insurance Commissioner and gubernatorial candidate. Over his 30+ year career in Silicon Valley, he founded multiple companies, including Strategic Mapping Inc. (digital mapping software, later sold to Claritas/ESRI) and SnapTrack, Inc. (pioneered GPS integration in mobile phones, sold to Qualcomm for over $1B). He was inducted into the Silicon Valley Engineering Council Hall of Fame in 2014. At Qualcomm, he served as SVP, overseeing 12 emerging businesses. Steve is currently the co-founder of oneNav, a next generation GPS/GNSS company enabling ultra low power, secure and precise solutions for military, government, commercial and consumer applications.
MODERATOR:
Craig Miller, President Viasat Government – President of Viasat Government, leading the company’s global defense business with a focus on multi-domain networking, data integration, and AI-enabled defense operations. With over 30 years at Viasat, he has held senior roles including President of Strategic Initiatives, Engineering, Chief Product Officer, and President of Government Systems, where he oversaw satellite connectivity, tactical networks, cybersecurity, and the $2B divestiture of the Link-16 business to L3Harris. Earlier, he launched Viasat’s Resilient Space Missions and Hybrid Adaptive Network architecture. Before Viasat, he worked at Hughes Missile Systems Group on radar countermeasures. He also serves on the EvoNexus Board of Directors and holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Arizona.
ABOUT VIASAT
Viasat, a San Diego founded global communication company believes everyone, and everything can be connected. For more than 30 years, Viasat innovations have helped shape how consumers, businesses, governments, and militaries around the world communicate — bringing connectivity when, where, and how it’s needed most.
Viasat, focuses on the connections that matter as they deliver bold results for their customers, partners, and shareholders worldwide. They provide internet to communities and families in places around the world where cable or fiber isn’t available so they can learn, laugh, and live just like everyone else. They deliver secure, resilient connectivity services and solutions to our military and allies that give them the information dominance they need to bring warfighters home safely. They ensure people on-the-go have access to the same quality of internet in the air or at sea as they have at home. And they give businesses of all sizes the freedom to keep their people, places, and things secure and connected — wherever opportunity takes them.
ABOUT EVONEXUS
EvoNexus is California’s leading nonprofit technology startup incubator located in San Diego. EvoNexus has successfully incubated over 260 startups with a survival rate of over 85%. Since the incubator’s formation in 2010, EvoNexus companies have secured over $1.6B in venture funding, $10B in pre-exit valuation, and had 51 acquisitions valued at over $2.1B. EvoNexus is supported by corporate partners, including some of the largest multinational corporations in the world. Learn more at evonexus.org/.
EVONEXUS SIGs – The program that created the organization
First launched in 1999, Special Interest Groups (SIGs) provided an intimate forum for attendees specific to vertical technology groups. SIGs are valuable for our corporate partners and their employees, entrepreneurs, the university ecosystem, and individuals seeking to gain specific subject matter knowledge. These in-person events are an opportunity to meet peers and industry leaders to advance mutual business interests.
Since the launch of the SIGs we have had:
- Over 500 SIG programs
- Over 20,000 attendees