40+
Advanced aircraft concepts shaped
Steven Griggs
Business Development Executive Consultant
Enterprise discipline.
Edge-of-possible innovation.
I build strategic pathways from bold concepts to market impact across aerospace, technology commercialization, and AI-enabled decision systems.
1000+
Technologies commercialized or supported
15+ yrs
Lockheed Martin Skunk Works leadership
85%
Proposal win rate on strategic programs
About Me
Creative developer and implementer of long-range plans with a diversified analytical foundation in business and engineering. My work centers on seeing the full system, identifying where innovation creates advantage, and guiding execution from concept through production.
Over the years, I have worked at the intersection of strategy, technology, and commercialization, helping teams define product roadmaps, allocate R&D investment, and convert emerging capability into sustainable business outcomes. I have also contributed to 40+ advanced aircraft efforts and supported commercialization activities for over 1000 technologies. Today I am applying AI engineering to build intelligent decision support tools and domain-specific AI systems.
Strategic planning and program/project managementProduct development and product improvement planningAI EngineeringTechnology evaluation, integration, and R&D leadershipBusiness case analysis and product road mappingProposal development and team leadership
AI Digital Twin
Ask this digital twin about my career journey, strategic work, and current focus areas. Responses are grounded in my professional background and tailored for practical insight.
Digital Twin
I am Steven's digital twin. Ask me about his career, leadership style, and innovation work, or space elevators.
Career Journey
2023 - Present
President · Space Railway Corporation
Leading the vision, strategy, and commercialization path for space elevator innovation, including trade studies, ecosystem briefings, and investor materials.
2011 - Present
President · First Place Business Solutions, LLC
Built and leads a consulting practice integrating business strategy, innovation portfolios, and technology investment decisions for complex R&D programs.
2018 - 2021
Visiting Assistant Professor · University of Central Oklahoma
Taught strategy and management while researching strategic decision making, technology investment, and innovation-driven business models.
2006 - 2016
Executive in Residence (Full-Time Visiting Professor) · Oklahoma State University, School of Entrepreneurship
Led cross-campus entrepreneurship ecosystem initiatives, mentored founders and student teams, and taught graduate strategy, entrepreneurship, and commercialization courses.
2006 - 2013
Adjunct Professor (Part-Time) · Oklahoma State University
Developed and taught Professional MBA courses spanning strategy, corporate entrepreneurship, technology commercialization, and innovation design.
2008 - 2011
Program Manager · Lockheed Martin Aeronautic: Skunk Works
Directed Joint Strike Fighter improvements and derivative roadmaps by linking customer needs, science and technology investment, and product strategy.
2002 - 2008
Program Manager, Research and Development · Lockheed Martin Aeronautic: Skunk Works
Led future capability programs for a $300B product line, integrating technical roadmaps, supplier technologies, and long-range customer requirements.
1999 - 2002
System Product Manager · Lockheed Martin Aeronautic: Skunk Works
Managed F-16 subsystem improvements, supplier negotiations, production support, and cost-reduction initiatives for fielded platforms.
1998 - 1999
Program and Proposal Manager · Lockheed Martin Aeronautic: Skunk Works
Led multidisciplinary teams capturing $30M in new business through emerging technology proposals and coordinated program execution.
1996 - 1998
Program Manager · Lockheed Martin Aeronautic: Skunk Works
Directed IRAD studies for directed-energy concepts and helped shape feasibility work that contributed to multi-billion-dollar defense initiatives.
Education
- PhD, Engineering - The University of Texas at Arlington
- Post Doctorate Bridge Program, International Business & Entrepreneurship - University of Florida
- MBA, Finance & Strategy - The University of Texas at Arlington
- MA, Economics - The University of Texas at Arlington
- MS, Mechanical Engineering - The University of Texas at Arlington
- BS, Mechanical Engineering - University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Current Focus
Building advanced capability in LLM engineering, AI agents, and production AI deployment to pair domain expertise with intelligent decision support for clients and partners.
Top Skills
Innovation ManagementStrategy DevelopmentAI EngineeringVibe CodingLow-Code DevelopmentAI Integration Techniquesn8n
Recent Certifications
- Technology Entrepreneurship
- Python for Data Science and Machine Learning Bootcamp
- AI Engineering Core Track: LLM Engineering, RAG, QLoRA, Agents
- AI Engineering Agentic Track: The Complete Agent & MCP Course
- AI Engineering Production Track: Deploy LLMs & Agents at Scale
- AI Leader and AI Builder tracks for business application
Portfolio Links
Case studies, publications, presentations, and artifacts from strategic programs and thought leadership.
Speaking & Thought Leadership
Published papers and conference presentations on space elevator economics, mission requirements, and the business case for settling space.
Papers
Visual reference
AI + Business Transformation Cases
Applied examples of LLM, agentic AI, and workflow automation.
AI Chat-Based Expert in Specific Domains
Domain-trained conversational AI that delivers expert-level answers grounded in curated knowledge. Try it — ask the Digital Twin about space elevators.
AI Capability in Decision Support Tool Usage, Populating & Management
Building AI-driven workflows that populate, manage, and enhance decision support tools for strategic planning and investment analysis.
Agentic AI for Technology Commercialization
Six agentic AI applications built to answer the questions every inventor faces: who will adopt this technology, and who will pay to develop it. Two canvass industry, two canvass government, and two canvass venture capital and private equity. After the research agents finish, an expert agent evaluates the findings and selects the top organizations to pursue. Each app then writes a full report containing the research, recommendations, and source material so the reader can judge the work.
App 1 — Industry Adoption Assessment
Spawns 24 agents that canvass 24 industries to determine who would adopt a technology and why, then estimates how much each company may purchase per year. Twenty-four industries is deliberate: technology is not always adopted by the industry it was aimed at.
App 2 — Industry Funding Source Assessment
Assesses who across those same industries could fund development through contracts, grants, or teaming arrangements, and estimates each company's probability of providing funding.
App 3 — Government Adoption Assessment
Spawns 12 agents that canvass U.S. government organizations to determine which agencies and technology offices would adopt a technology, and the status of similar development contracts.
App 4 — Government Funding Source Assessment
Spawns 12 agents that assess which government organizations, program offices, and contract vehicles could fund or mature the technology.
App 5 — VC / PE Funding Interest
Spawns 8 agents that identify venture capital and private equity firms positioned to invest, covering sector focus, stage, firm structure, and investment philosophy.
App 6 — VC / PE Funding Source Assessment
Spawns 8 agents that assess which venture capital and private equity organizations may fund development, and what would make a round fundable.
Case study — CVD graphene. I ran the two industry apps against a new material I am helping develop: chemical vapor deposition graphene, manufactured as a one-atom-thick sheet a meter wide on a continuous roll, with over 25 times the tensile strength of steel at far lower density. To test whether you get what you pay for, I ran the same study on three tiers of LLM. GPT 5.4 made the best use of the MCP research tools and produced the most professional 300+ page report. Gemini 3.6 Flash cost roughly one sixth as much and wrote about 30% more words, but leaned on training data instead of live web research and justified its recommendations less rigorously. Gemma 4 12B running locally under Ollama was free, but took about 960 minutes against 90 for the hosted models and delivered 50 pages with thin justification. The reports below are unedited apart from cover branding; due diligence is warranted before acting on them.
Industry Adoption Reports
Investment Source Reports
The same two questions — who would take the technology, and who would pay to develop it — applied to government and to venture capital and private equity. These four reports were generated with GPT 5.4.
Government Organizations
Government Adoption Assessment
Which U.S. government organizations are positioned to adopt CVD graphene, and the status of similar technology-development contracts. Ranks parent-organization and technology-office pairings; DoD SBIR/STTR, DOE AMMTO, and NASA STMD lead.
Government Funding Landscape
Which U.S. government organizations, program offices, and contract vehicles may fund or mature CVD graphene. The same offices as the adoption study, judged by funding path rather than transition pull.
Venture Capital & Private Equity
VC / PE Investor Interest
Venture capital and private equity firms positioned to invest in CVD graphene: sector focus, stage, firm structure, philosophy, and the status of similar investments. Material Impact, Clean Energy Ventures, Extantia, and DCVC rank at the top.
VC / PE Funding Landscape
Which venture capital and private equity organizations may fund development of CVD graphene, what would make a round fundable, and how to approach them by company stage.
Strategic Programs Portfolio
Major defense, aerospace, and commercialization initiatives.
Decision Support Tool for High-Tier Technology Development & Investment Decision Making
Structured frameworks for evaluating and prioritizing technology investments at the portfolio level, integrating risk, maturity, and strategic alignment.
Program Management Tools for Execution of Technology Development & Investment Decision Making
An integrated toolkit for managing technology programs from initiation through transition:
- Risk Identification Matrix
- Program Risk to Design Parameters
- Maturation Matrix
- Key Element Risk Tracking
- Risk Waterfall Tracking
- Technology Development Coordination
Let's Build What's Next
Open to collaborations across strategic innovation, commercialization, and AI-enabled growth initiatives.