Jamie Gull, the former SpaceX engineer who helped make the Falcon 9 rocket reusable, just closed a $15.1 million deep tech fund called Wave Function Ventures. The Stanford-trained aerospace engineer has already deployed capital into nine startups spanning nuclear energy, robotics, and aerospace - signaling a new wave of technical founders moving into venture capital during a resurgence in deep tech funding.
The venture capital world just got a new voice from the trenches of rocket engineering. Jamie Gull, who spent years at SpaceX helping perfect the reusable Falcon 9 system that transformed the space industry, has officially launched Wave Function Ventures with $15.1 million in fresh capital.
Gull's journey from rocket scientist to venture capitalist started in the Mojave desert. After graduating from Stanford with a master's in aeronautics in 2007, he bypassed traditional aerospace giants for Scaled Composites, where experimental aircraft development happened at breakneck speed. "I knew I would build something, and I would do it quickly, and I would be a college graduate who would own an actual outcome," Gull told TechCrunch.
Two years later, SpaceX came calling. Gull joined the team working on making the Falcon 9 rocket reusable - a breakthrough that became the foundation of SpaceX's dominant position in commercial spaceflight. That engineering experience now informs his investment thesis at Wave Function, where he's already backed nine companies across nuclear energy (Deep Fission), humanoid robotics (Persona AI), and aerospace (Airship Industries).
Timing couldn't be better for deep tech funding. The sector is experiencing renewed investor interest, driven partly by increased attention on aerospace and defense applications. Earlier this year, Silicon Valley-based Leitmotif broke cover with $300 million from the Volkswagen Group specifically to support hardware and manufacturing startups.
Wave Function's approach reflects Gull's hands-on engineering background. The fund targets seed and pre-seed investments, planning to deploy across roughly 25 companies total. Gull declined to name the anchor LP but confirmed backing from high net worth individuals, family offices, and other funds. His unique value proposition: helping technical founders navigate the uncertainty of early-stage development.
"I can really leverage that to help all my founders get through those early stages when things are like the most uncertain, and then help them build their companies," Gull explained to TechCrunch.
Gull isn't new to the startup ecosystem. Near the end of his SpaceX tenure in 2016, he started angel investing in companies like Boom Supersonic, K2 Space, and Varda. He co-founded eVTOL startup Talyn Air through Y Combinator's Winter 2020 batch - which was later acquired by Ampaire in 2023. He also serves as a venture partner at YC's Pioneer Fund.
This engineering-to-investing pipeline reflects broader trends in venture capital, where technical founders increasingly launch their own funds after successful exits or significant industry experience. Deep tech particularly benefits from investors who understand the technical challenges and longer development timelines these companies face.
Gull's bullish on deep tech's return potential over the next 10-20 years, arguing that while these startups require more upfront capital, they can leverage non-venture funding sources like government contracts and asset-backed lending. This creates stronger competitive moats than many software companies enjoy.
The fund's emergence highlights how SpaceX has become a breeding ground for the next generation of aerospace entrepreneurs and investors. Former SpaceX employees have launched numerous startups and investment vehicles, spreading the company's rapid development culture across the broader tech ecosystem.
Gull's patient approach to returns reflects lessons learned from his engineering career. He recalls working on Stratolaunch at Scaled Composites - the world's largest aircraft at the time - which didn't actually fly until 2019, nearly a decade after he'd moved on to SpaceX. "I think it was almost exactly 10 years after I had worked on it on a computer screen," he said. "It was wild."
Wave Function Ventures represents the maturing of deep tech venture capital, where technical operators with real engineering experience are stepping up to back the next generation of hardware startups. Gull's combination of rocket engineering expertise, startup founding experience, and patient capital approach positions the fund well for the longer development cycles these companies require. As deep tech funding continues its resurgence, expect more former SpaceX engineers and similar technical operators to follow Gull's path from the lab bench to the cap table.
