The Race Itself

What the new space economy is, who is competing for it, and why Washington is a contender.

Project Leo

Amazon's satellite network, engineered and built on the Eastside, and what a program at that scale means for local jobs, suppliers, and connectivity.

Winning It

The federal, state, and regional moves that keep the work here: workforce, permitting, infrastructure, and a regional pitch that closes.

Rep. Suzan DelBene

U.S. Congress, Representing Washington's 1st District

Suzan DelBene has represented Washington's 1st Congressional District, which runs from the Eastside north to the Canadian border, since 2012 and serves on the House Ways and Means Committee. Before Congress she spent more than a decade in technology, including twelve years at Microsoft. Few members of Congress know the Eastside's employers, or the federal side of the space economy, as well.

Steve Hartell

Vice President, U.S. Public Policy, Amazon

Steve Hartell leads Amazon's public policy work in the United States, representing the company before Congress, federal agencies, and state governments on the policies that shape where and how it invests. That portfolio includes Project Leo, and the questions about spectrum, launch, and manufacturing that come with putting a satellite network into orbit from Washington.

Shannon Braddock

President & CEO, Greater Seattle Partners

Shannon Braddock leads Greater Seattle Partners, the public-private partnership that recruits employers and investment to the Puget Sound region and makes the region's case to the world. She came to the role from King County, where she served as Deputy Executive. When another state pitches a space company on leaving Washington, hers is the team that answers.