Technologist, Scientist, Investor & Venture Builder
I back the founders turning frontier science into companies.
I'm a former NASA JPL technologist and scientist turned investor and venture builder. I help technically credible frontier companies become legible to the right capital, bringing a scientist's read on whether the hard part works and the relationships to move a fundable company forward.
Rashmi Shah
Former NASA JPL · Venture Builder
The problem I solve
Technically difficult companies are easy to misread.
When science or engineering is central to the business, generalist investors can struggle to distinguish genuine technical advantage from research risk. Founders should not have to flatten the science to make the company legible.
I bridge that gap. I evaluate whether the technical thesis is credible, translate its commercial significance without diluting what makes it defensible, and help a fundable company reach capital equipped for its risk, timeline, and ambition.
Who I back
The founders I want to meet.
I'm drawn to companies where the science is the moat and the hardest technical question cannot be evaluated through a standard software-investing lens.
Frontier & deep tech
Hardware, instrumentation, infrastructure, and systems where the engineering is the bet.
Climate & sensing
Measurement, remote sensing, and technologies that make physical systems and the planet legible.
AI / ML
AI/ML applied to real physical, scientific, sensing, and engineering problems.
Space
A core domain where technical conviction can connect directly to venture-building support.
If the market underestimates what you're building because it cannot read the science, tell me what has been proven and what still has to be true.
What I do
How I work with founders.
Capital
I help technically credible companies reach capital that fits their domain, technical risk, development timeline, and ambition. I bring a scientist's read on whether the hard part actually works, an investor's view of the company, and relationships that can move a fundable opportunity toward the right investors.
Building
For relevant space opportunities, I can connect technical conviction with the practical support of a venture studio. Through Mandala Space Ventures in Pasadena, I help space companies move from concept and technical thesis toward an operating company and commercial scale.
I also take on a small number of advisory engagements each year where the fit is right.
The track record behind the judgment
Scientific depth with investor relevance.
At NASA JPL I pioneered Signals of Opportunity reflectometry and led the SNOOPI mission. As JPL's first Associate Chief Technologist, I helped shape frontier-technology strategy across AI/ML, climate, and sensing. That work taught me how to separate an ambitious claim from a credible technical program.
Today I bring that judgment to venture diligence at Market Impact Capital and to company building at Mandala Space Ventures. I can read both the hard technical question and the investment case, then help the right opportunity move toward aligned capital or a practical build platform.
Former NASA JPLEducation
PhD & MS, Aeronautics & Astronautics
Purdue University
BS, Electrical Engineering
Rochester Institute of Technology · summa cum laude
Experience
Two decades across NASA, research, and venture.
My judgment was built through scientific research, mission leadership, technology strategy, venture diligence, and company building. That range lets me evaluate the science without losing sight of the company.
2026 – Present
Mandala Space Ventures
Managing Director
Help shape investment strategy and support the venture studio building space companies from technical thesis toward commercial scale.
2025 – Present
Market Impact Capital
Venture Partner
Bring deep technical judgment to sourcing and diligence across frontier technology and impact investing.
2025 – Jun 2026
VU Venture Partners
Venture Partner
Sourced and diligenced investments across frontier, deep tech, and space at a global multi-stage fund; developed investment theses and presented to the Investment Committee. Progressed from Associate to Principal to Venture Partner.
2014 – 2026
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Research Scientist · Group Supervisor · Associate Chief Technologist
Pioneered Signals of Opportunity Reflectometry and led the NASA SNOOPI mission. As JPL's first Associate Chief Technologist, helped shape its frontier-technology investment strategy across AI/ML, climate, and sensing.
2009 – 2013
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Visiting Researcher
Built and verified a software receiver for NASA space communications and ran reflectometry experiments for remote-sensing calibration.
2007 – 2014
Purdue University
PhD, Aeronautics & Astronautics · NASA Fellow
NASA Earth & Space Science Fellow (17% selection). Dissertation on remote sensing using Signals of Opportunity.
Contact
Building something hard?
Tell me what you're building, what has been proven, and what still has to be true. If the science is the moat and the company is real, I want to understand the hard part.
The fastest way to reach me directly is LinkedIn.