Revel raises $150M Series B to modernize hardware control software still stuck in the pre-Windows 98 era

Morton. We're running a little bit behind. We'll check on him. And in the meantime, we will tell you about Scott is here. We have Scott Morton from Revel. He's the founder and CEO. Welcome to the show.

What's happening?

Hello. Great to be here.

How you doing? Massive day. take us through the fundraising news because I I just hit the gong and I want to hit it again.

Yeah. Uh we've raised 150 million for our uh series B uh and led by Index Ventures made innovation from Redcoin as well.

Amazing. Uh so uh since it's your first time on the show uh let's break down the product. What are you building?

Yeah. So we are solving solving a a basic problem in that the software used to control and test hardware systems

really has not improved since the 80s and 90s. So you have these companies building you know the most complex cutting edge systems like hypersonic jets and satellites

uh and they're using control software that was designed pre Windows 98. Um so yeah it's insane. Um, and so we provide a state-of-the-art software platform that really makes the control software and test software no longer a bottleneck, but instead uh an accelerant to their development.

Mhm.

Uh, do you have any experience making hardware or did you just think this was a cool idea?

Yeah, I know. So, I spent, you know, nine and a half years at SpaceX. Uh, worked uh yeah, worked on a lot of these systems, wrote a lot of control software for Falcon 9 and the later uh Starship uh Starship vehicle launch site. Um it's basically really you know it was like a proving ground for you know software for hardware systems and you know and also kind of highest stakes environment.

Yeah. So yeah maybe uh go a little bit deeper in terms of software for hardware systems like when I think about a rocket taking off I could think about like a gravity simulation like a full 3D environment something on Unreal Engine. Then I could also just think about like a whole bunch of you know like business logic basically testing different ratios and and applying the laws of physics at sort of just a mathematical level like what's the shape of the product. What what what are the most common problems that are solved?

Yeah, I mean this is you know this is the software that will control the hardware system directly. Um, you know, engineers typically, you know, they need to offer the control software and um, you know, overall it's like if you know, if they can only test they're like, let's say they're building a pump or something,

uh, if you're only able to test that five times in a week.

Mhm.

Um, imagine if you could then test it 50 times in a week and how much of a better pump you're going to then deliver and when you need to ship that product.

So, so with a pump, I I you know, I could imagine like uh what is it? CFD fluid dynamics like are you simulating individual fluid molecules flowing through a system or are you acting on a higher level of abstraction like what's in demand right now in terms of simulation and control software.

Yeah. So this is more so like you're designing a pump from the very beginning and you first kind of design the system you then fabricate an initial version of it. Yeah,

then you need to set up kind of an environment for how you're going to make sure that what you've built is actually going to work. It's not going to break, let's say. And so where we said this is the software that will uh both control the pump, but then also all the systems around it that are going to kind of make that simulated environment.

Yeah.

What do you think of the term digital twin? Is that overused and too hilarious?

Yeah, I know it's used everywhere. I mean, um, you know, simulation is a big component of all of this. uh but um we're more so into like rapid iteration and testing these systems. Um so for instance

uh you know we're running so deep partnership with uh impulse space if you know them.

They have a rocket engine test site out in the Mojave Desert. Our software will run that whole system. It's a large facility. Um and we enable the engineers there to write all their control software uh you know uh make their command and control interfaces uh and then also kind of exe execute those together uh as they're trying to figure out you know what what they want to see uh on that that system.

Yeah. Uh where are where where are you getting traction? $150 million series B tells me that you're not just selling into, you know, preede uh companies in Elsagundo. Uh are you are you getting into some of these larger kind of legacy manufacturers yet or is that part of this round?

Yeah. No, we've been we've done really well with kind of scaling startups so far. uh both doing the test software but also control software working with radiant nuclear providing their command and control system. Um but yeah, we are engaged with some larger companies. Doug Doug is here. Doug is here physically in the old to come on the show.

He's coming on. He's coming on in 10 minutes. You jump.

He's like, I have a bug report. I have a bug report.

Standing.

It's amazing.

Yeah. But yeah, we're so doing very well with the kind of scaling startups, but uh we're now starting to engage with both uh larger companies and aerospace,

but then also in more of uh heavy industry mining, more of industrial control, oil and gas type applications.

That's cool. Uh, is this a is a good place to just kind of vibe code, not even look at the code, you just kind of, you know, tell mistakes or or is part part of this is like if you if there's software errors on your side, there can be very physical expensive consequences in the real world.

Yeah. No, I mean, it's definitely the latter. I, you know, I don't think a lot of people are really vibe coding this type of software at this point. Um, and we do have some plans for that to make that enable you to vibe code potentially for uh for control software. Uh, we do actually have our own programming language, believe it or not, which sounds maybe sounds pretty wild, but there really isn't a good programming language specifically designed for controlling hardware systems.

And part of that is actually designing out a lot of the common mistakes that are made. Uh, so this language, if it's if it compiles successfully, it actually cannot crash when it is run. That's an example. You know, Goldman Sachs has their own programming language.

I did not.

I think it's called like slang securities language, right? I think Bloomberg. I've heard of that. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. There's there's number Jane Street. O camel. It's not there. It's open source. But, uh, respect programming language respector here.

That's right.

Anyway,

uh, so great to finally have you on, Scott. We We still got to hang. We still got to hang one of these days. But

maybe we needed a custom pro programming language for TBPN.

Yeah. Tyler Tyler can learn his first programming language.

This is what we need. He's more of like a plain text programmer

these days.

Sorry, Scott. We're we're having too much fun. But uh congratulations to the whole team. I'm sure you'll be back on.

We'll talk very very soon.

Have a good rest of your day.

Goodbye.

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