From hypercars to cruise missiles: Lukas Czinger on the future of US defense | E2292
This Week in Startups
Jason Calacanis
4.2 • 1.4K Ratings
🗓️ 23 May 2026
⏱️ 107 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This Week In Startups is made possible by:
Every.io https://every.io
Shopify https://shopify.com/twist
Render https://render.com/twist
Plaud https://Plaud.ai/twist
Today’s show:
Startups like Divergent Technologies are producing components and aircraft for the military through new systems that are better, faster, and cheaper than conventional methods. CEO and co-founder Lukas Czinger stops by TWiST to share the company’s vertically integrated, AI-driven manufacturing platform and how he transitioned from hypercar parts to working directly with the Pentagon on autonomous aircraft.
Plus, 50 million Americans are on antidepressants, and it’s not necessarily the right treatment for all of them. Outro Health co-founders Brandon Goode and Dr. Mark Horowitz share their hyperbolic tapering method, which helps patients get off drugs like Zoloft and Prozac without suffering through traumatic and potentially dangerous side effects.
Guests
Lukas Czinger: https://x.com/lukasczinger
Divergent Technologies: https://www.divergent3d.com
Czinger Vehicles: https://www.czinger.com/
Brandon Goode: https://www.linkedin.com/in/goodebrandon/
Dr. Mark Horowitz: https://x.com/markhoro
Outro Health: https://outro.com
Timestamps:
0:00 Divergent shifted from hypercar development to 3D printing all kinds of components
1:33 Plaud: If your work depends on conversations — interviews, meetings, calls — you need a Plaud NotePin. You can check it out at https://Plaud.ai/twist and use code TWIST for 10% off!
4:10 How 3D printing has exponentially improved
8:18 Making military components faster, better, and cheaper
9:58 Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit https://every.io
11:00 How Divergent caught the Pentagon's attention
19:51 Shopify - Turn those What Ifs into sales with the ecommerce platform powering millions of businesses. Sign up for your $1-per-month trial today at https://shopify.com/twist
25:29 Why Outro Health helps patients taper off SSRIs
30:06 Render - Find out why 5 million developers are already using the all-in-one cloud platform, Render. Go to https://render.com/twist and apply for the Render Startup Program to get $500-$100,000 in free credits, depending on your stage and backers.
36:37 Is depression caused by a "chemical imbalance"?
46:37 Understanding the hyperbolic tapering method
58:32 How Outro makes money
1:10:01 Leaked Meta layoff audio
1:13:41 Cloudflare CEO drops "measurer" roles
1:18:16 CrowdHealth - CrowdHealth lets you ditch the bureaucracy with a peer-to-peer funding platform for your healthcare. Get started for $99 per month for your first three months by using the code TWIST at https://JoinCrowdHealth.com/twist.
1:19:17 Why Trump canceled his AI executive order
1:28:08 Polymarket sharps on Russia vs. Ukraine, SpaceX ticker symbol
1:33:34 Luel vs. Kled update: Is this nepotism at work?
1:37:02 Chris Nolan doesn't have a smartphone
1:43:04 Jason's favorite new espresso machine
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Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland
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Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | There's 50 million Americans on antidepressants. |
| 0:03.0 | You know, there's been campaigns run in America and around the world, |
| 0:06.0 | mostly by drug companies that have convinced the public that they are suffering from chemical imbalances, |
| 0:11.0 | that if they're feeling sad or they're feeling anxious, it's something that's gone wrong in their brains. |
| 0:16.0 | Farma had no interest in getting people off or doing any research to get people off, |
| 0:20.0 | unless you had a business case for it. When people go to their doctor and they say, I've stopped my drug, I'm having panic attacks, I can't sleep. The doctor doesn't even let them finish the sentence and says, you must be relapsing. That is, your underlying depression or anxiety has returned. Do we know what it's done to people's brains if they've been on it for 10 or 20 years? We are running the biggest open-air experiment on the public ever conducted. |
| 0:41.1 | This Week in Startups is brought to you by Render. |
| 0:43.7 | Find out why 5 million developers are already using the all-in-one cloud platform, render. |
| 0:49.6 | Go to render.com slash twist and apply for the Render program to get $500 to $100,000 in free credits |
| 0:57.8 | depending on your stage and backers. Shopify. Turn those what-ifs into sales with the e-commerce platform |
| 1:04.5 | powering millions of businesses. Sign up for your $1 per month trial today at Shopify.com slash twist. |
| 1:12.0 | And every. |
| 1:12.7 | Dot.io. |
| 1:13.6 | For all your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes, or other back |
| 1:19.5 | office administration needs, visit every. |
| 1:22.3 | io. |
| 1:23.2 | Okay, everybody, it's Twist. |
| 1:24.5 | It's May 22nd, 2026. |
| 1:26.9 | Lon Harris is here. I'm your boy, J-Cow. We have a lot on the docket today to get to. But before we do anything, Lon, shouldn't grab my plod. Yeah, we should applaud. I always like to applaud, plod. I take my little plod pin when I'm wearing a jacket like this. I use the magnetic. Snaky snap. You use the magnet. I have the magnetic thing around here. It's right here. But you like to clip it like a dork. I like to clip it like a dork, exactly. Yes. I like the more elegant magnet thing. And then you just press the little button, feel the haptic shakes. Now I'm recording. Now everything I say I can do. |
| 2:01.6 | Hey, make sure I go through a plan with producer Jacob and Lon about the community manager coming on board and just documenting where all the communities we have for this week in startups, this week in AI, all in, et cetera, founders, Founder University. |
| 2:16.2 | Make sure we just at least document where all the |
| 2:18.1 | communities are so she can hit the ground running. Okay, now I get that on my action item. I'm ready to go. When I drop the plod pin into my little charger here that sits on my desk, look this, Lon, this is a little tiny charger here. When I drop that in, it auto sinks. Yeah. gets on to the Wi-Fi network, the 2.4 Wi-Fi network, |
... |
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