The First Thing Built on the Moon Will Come from Austin | Jason Ballard & Will Hurd, ICON
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In this episode of Austin Next, Jason Ballard and Will Hurd of ICON explore the transformative potential of robotic 3D printing in construction, from solving the global housing crisis to building military barracks and ultimately constructing the first structures on the moon. Jason, co-founder of ICON, traces the company's mission back to a fundamental belief: shelter is a basic human need that has been neglected by outdated, inefficient building methods. Over eight years, ICON has developed Titan, a multi-story 3D printer that builds homes in a week with two people—half the cost and with superior fire and wind resistance compared to traditional methods. The company has pivoted into three distinct business units: ICON Build (own construction projects), ICON Technology (licensing the robots and software to builders), and ICON Prime (focused on government and defense clients). Will Hurd, former CIA officer and congressman, brings a national security lens, highlighting how ICON’s technology is already being used to rapidly build barracks for the U.S. military—cutting construction time from two years to six months and slashing costs by half—while also preparing for extreme environments like the Arctic and underwater. The conversation culminates in a bold vision: the first structure on the moon will be built using ICON’s Olympus printer, leveraging in-situ materials like lunar regolith, with a target of 2028. The episode underscores how solving physical-world problems through AI, robotics, and material science is not just possible but essential—and that Austin, Texas, has become the epicenter of this frontier innovation. The episode delivers a powerful message: humanity’s most pressing challenges—affordable housing, military readiness, and space exploration—are not mutually exclusive. Breakthroughs in one domain fuel progress in others. ICON’s journey from a seed-stage idea to a multi-billion-dollar national security and space partner illustrates how persistent, mission-driven innovation can overcome regulatory inertia, funding skepticism, and technological skepticism. The hosts emphasize that the future isn’t just about software—it’s about building better, faster, and more resilient physical structures. With Austin emerging as a global hub for hard tech, deep tech, and frontier innovation, the episode ends on an electrifying note: the next chapter of human progress is being built—right now—on Earth and beyond.
Robotic 3D printing can build homes in one week for half the cost of traditional methods, with superior durability and safety.
ICON’s three-tiered business model—Build, Technology, and Prime—enables scalable impact across housing, defense, and space.
The U.S. military is already using ICON’s technology to build barracks in six months instead of two years, with 70% lower labor and cost.
The first structure on the moon will be built using a general-purpose robot (Olympus) that uses lunar regolith, not materials shipped from Earth.
Innovation in extreme environments (like the moon or underwater) is accelerating terrestrial construction through shared learnings and material science.
…and 2 more takeaways available in PodZeus
The Foundation of Human Progress: Shelter as a Basic Need
“Food, water and shelter are like very fundamental human needs. And it's very hard to imagine that the future can be incredible for like sort of just not caring for ourselves at a very basic level.”
ICON’s Core Technology: From 3D Printing to Full-Stack Construction
“An icon wall system by comparison takes one week and two people and $20 a square foot. And you get two hour fire rating, 200 mile an hour wind rating.”
The Three Pillars of ICON: Build, Technology, and Prime
“We're not just handing you a printer telling you good luck. We're like delivering you kind of in total a new way to build.”
Military Innovation: Building Barracks Faster, Safer, and Cheaper
“The fact that the number of barracks, I think we can build over 900 barracks over the next five years. And we're doing it right now in four months.”
The Moon Base Vision: In-Situ Construction on the Lunar Surface
“The latest numbers I have in my head are like something like $14,000 a pound to get things to the surface of the moon. We ran the numbers... It would have costed like over $2 billion to build a 350 square foot house at those prices.”
“The latest numbers I have in my head are like something like $14,000 a pound to get things to the surface of the moon. We ran the numbers... It would have costed like over $2 billion to build a 350 square foot house at those prices.”
“An icon wall system by comparison takes one week and two people and $20 a square foot. And you get two hour fire rating, 200 mile an hour wind rating.”
“It's China's job to destabilize us. It's our job to be stable.”
Host
Guests
ICON
organization
Austin
place
NASA
organization
Jason Ballard
person
Will Hurd
person
U.S. Military
organization
Titan
product
Olympus
product
Boca Chica
place
Fort Bliss
place
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