Moonshot Rodeo 2026: After-Action Report
Last weekend, four teams gathered for the latest iteration of Moonshot Rodeo — our flagship rapid prototyping event. The challenge: design and build a functional system that addresses a real-world defense capability gap, from concept to demonstration, in 72 hours.
The Challenge
This year's problem set focused on autonomous navigation in GPS-denied environments. Teams had access to a standard hardware kit including single-board computers, IMUs, cameras, and basic fabrication tools. Everything else — the architecture, the algorithms, the integration — was up to them.
What Happened
The results exceeded expectations. All four teams delivered working demonstrations:
- Team Alpha built a vision-based SLAM system using stereo cameras and a custom sensor fusion pipeline
- Team Bravo took a different approach with ultra-wideband beacons and dead reckoning
- Team Charlie developed a hybrid solution combining visual odometry with magnetic field mapping
- Team Delta focused on simplicity — a robust dead reckoning system with periodic correction from known landmarks
Lessons Learned
Every Moonshot Rodeo reinforces the same truth: constraints drive creativity. When you remove the option to over-engineer, teams find elegant solutions they would never have considered with unlimited time and resources.
Key takeaways:
- Start with the demo. Teams that defined their demonstration criteria first made better architectural decisions.
- Integration beats perfection. The winning team didn't have the best individual subsystems — they had the best integration plan.
- Sleep is a weapon system. The team that managed their rest schedule outperformed those who pulled all-nighters.
What's Next
We're already planning the next Moonshot Rodeo. If you're interested in participating or sponsoring, reach out to us.