“When there are more objects in space, you essentially need air traffic control … to coordinate and make sure these things
don’t hit each other,” Matt Lugo explains from behind a wooden conference table, the surface of which is dotted with gold paint mapping the constellations. This is where Matt works as an aerospace engineer for space data startup Privateer, a company founded in 2021 and headquartered within LĪPOA.
Matt grew up on Maui, and as a child, he never imagined that he’d one day build a career helping humans and satellites navigate Earth’s progressively crowded orbit. Even in high school, he loved math and physics but had no idea that aerospace engineering was a possibility. Then Matt’s world opened up in 2022, when he joined Privateer – and began to learn about Maui’s rapidly expanding aerospace industry. He’s now passionate about ensuring that Maui’s keiki today know that they can also one day work to meld artificial intelligence and satellite imagery to shed light on the safety of Earth’s lands and oceans — from spotting illegal fishing, to mapping the scope of deforestation that threatens the air we breathe, to tracking damage from the 2023 Maui fires.
“It is the right thing to do for anybody to be a part of their community,” Matt says, “and give back to the place that they’re from, just like the place that you’re from gives back to you.”