The bottleneck for space isn't rockets anymore, it’s real estate.

In this episode, we sit down with Skyler, the founder of GRU Space (YC W26), the company building the first hotel on the moon.

We dive deep into why the "hotel" is actually a strategic wedge for lunar infrastructure, how they plan to manufacture bricks using moon dust (Regolith), and why NASA is pivoting its $20B budget toward off-world habitation.

What you’ll learn:

• Why "In-Situ Resource Utilization" (ISRU) is the key to a space-faring civilization.
• The YC interview strategy that won over a skeptical partner.
• How to engineer $0 PR and generate billions of impressions.
• The "SpaceX Parallel": How to work backward from a massive goal.
• Why brands like Coca-Cola and Nike are eyeing lunar naming rights.

📌 Watch now and subscribe for more smart, fast, founder-first interviews.

Chapters:

00:00 Next Bottleneck Habitats

00:26 YC Roaster Sponsor Break

01:16 Meet GRU Space

02:43 Moon Bricks From Regolith

03:30 Skyler Origin Story

05:56 Why Humans Not Just Robots

07:44 Moon Hotel As Economic Wedge

10:43 Mars City Backwards Plan

13:03 NASA Funding Lunar Rush

15:54 Reservations Timeline 2032

16:42 Handling Haters And Noise

18:52 Ignore the Haters

19:47 YC Interview Story

23:21 Engineering Virality

27:18 Why It Went Global

29:00 Pricing and Founder Lessons

30:42 Branding on Moon Bricks

33:44 Souvenirs and Sign Off

🎧 Listen on the go:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1u1JyRKH8JYFjhBkvTUOAP

Apple: https://apple.co/4cZ8RMm

My other YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@lobstercap

This Lobster Talks episode is brought to you by YC Roaster, a free tool helping founders improve their YC applications.

🔗 https://ycroaster.com