Jordan Noone
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General Partner, Embedded Ventures
Jordan Noone | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | November 30, 1992 |
| Education | University of Southern California (BS) |
| Employer(s) | Relativity Space, Embedded Ventures |
| Title | Co-Founder, Founding CTO, and Executive Advisor of Relativity Space General Partner, Embedded Ventures |
Jordan Noone (born 1992) is an American aerospace engineer and the Founding CTO of Relativity Space. He is now a General Partner at Embedded Ventures[1] which he co-founded in 2020 with Jenna Bryant.[2]
Noone became the first student and youngest individual in the world to get Federal Aviation Administration clearance to fly a rocket to space while leading the Rocket Propulsion Lab at the University of Southern California.[3] Noone is also active in the advocacy space; In January 2025, Noone initiated a petition to change the United States Postal Service's slogan to "Pushing the Envelope," aiming to modernize the organization's image and emphasize its commitment to innovation and progress.
Career
Blue Origin
In 2013, after his junior year at the University of Southern California, Noone interned with Blue Origin's propulsion group.[4]
SpaceX
After graduating from the University of Southern California, Noone was hired by SpaceX as an In-Space Propulsion Development Engineer.[5]
Relativity Space
Noone co-founded Relativity Space, a company building a 3D printer for rockets, with Tim Ellis in 2015. As of October 2019, the company had raised $185 million in equity and grew to over 170 employees.[6]
In September 2020, Noone stepped down as the CTO of Relativity Space, becoming an Executive Advisor to the company.[7]
Embedded Ventures
In 2020, Noone co-founded Embedded Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on investing in dual-use space startups that support both commercial and national security applications. The firm seeks to bridge the gap between Silicon Valley innovation and the needs of the U.S. Department of Defense, with particular emphasis on early-stage companies working in areas such as in-space manufacturing, energy, and logistics. In 2021, Embedded Ventures signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. Space Force to align venture capital investment with national security priorities.[8] In January 2023, the firm announced the launch of its first fund, totaling $100 million, to support startups advancing technologies that can serve both civilian and military purposes.[9]
Zoo (formerly KittyCAD)
In 2021, Noone co-founded KittyCAD, a company focused on building programmable, API-first tools for mechanical computer-aided design (CAD). The company aimed to modernize hardware design workflows by offering a GPU-native geometry engine and developer-friendly APIs.[10]
In 2023, KittyCAD rebranded as Zoo and launched new tools including ML-ephant, a machine learning API, and Text-to-CAD, which enables users to generate 3D models from natural language input.[11]
Noone currently holds a position of Executive Chairman for Zoo, a role he assumed in 2022 when Jessie Frazelle joined the company as CEO.