Ex-OpenAI exec Kevin Weil joins Stoke Space board

Kevin Weil has been added to the board of Seattle‑based rocket maker Stoke Space, a move that signals the startup’s push to scale its reusable launch vehicle program.

Board appointment follows years of fundraising support

Stoke CEO Andy Lapsa said he first met Weil when he co‑founded the company in 2020 and joined Y Combinator’s winter batch. “I came out of engineering, started a company, had no idea how to fundraise. I had no idea how Silicon Valley worked. I had no network,” Lapsa told the outlet. “Kevin … comes with all of that background and was able to help me think about fundraising and getting the company off the ground.”

Weil and his wife Elizabeth, through their fund Scribble Ventures, were early investors in Stoke. Their involvement continued as the firm raised $1.34 billion, including a $510 million Series D round in 2025, to develop a rocket capable of rapid reuse. With that capital in place, Lapsa said the timing was right for Weil to join the board as a director and aid the firm’s next growth phase.

Stoke declined comment on the appointment, and he did not respond to outreach attempts.

Why a former OpenAI leader matters to a rocket startup

Weil’s recent career has been rooted in digital products rather than aerospace. He led OpenAI’s effort to accelerate scientific research before the program was broadened across the organization in April, and he served as OpenAI’s chief product officer from June 2024 to October 2025. Reporters noted that Sam Altman, OpenAI’s chief executive, had explored a possible investment in Stoke last year, positioning the AI lab as a potential partner for a SpaceX rival.

Lapsa declined to comment on “gossip and rumors” about OpenAI, emphasizing that Weil’s role is focused on Stoke’s own challenges. The startup is developing a vehicle called Nova, which it claims will be fully reusable—a capability that has only been approached by SpaceX’s Starship.

Stoke’s approach aims to solve the thermal‑stress problem that has deterred many investors from backing fully reusable launchers. Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin has experimented with similar concepts, but it has not made rapid reuse a core priority.

The company also envisions space‑based data centers that could sidestep terrestrial political constraints. Such facilities would rely on cheap, frequent launches, a scenario that only makes economic sense if rockets can be turned around quickly.

Weil previously served as president of Planet Labs, the satellite‑imaging firm that went public in 2021, and he served in the U.S. Army Reserve where he helped bridge Silicon Valley and defense procurement. Those experiences could prove valuable as Stoke seeks military contracts, a market segment that often provides steady revenue for launch companies.

Comparing this appointment to past board additions in the sector, it mirrors a pattern where startups bring in executives with strong fundraising and government‑liaison credentials rather than pure aerospace expertise. That trend reflects the reality that building a launch vehicle today is as much about securing capital and regulatory approvals as it is about engineering breakthroughs.

The firm hopes its rapid‑reuse rocket will eventually lower launch costs and open new markets, from commercial satellite deployment to potential space‑based computing platforms.