In 1969, we landed on the moon and flew Concorde. Half a century later, we could do neither.
Blake Scholl founded Boom Supersonic (YC W16), the startup building America’s first supersonic airliner, to change that. At Startup School 2026, he shares how a cardboard mockup with Office Depot seats became XB-1, the first independently developed jet to break the sound barrier, and why founders have to build for both the worst day and the best day.
He also answers founder questions about teaching yourself hard things, breaking into hardware without the right resume, and finding work-life harmony while building something ambitious.
Transcript: https://www.ycrootaccess.com/p/blake-scholl-the-future-was-supposed
Apply to Y Combinator: https://www.ycombinator.com/apply
Work at a startup: https://www.ycombinator.com/jobs
Chapters:
00:08 — Why the Future Stopped Moving Faster
03:14 — Why I Started Boom Supersonic
05:57 — Building a Supersonic Jet From Scratch
08:33 — The Worst Day and the Best Day
10:14 — How We Changed US Law
11:36 — How 50 People Built a Supersonic Jet
15:05 — Designing Hardware Like Software
17:54 — Financing a Multi-Billion-Dollar Startup
19:30 — Great Ideas Are Hiding in Plain Sight
24:05 — How AI Is Changing Hardware
27:16 — Working With Regulators
30:55 — Build Something You Love
36:27 — How to Build Confidence
39:35 — Learning Hard Things From First Principles
44:17 — When Should You Start a Company?
