Meet the Crew: Mollie Martin, Director of GTM Strategy

Meet Mollie Martin, our new Director of Go-To-Market Strategy.

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Mollie’s journey into the space industry wasn’t conventional—she studied politics, started her career in consulting, and found herself drawn into the fast-evolving world of space technology. At Deloitte, she played a key role in launching initiatives that connected space startups with major industries, helping businesses unlock the power of Earth Observation (EO) data. Now at Privateer, she’s focused on making EO insights more accessible and reshaping how organizations use satellite data.

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In this conversation, Mollie shares how she went from scouting startups to diving headfirst into the space economy, what makes Privateer’s approach to EO different, and why she believes the key to growth lies in keeping an eye on both the upstream and downstream sides of the industry.

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Dive into Mollie’s journey:

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Can you share a bit about your background and how you got into space tech?

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I started my career at Deloitte, where I spent five and a half years. Initially, I was part of the Deloitte Ventures team, and space tech became my focus because it was an emerging area. My role was to understand what was happening in the space industry—there was a lot of investment and media attention, but we needed to determine what it actually meant for Deloitte and its clients.

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We launched an accelerator program called Gravity Challenge, which connected FTSE 100 clients with space tech innovators to solve business problems using Earth Observation (EO) data. As that matured, we built our own capability and launched a space practice in the strategy business, which I later joined.
By then, I was completely hooked on space. I even did an interview for Deloitte where I said, “It’s space for now, but it’ll be something else tomorrow.” But, in reality, I couldn’t walk away.

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What was your role at Deloitte’s space practice?

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My focus was on the venture ecosystem—working with high-growth space startups and scale-ups on their growth journey while also helping traditional clients (in industries like agriculture, insurance, energy, and financial services) adopt EO-enabled solutions and insights.

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One of the things I’ve carried forward into my work at Privateer is the need to stay aware of advancements in the broader space industry. Even though we focus on EO for downstream applications, it’s critical to understand upstream developments—like in-orbit servicing—because they impact the availability, cost, and accessibility of EO data.

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How did you first connect with Privateer?

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I met Diana Klochkova, Privateer’s CMO, about 18 months ago when she reached out on LinkedIn. She wanted to discuss Privateer’s potential entry into the EO market. After our conversation, I remember going home and saying, “I want to work for this company.” Privateer’s approach to EO adoption was different from anything I had seen—they were truly focused on the end user.

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What do you mean by “focused on the end user”? How is Privateer’s approach different?

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Traditionally, EO has been used by experts—people with geospatial backgrounds, ex-military professionals, or GIS specialists using legacy tools like ESRI. The process was fragmented: you’d process data on one platform, extract insights separately, and then present findings elsewhere.

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Privateer is making EO insights accessible to everyday data analysts who don’t have a geospatial background. We’re building an end-to-end journey where satellite imagery is fused with other data sources and integrated seamlessly into business intelligence workflows. The goal is to remove complexity so more industries can leverage EO insights for real-world decisions.

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You studied politics—how did you go from that to working on EO analytics and go-to-market strategy?

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At university, I was always interested in how emerging technologies shape policy. My undergraduate dissertation explored how discourse influences AI policy in the U.S. and China. At the time, AI wasn’t as mainstream as it is now, but I was fascinated by how technology impacts decision-making.

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After graduating, I became a consultant at Deloitte to keep my options open. I started in digital transformation but quickly realized it wasn’t as hands-on with emerging tech as I had hoped. Deloitte is a massive company, so I looked for something within its walls that aligned with my interests. That led me to Deloitte Ventures, where I scouted startups for potential investments and partnerships.

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The space industry wasn’t my original plan—I took a role managing an accelerator for space startups, thinking, “I don’t know anything about space, but I’d love to work with startups.” But the more I learned, the more I was drawn in. Over four years, I saw the industry shift from a rigid, government-driven sector to a thriving ecosystem of entrepreneurs and investors. Eventually, I realized I wanted to be part of the space economy’s growth as an operator in a high-growth space-tech startup.

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What’s it been like transitioning to Privateer?

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It’s been a deep dive from day one—which is what you expect at a Series A startup! My first week involved responding to a competition in Saudi Arabia.
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At Deloitte, I worked with the UK Space Agency accelerator, helping founders refine their pitch decks and secure funding. That experience has definitely helped in my transition here, especially as we shape Privateer’s next phase.

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What do you do for fun?

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I’m pretty classic—I love going out for dinner with friends and taking hiking holidays. It seems like everyone in their 30s starts loving hiking trips! Also, I’m obsessed with Catan—I got into it during lockdown, and my friends and I still play all the time.

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But what really makes me tick is seeing people deeply engaged in what they do. I can’t imagine having a job where I just clock out at 5 p.m. and forget about it. For me, work is all-consuming in the best way.