[seanmcdirmid]

> 1. The CNSA is severely underfunded in recent years, to the extent that a considerable amount of space tech graduates went directly into other more "lucrative" fields such as the IT industry.

To be fair, NASA has the same problem. Rocket science just doesn’t pay as well as a FAANG programming job, even if you are trained up for the former. At lot of fields that traditionally attracted smart people are suffering similar issues.

[Jeff_Brown]

On the other hand, NASA ends up with people who really care about space, whereas FAANG have a lot of employees whose hearts are not in the mission. Money can do wonders for motivation, of course, but it has its limits.

[seanmcdirmid]

Yes, but don’t think our industry’s success hasn’t had some negative effects on the others.

[Jeff_Brown]

Absolutely. The enthusiasm effect compensates, but not completely.