Former OpenAI executive Kevin Weil joins Stoke Space board

In short: Kevin Weil, a former OpenAI executive, has joined the board of Stoke Space, a Seattle startup working on a fully reusable rocket.

What happened

Stoke Space said Kevin Weil is now a director on its board. A board is a small group that helps guide a company’s big decisions, like strategy and fundraising.

Weil is a longtime tech executive who has worked at Twitter, Meta, Planet Labs, and OpenAI. At OpenAI, he previously served as chief product officer and later led work meant to speed up scientific research. TechCrunch reported that he left OpenAI in April.

Stoke Space is building a rocket called Nova. The company’s goal is “full, rapid reuse,” meaning the whole rocket is meant to fly, come back, and fly again, like an airplane instead of a one-time-use firework. Stoke’s CEO, Andy Lapsa, told TechCrunch that Weil helped early on as an investor and adviser, including with fundraising.

TechCrunch also noted that Stoke has raised $1.34 billion in total funding, including a $510 million Series D round in 2025. Stoke declined to make Weil available for an interview, and he did not respond to TechCrunch.

Why it matters

Cheaper, more frequent rocket launches could affect more than space tourism. It could lower the cost of putting satellites and other equipment into orbit, and it could matter for government and military contracts. If Stoke can make a fully reusable rocket work reliably, it could become another major option in a market where demand for launches is growing.

Source: TechCrunch AI