Navigating an ocean of data, delivering a world of possibilities. Saildrone is the world’s leading collector of in situ data via uncrewed vehicle, above and below the sea surface.
Saildrone's vision is for a healthy ocean, and a safe, sustainable planet. Our measurements and observations, from above and below the ocean surface, provide intelligence and insight for subjects ranging from maritime security to mapping, to earth system processes such as weather forecasting, carbon cycling, global fishing, and climate change. All of which have a tremendous impact on humanity.
Saildrone designs, manufactures, and operates the world’s most capable, proven, and trusted USVs. Saildrones are wind and solar-powered autonomous surface vehicles which make cost-effective ocean data collection possible at scale. We collect critical marine data, delivered in real-time, from any ocean at any time of year. We are building the world's largest high-resolution ocean data sets, working with governments and private companies around the globe.
Saildrone's patented wing technology was born from 10 years of R&D in pursuit of the land speed record. The company is headquartered in Alameda, CA, and backed by BOND, XN, Standard Investments, Emerson Collective, Crowley Maritime Corporation, Capricorn’s Technology Impact Fund, Lux Capital, Social Capital, Tribe Capital, The Schmidt Family Foundation, and Exor Seeds.
Saildrone is headquartered in Alameda, CA, in a former Naval Air station hangar with direct access to the waters of San Francisco Bay.
Richard Jenkins developed Saildrone’s core technology during a 10-year effort to break the land speed record for wind-powered vehicles, which he achieved in 2009, in Nevada USA, with a speed of 126.2 mph. He then moved to San Francisco and began to apply his now-patented wing technology to uncrewed vehicles capable of collecting high-resolution data in the most remote areas of the ocean. Richard holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College, London.
Barak is a seasoned finance executive with a successful track record of scaling enterprises from early growth stage through profitability and at-scale operations developing and implementing innovative strategies for strategic growth. He has held various CFO, advisory, and senior leadership positions managing M&A, investor relations, finance, tax, HR, legal, facilities, and other G&A functions including strategic forecasting, revenue recognition, core accounting, tax compliance, and talent optimization for privately-held and publicly-traded companies including Sunrun (NASDAQ: RUN), Support.com (NASDAQ: SPRT), and Symphony Talent. Barak has an MBA and Master of Education from Stanford University and a Bachelor of Economics from Harvard University.
Mark brings to Saildrone a wealth of knowledge and experience in advanced manufacturing, lean principles, and operational excellence. He comes to Saildrone from Amazon’s (NASDAQ: AMZN) Last Mile program where he was director of global fleet vehicle design, engineering, and execution. Mark has a proven track record of building teams at startups, established OEMs, and new industry players having previously served in senior leadership roles at Faraday Futures (NASDAQ: FFIE), Webasto, Apple (NASDAQ: APPL), and Tesla Motors (NASDAQ: TSLA). Mark began his career in manufacturing engineering with 15 years at General Motors (NASDAQ: GM), and holds a MS in Engineering Management and BS in Mechanical Engineering.
With a career spanning government and start-up environments, Karen’s specialized legal and policy expertise in advanced technologies, commercial remote sensing, weather, and satellite technologies is a valuable and proven asset as Saildrone’s CLO. She has been formally recognized by the National Security Council, the US Secretary of Commerce, and the Intelligence Community for her leadership of space and technology legal and policy initiatives. Karen holds a JD from George Washington University’s National Law Center specializing in intellectual property and BS degrees in Chemistry and French Studies from Northwestern University.
Brian is an experienced engineering leader, and as CTO at Saildrone, he leads hardware, software, and infrastructure engineering. He has spent over 25 years working in the industry and Silicon Valley as a developer, architect, and engineering leader. Most recently, Brian was Senior Vice President of Software Engineering at Planet Labs, where he helped build the company from a mid-stage startup through its public offering (NASDAQ:PL). Prior to Planet, he held roles at Intel, Palm (WebOS), Symantec, and Netscape. Brian earned a BS in Computer Engineering from the University of Michigan.
Tom brings extensive government experience to Saildrone having spent more than 16 years at the White House, Department of Defense, and on Capitol Hill in various senior roles. Among other positions, he has served as program associate director at the White House Office of Management and Budget, acting assistant secretary of defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Counternarcotics and Global Threats, and as chief counsel for the House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs. Tom is a licensed attorney with a BA from Thomas Aquinas College and a JD from Ave Maria School of Law.
Captain Brian Connon (ret.) served 28 years in the US Navy, in posts including director of the Maritime Safety Office at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, superintendent of the US Naval Observatory, and commanding officer of the Navy’s Fleet Survey Team. Prior to Saildrone, he was director of the Hydrographic Science Research Center at the University of Southern Mississippi. A certified hydrographer, Brian has a MS in Meteorology and Oceanography from the Naval Postgraduate School and an MS in Hydrography from the University of Southern Mississippi. He is a Chartered Marine Scientist (Hydrography) and serves as editor for the International Hydrographic Review.
Robbie is a maritime specialist with 25+ years in professional sailing, fleet management, event production, coaching, and marine education. Prior to joining Saildrone, he was Director of Race Operations at St. Francis Yacht Club and led on-water operations for SailGP. He co-founded the Kite Foil Gold Cup and Hydrofoil Pro Tour, and was head coach of the US Olympic Kiteboarding Team. Robbie currently serves as an advisory board member of the California International Sailing Association.
Jaret brings over 20 years of data center and cloud computing experience to Saildrone. Starting with the company in 2018, he quickly grew into leadership roles overseeing the technical infrastructure department. Prior to joining Saildrone, he spent 14 years at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (NASDAQ: HMHC) where he served in several technical leadership roles. Jaret earned a BS in information systems from Northwestern University.
Alli is an HR professional with 20 years of experience scaling innovative businesses to thrive in hyper-competitive markets. Her accomplishments include driving global people and talent strategy, growing employer brands, and creating inclusive and respectful cultures of excellence. She has helped several fast-growing startups through M&A processes. Her career includes working at Aspera (acquired by NASDAQ: IBM), Deliverr, StumbleUpon, and LeapFrog (NASDAQ: LF). She serves as a strategic advisor to organizational and technical leaders and is known for her tireless ability to execute on big challenges and bring forth successful outcomes.
Diego brings to Saildrone, more than 15 years of international experience, designing, planning, and supporting business growth strategies, operational expansions, and cross-functional programs, especially in fast-paced business environments and at scale. His core areas of expertise are strategic finance, FP&A, and strategic planning, all developed at the intersection of strategy, sales, operations, and finance, leveraged by strong business partnership principles. Diego holds a MS in Finance and a BS in Economics.
David’s career spans small and large manufacturing companies introducing, ramping up, and building high-tech products for Silicon Valley companies. He has held various senior leadership roles in manufacturing and production, including at Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO), Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), and Wrightspeed. David has a Bachelor of Engineering from the University of Auckland and an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley.
Kim is a leader with a track record of designing and delivering products for big data visualization, integration, and analysis across commercial and government sectors. She comes to Saildrone from Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ: PLTR), where she worked in business operations and strategy, and product management. She has a double Bachelor of Science in Civil/Environmental Engineering and Urban Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Blythe is a team-focused problem solver with excellent experimental, quantitative, and analytical skills and extensive experience in software development for robotics, machine learning, engineering design, and research and development. Prior to joining Saildrone, she held senior roles at Shield AI and NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA), where she led teams that developed and integrated machine-learned perception models critical to real-time robot autonomy, as well as at Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM). Blythe earned an MS and PhD in Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University and a BS in Electrical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Hans brings more than 10 years of leadership experience in defense and commercial technical operations to Saildrone. Previously, Hans held senior operational roles at Anduril Industries and Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), where he created and led teams to rapidly grow operations for complex technology products. His professional career began as an artillery officer in the Marine Corps, leading cross-functional teams in operational execution throughout two overseas deployments. Hans graduated with merit from the US Naval Academy earning BS degrees in naval architecture and English.
