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Saildrone is thrilled to welcome two new leaders to our executive team: Jen Betz as Chief Financial Officer and Uma Subramanian as Chief Business Officer.
Betz and Subramanian bring deep operational experience and a shared passion for building high-tech products that support national security. These appointments support an exciting new chapter of growth for Saildrone, anchored in operational commercial discipline to deliver the next generation of autonomous systems to our warfighters and defenders.
“Uma and Jen bring a wealth of experience in advanced manufacturing and operations to help fuel our next chapter of rapid growth,” said Richard Jenkins, Saildrone founder and CEO. “As we scale our fleet to meet the needs of the US Navy, US Coast Guard, and allied partner nations, operational efficiency will be paramount. I am very excited to have experienced operators like Jen and Uma to bring additional firepower to the leadership team.”
Jen Betz – Chief Financial Officer
As CFO, Betz will lead Saildrone’s global finance strategy, capital planning, and operational controls. She brings more than two decades of financial leadership experience across the energy and semiconductor sectors, most recently as CFO of Element Energy. Her background includes driving strategic planning and corporate controller at Maxim Integrated, where she helped scale businesses through rapid growth, capital transitions, and strategic transformation, all of which are core to Saildrone’s next phase.
As CFO, Jen will lead all aspects of financial strategy and execution, from long-range planning to capital efficiency and compliance.
“Saildrone’s category-leading technology and inspired team are redefining what’s possible in autonomous maritime capabilities,” said Betz. “I’m excited to help build the financial foundation that supports the company’s scale, innovation, and long-term mission success.”
Uma Subramanian – Chief Business Officer
Subramanian joins as CBO to lead Saildrone’s business and internal product functions. She has over 20 years of experience in aerospace and defense, and has worked for major contractors including Northrop Grumman, Rolls-Royce, Ultra Electronics, and Airbus. Prior to joining Saildrone, Subramanian was the founding CEO of Aero Technologies, a next-generation air carrier for the experience economy. She also founded Voom.Flights, an Airbus company, which built the world’s first network for Urban Air Mobility in São Paulo and Mexico City. Most recently, she was the chief operating officer of Glydways, a company tasked with rethinking modern public transit.
“Saildrone is tackling some of the world’s most pressing challenges with bold innovation. I’m excited to help grow and support the incredible team that’s making it all happen,” said Subramanian.
Subramanian holds an undergraduate degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
Scaling to Meet Operational Demand
Saildrone’s fleet of uncrewed surface vehicles (USVs) operates 24/7 in the world’s most strategic and remote maritime regions—delivering persistent surveillance, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), acoustic monitoring, and environmental intelligence in all conditions. With more than 50,000 days at sea, Saildrone platforms are already transforming maritime domain awareness for US and allied forces.
