Nicolaus Radford is the Co-Founder and CEO of Persona AI, with more than 25 years of experience designing, developing, and commercializing advanced robotics technologies for space, defense, and industry. Previously, Mr. Radford founded Nauticus Robotics, a NASDAQ-listed maritime robotics company, and has developed and deployed autonomous underwater vehicles and autonomous surface ships.

Mr. Radford also founded Jacobi Motors, an electric motor company serving traction motor markets. He also founded and serves as Managing Partner of Rad Capital Ventures, a successful hedge fund exposed to trading electricity. Prior to founding all his technology ventures, Mr. Radford spent 15 years at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, where he led several of the agency’s robotics initiatives for future spaceflight missions and International Space Station experiments, including the Valkyrie and Robonaut programs. During his NASA tenure, he was awarded numerous patents, design honors, and commendations, culminating in receiving NASA’s Outstanding Leadership Medal, one of NASA’s highest honors. In 2023, he was named one of Purdue University’s Outstanding Electrical Engineers, an award given to only five alumni annually. Mr. Radford has published several publications on robotics and contributed to Springer’s Handbook of Humanoid Robotics. He holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Purdue University and is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Business Administration at the University of Houston.