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MIKE RICCI
Chief Technology Officer, Board Chairman

Mike Ricci is the driving force behind LaunchPoint’s “Propulsion By Wire” electric aircraft propulsion system and has spent the last decade leading projects developing hybrid-electric propulsion technologies. He is actively engaged with the aerospace research community and is a regular contributor and speaker at electric aviation conferences and workshops. Mr. Ricci has extensive experience in power electronics; electromagnetic and mechanical systems; embedded software development; and control system design. As the systems designer Mr. Ricci uses model-based design combined with nonlinear optimization to successfully design products ranging from ventricular assist devices and oxygen concentrators, to hybrid electric aviation propulsion systems. He has served as VP of Engineering at LaunchPoint Technologies Inc. and has worked as a mechanical engineer with Spectra F/X, a theme park engineering company, where he served as Project Engineer on large custom systems with high cycle rates, intimate man-machine interfaces, and high human-safety concerns. Mr. Ricci holds an MS in Control Systems Engineering from UCSB and a BS in Engineering in Applied Sciences from Caltech.

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MARK MAIRE
Board Member

Mark Maire is CEO of Cassini Technologies and brings over 30 years of business leadership to LaunchPoint.
Mark previously served as Chief Revenue Officer of TrueVision Systems, Inc. Mark developed TrueVision’s partner strategy which created the first cash positive quarters. Mark brought in both Alcon ($7B spin-off from Novartis) and Aesculap ($2B division of B. Braun) as key strategic partners ultimately selling the ophthalmology assets to Alcon. The spin-off neurosurgery company, Digital Surgery Systems, is positioned for acquisition.
Mark also serves on the board of SURJ Instruments, a surgical microscopy start-up. He is a graduate of The University of Michigan.

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BURTON TRIPATHI, Ph.D.
Board Member

Dr. Burton Tripathi, CEO of Beyeonics Vision, brings with him over two decades of leadership experience, specializing in developing disruptive technologies, leading commercialization efforts, and facilitating M&A. Having served as CEO of TrueVision Systems Inc., he concluded the sale and integration of TrueVision with Alcon.
Before his tenure with TrueVision Systems, Dr. Tripathi worked with the Lap-Band® business at Allergan, Inc. (previously Inamed Corp.) and robotic surgery devices at Intuitive Surgical (previously Computer Motion, Inc.). At the start of his career, Dr. Tripathi worked as a Management Consultant with the firm of McKinsey & Co. where he focused on High-Tech, Life Sciences, and Corporate Finance.
Dr. Tripathi is a published scientific author, an inventor with 30 issued patents, and a frequently invited speaker. He received his Ph.D. and M.S. from the California Institute of Technology in Mechanical Engineering/Material Science and his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University.

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NAZEEH SHAHEEN
Chief Operations Officer

Mr. Nazeeh Shaheen is a high technology professional with over three decades of proven successes. Nazeeh’s career has included leadership positions in executive management, business development, program management, project engineering, engineering management, operations, quality management systems, regulatory affairs and digital design. Nazeeh has worked most of his career in the defense market but has also performed in leadership roles in the data networking, ocean science and medical device markets. This broad experience base includes very large Tier 1 defense companies as well as building teams at early stage startups such as LaunchPoint. As the COO, Nazeeh will serve as an officer of the company and will lead LaunchPoint’s Engineering, Operations, Program Management and QA functions. Nazeeh holds a MS in Engineering Management from the West Coast University and a BS in Electronics Engineering Technology from the Ohio Institute of Technology.

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CYRUS MORICI
Chief Financial Officer

Cy Morici is a finance professional with over two decades of finance and accounting expertise. He was CFO for Pacific Design Technologies (PDT) and positioned the company for a successful exit to AMETEK for $125mm one and half years into his tenure.
Prior to PDT, Cy led the finance function for NuSil Technology – the global leader in specialty silicone manufacturing. He transformed the accounting function from a basic transaction level focused department to a full-service finance service organization. Among his successes, Cy contributed due diligence for two strategic/highly accretive acquisitions, assisted with raising over $700mm through JP Morgan and Credit Suisse, and led the IPO readiness initiative to file the Form S-1 with the SEC.
Cy held various financial roles at public, private, private equity backed organizations, and is a Big-4 accounting firm alumnus.

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BRIAN CLARK
​Executive Vice President, Business Development and Sales

Brian Clark serves as the Executive Vice President of Business Development and Sales at LaunchPoint, where he drives the company’s growth strategy and market positioning.
In this role, Brian leads efforts to shape LaunchPoint’s trajectory through the development of strategic partnerships, the identification of emerging markets and technologies, and the formulation of targeted capture strategies and innovation roadmaps. He plays a critical role in financial modeling and revenue forecasting, ensuring alignment between market opportunities, resource allocation, and long-term growth objectives. His oversight extends to authoring and evaluating proposals, optimizing budgets, and ensuring schedules meet strategic priorities.
In tandem with the senior management team, Brian is dedicated to the development and deployment of LaunchPoint’s cutting-edge technology strategy, driving the continual evolution of market-driven solutions for the aerospace and defense industries. Brian holds a BS in Applied Physics from California State University Channel Islands.

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LARRY R. SMITH
Senior Defense Advisor

U.S. Navy Captain Larry Smith recently completed a distinguished 24-year military career, retiring in October 2024. He served as a Naval Aviator and Department of Defense (DoD) Acquisition Executive, with his final role as the Director of the F-35 Propulsion Systems Program Office, a Tier-1, $15B DoD acquisition program. He led and managed the propulsion systems’ cost, schedule, and performance for all three F-35 variants throughout the lifecycle for three US services, seven Partner Nations, and seven FMS customers. Before this, he was the Lead Systems Engineer for the Navy’s F-35C, overseeing a team of 300 engineers and achieving global airworthiness certification. Captain Smith holds a BS in Aeronautical Engineering from the United States Naval Academy and an MS in Astronautical Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School. He was recognized with numerous awards, including the 2023 Department of the Navy Program Manager of the Year.

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BRAD PADEN, Ph.D.
Founder and Chief Scientist

Dr. Brad Paden is an active technical team member, advises on business strategy and operations, and participates in recruiting business and technical talent to EPS. As the former CEO of LaunchPoint Technologies Inc. (the parent company of LaunchPoint Electric Propulsion Solutions), he negotiated the license of LaunchPoint’s artificial heart technology to World Heart Inc. (now Medtronic/HeartWare) and managed the business aspects of LaunchPoint’s founding equity positions in Inogen Inc. and Gravity Power, LLC. Dr. Paden is Professor Emeritus at UC Santa Barbara and a Fellow of the IEEE, ASME, and AIMBE. He was the recipient of the ASME 2010 Charles S. Draper Innovative Practice Award; the 2001 IEEE Control Systems Society Technology Award; and the 1993 Kalman Best Paper Award from the ASME Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement, and Control. Dr. Paden has co-authored over 100 publications and holds 27 patents in the field of engineering systems. He holds PhD, MS and BS Engineering degrees from UC Berkeley.

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WILLIAM IRBY
Advisory Board Member

William (Bill) Irby is an aerospace and defense veteran with nearly three decades of experience leading teams and coaching people to create growth in profitable defense enterprises.
Bill currently serves as President at AgEagle Aerial Systems. Prior to AgEagle, Bill was President at MTI Motion, President of Reconnaissance Mission Systems at L3Harris Technologies, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Textron Systems’ Unmanned Aircraft Systems business, and Vice President of two business units at Northrop Grumman.
Prior to its acquisition by Shield AI, Bill served as Chief Operating Officer of Martin UAV and was responsible for helping drive the company’s growth initiatives within the defense and commercial markets. Bill joined the Shield team after serving as a key executive team member achieving a successful close of the sale.
He holds a BS in Engineering from US Naval Academy, MS in Technical Management from Johns Hopkins University, and Executive Certificate for the General Management Program at Harvard Business School. He also serves as Chairman of the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and Advisory Board Member for Ghost Robotics, Secmation, and LaunchPoint Electric Propulsion Solutions.

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ROB McDONALD, Ph.D.
Advisory Board Member

Dr. Rob McDonald is a highly regarded Advanced Air Mobility industry technical advisor and mentor working with eVTOL aircraft developers at the Board and C-levels. He is a long-time contributor to the LaunchPoint multi-disciplinary MAAP™ tools for propulsion design, stemming from his tenure as Uber Elevate as Head of Vehicle Engineering. Dr. McDonald spent more than a decade as a Cal Poly Aerospace Engineering professor. Dr. McDonald is a technical expert in aircraft design and performance including eVTOL and conventional electric aircraft; he is the primary developer of OpenVSP, a widely used tool for conceptual aircraft design. Dr. McDonald is an Associate Fellow in AIAA, member of the AIAA Aircraft Design TC, founding member of the AIAA Transformational Flight IC, and a member of the Vertical Flight Society eVTOL TC. He received a M.S. and Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

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Lawrence J. Taggart is currently LaunchPoint Electric Propulsion Solutions’ Senior Defense Industry Advisor. Prior to his advisory Larry was the Company’s Vice President of Sales. 2016 through 2021, he was employed by Pacific Design Technologies as its Vice President of Sales until their acquisition by Ametek. Before 2016, Mr. Taggart served as PDT’s Interim Director of Business Development, from 2013 while at the same time he owned and operated Advanced Technology Solutions, a successful independent consulting firm in the aerospace/defense industry, which he established in 1994. Mr. Taggart brings to bear for his clients over forty years of experience in business development, application engineering, program management and contracting disciplines. Mr. Taggart has an extensive engineering background in thermal management, fluid power and filtration technologies, with real world solutions on a myriad of air and ground-based platforms. Mr. Taggart has been associated with such high-profile defense programs as the F-16 APG-68 & APG-83 radars and Sniper Pod, F-18G EW (ALQ99 & Next Generation Jammer), ALMDS, M1A2 Abrams SEP, USMC’ Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle, MRAP, FCS, Ship to Shore Connector and Mars Curiosity and Perseverance Rovers. He is also well versed in compliance requirements for Federal government procurements, including DFAR & ITAR. Prior to 1994, Mr. Taggart was Vice President of Marketing, for FCD Corporation in Hamden, CT, which excelled in the design and manufacture of vapor cycle and heat transfer systems for the aerospace / defense marketplace.