Team

John is a 25-year veteran software CEO and team leader. John has co-founded, grown, managed several recurring revenue software companies and his successful exits include www.absolute.com and www.telmediq.com. John has deep expertise in creating, developing and driving recurring revenue companies. Today, John invests and mentors technology start-ups with a compelling customer value proposition, unique scalable technology and talented team.

Dr. Orest Pilskalns is a pioneer in mapping technology. With degrees in Mathematics and Physics and an MS in Computer Science, he worked initially with Lockheed Martin Astronautics, developing mapping and image recognition software for the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA), before completing his computer science Ph.D at WSU. WSU recruited Orest as a computer science professor where he founded mapwith.us in 2008 with a grant from the Washington Research Foundation; he developed and patented groundbreaking mobile and internet-based mapping technology and went on to found Skyfish in 2014. Since then, Skyfish has built a comprehensive drone hardware and software platform for the precise measuring of critical infrastructure and to carry and operate unique payloads.

Gary holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and has a distinguished career designing military and commercial products that incorporate machine cognition. He served as Vice President and Chief Scientist at Insitu, where he contributed to the design and manufacture of autonomous reconnaissance drones, including the ScanEagle and RQ-21A, both of which are Programs of Record for the U.S. Navy. Following Insitu’s acquisition by Boeing, Gary took on additional responsibilities in joint autonomous systems research. He brings extensive experience in complex product development, research, and production across various industries, including semiconductor, aerospace, defense, chemical, energy, and test and measurement. Gary’s signature expertise lies in developing cognitive software and hardware-based systems for critical autonomous robotic applications.

Bart specializes in electrical design, R&D, and signal processing. Bart leads the development and programming of Skyfish’s custom electronics, including our motherboard, remote controller, and base station board. Bart holds a degree in applied physics from the Fontys University of Technology, where he double minored in computer science and new technology’s smart materials. Before joining Skyfish, Bart helped develop an automatic braking system for smart cars, inks for next-generation industrial inkjet printers, and an experimental set-up for plasma cleaning of X-ray tubes in a vacuum.

Jordan Beyer joined Skyfish in February 2022 and is responsible for managing inventory and manufacturing of the M4 and M6 platforms. Mr. Beyer manages the supply chain and inventory required and supervises the production of all its components. Jordan practices LEAN manufacturing and has the manufacturing facility organized into sub-component assembly lines, much like automobile manufactures. Jordan has an expansive background in aviation. He has a B.S. in Aeronautical Science from Rocky Mountain College, worked aircraft maintenance as an avionics technician on F-15 fighter jets and Bae-146 Aerial firefighting aircraft and holds multiple pilot’s licenses as well as a FAA Airframe mechanics license. In his free time, Jordan enjoys flying his airplane, playing guitar and spending time with his 2 children.

With 30 years of B2B marketing experience Gabrielle has led 3 organizations to successful exits and will be supporting Skyfish’s rapid growth strategy.