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Brett Adcock

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Brett Adcock
Adcock in 2022
Born (1986-04-06) April 6, 1986 (age 38)
Moweaqua, Illinois, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Florida
OccupationTechnology entrepreneur
Years active2008–present
Known forFounder of Archer Aviation,[1][2] Vettery,[3] Figure AI,[4] and Cover[5]
TitleCEO at Figure AI
Children2
Websitebrettadcock.com

Brett Adcock (born April 6, 1986) is an American technology entrepreneur[6] and the founder and CEO of Figure AI, an AI startup working on a general-purpose humanoid robot.[7][8][9] In 2018, Adcock co-founded Archer Aviation with CEO Adam Goldstein,[10][11][12][13] five years after he started Vettery.[14][15][16][17][18] In 2022, Adock was removed from his position at Archer by the Board of Directors[19][20]. In 2023, he established Cover.[5] As of June 2024, Forbes estimates his net worth to be US$1.4 billion.[21][22]

Early life and education

[edit]

Adcock was raised on his family's farm outside Moweaqua, Illinois. At the age of sixteen, Adcock began working on web companies, which included an e-commerce site focused on outdoor electronics and a content site called Street of Walls. He subsequently graduated as the valedictorian of Central A&M High School.[23]

Initially majoring in engineering, Adcock then studied at the University of Florida's Warrington College of Business and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in 2008.[23][3]

Career

[edit]

In 2013, Adcock founded Vettery (which later became known as Hired), a talent marketplace that matched job seekers with employers who needed technical expertise.[14] In 2018, the Adecco Group bought Vettery for $100 million. The same year, Adcock started eVTOL company Archer Aviation. In 2022 he founded Figure, an AI startup based in Sunnyvale that is working on a general-purpose humanoid robot.[7][24] Adcock assembled Figure's team from people working at Boston Dynamics, Tesla, Google DeepMind and Apple.[23][25] Adcock opines that the creation of humanoid robots will mitigate labor shortages.[25]

Vettery

[edit]

In 2013, Brett Adcock founded the online recruiting marketplace Vettery.[26] Vettery came out of stealth in 2015 and its clients included Jet, Casper, Etsy, Blue Apron and Percolate.[27] Vettery was started out of NYU's Varick Street Incubator.[28] As of 2017, Vettery has raised $12 million in venture backed funding led by Greycroft Investors, Raine Ventures, and Pritzker Venture Capital.[29][30][31] In February 2018, The Adecco Group acquired Vettery to use their technology in advancement of digital strategy.[32]

Archer Aviation

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In October 2018, Adcock was part of the founding team of electric aircraft company Archer Aviation, which was founded by CEO Adam Goldstein.[33] Archer was originally started with a research grant from Adcock at the University of Florida and ultimately headquartered in Palo Alto, California.[34] In February 2021, United Airlines made an initial purchase of Archer aircraft with the intent of using them to provide urban service to airports.[35][36][37][38] Archer went public on the New York Stock Exchange with investors including United Airlines, Stellantis, Exor, Baron Capital, Marc Lore, and Brett Adcock.[39][40][41][42][43]. In 2022, after an undisclosed ethical dispute, Adcock was removed from his position at Archer by its Board of Directors.[44][45]

Figure

[edit]

In May 2022, Adcock founded AI robotics company Figure.[46] Figure is building a humanoid robot that can do autonomous human-like tasks.[47] In February 2024, Figure secured $675 million in venture capital funding from a consortium that included OpenAI, Microsoft, Jeff Bezos, Nvidia, and Intel.[48][49] In August 2024, Figure revealed their second generation humanoid robot Figure 02.[50][51] In the same month, Figure had a successful deployment of their humanoid robots at BMW Group Plant Spartanburg.[52][53]

Cover

[edit]

In October 2023, Adcock founded AI security company Cover to prevent school shootings in the United States. Cover uses licensed technology from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA.[5][54]

Personal life

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Brett Adcock resides in Palo Alto, California, with his wife and three children.[23][55] Adcock has a penchant for the Robot series authored by Isaac Asimov—novels that influenced his career.[56]

Honors

[edit]

He was included in the Time 2024 list of influential people in AI. [57]

References

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  1. ^ Crumley, Bruce (May 11, 2022). "Archer cofounder resigns as its eVTOL air taxi pursues certification".
  2. ^ Chatterley, Julia (host) (March 4, 2021). "United Airlines to buy electric flying taxis in $1 billion partnership". First Move. Warner Bros. Discovery. CNN. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Alsup, Allison (February 21, 2018). "Brett Adcock (BSBA '08) & Adam Goldstein (BSBA '01) | February 2018".
  4. ^ Huff, Steve (March 3, 2023). "Figure Humanoid Robot Startup Comes Out of Stealth". Entrepreneur.
  5. ^ a b c Heater, Brian (June 21, 2024). "A new startup from Figure's founder is licensing NASA tech in a bid to curb school shootings". TechCrunch.
  6. ^ Blain, Loz (April 10, 2023). "OpenAI and Figure join the race to humanoid robot workers". www.newatlas.com. Just this year, entrepreneur Brett Adcock, founder of the Vettery "online talent marketplace," and more recently Archer Aviation, one of the leading contenders in the emerging electric VTOL aircraft movement, announced his latest venture is focused on humanoid robots.
  7. ^ a b "Robotique : Tesla n'est plus seul à dévoiler un robot humanoïde avancé". www.telesatellite.com (in French).
  8. ^ Tarafel, Jefferson (March 8, 2023). ""We are going to build a robot for every human being on the planet", says CEO of Archer".
  9. ^ Heater, Brian (September 22, 2022). "Archer's co-founder is bootstrapping an all-purpose humanoid robot". TechCrunch.
  10. ^ "Archer Aviation Co-Founders discuss when to expect electric vertical takeoff". Yahoo Finance. 20 September 2021.
  11. ^ "Flying Cars Will Reshape Our Congested Cities: Interview With Archer CEO Brett Adcock". The New York Observer. June 7, 2021.
  12. ^ Uranga, Rachel (19 June 2022). "Look! Up in the sky! It's an air taxi. They're coming to Los Angeles". Los Angeles Times.
  13. ^ Levine Beckman, Brittany (June 10, 2021). "Archer reveals its Maker flying taxi, promising to lift us out of traffic hell". Mashable.
  14. ^ a b Jannarone, John (February 2, 2015). "Hedge fund analysts take Uber model to recruiting". CNBC.
  15. ^ Lee, Allen (August 7, 2022). "How Brett Adcock Achieved a Net Worth of $300 Million". Money Inc.
  16. ^ Schubarth, Cromwell (Apr 21, 2021). "Here's why Archer Aviation's founders believe it has the right air taxi team". Silicon Valley Business Journal. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  17. ^ Ford, Jason. "Charged for Flight." (2022): 42-43.
  18. ^ Hofacker, Cat, and Alyssa Tomlinson. "Building vertiport cities." AEROSPACE AMERICA 59, no. 6 (2021): 22-32.
  19. ^ Wolfsteller2022-05-09T18:43:00+01:00, Pilar. "Archer co-founder Adcock resigns from board weeks after leaving CEO post". Flight Global. Retrieved 2024-11-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  20. ^ "Archer's Brett Adcock steps down as co-CEO". Vertical Mag. 2022-04-25. Retrieved 2024-11-11.
  21. ^ "Brett Adcock". Forbes. June 5, 2024.
  22. ^ Dolan, Kerry A. (April 15, 2024). "Meet The New AI-Robot Billionaire". Forbes.
  23. ^ a b c d Sproule, Holly (November 3, 2023). "AI is up and walking". UF Warrington News.
  24. ^ Kingson, Jennifer A. (March 17, 2023). "Humanoid robots are coming". Axios.
  25. ^ a b Blain, Loz (September 27, 2023). "Figure's Brett Adcock on the practicalities of humanoid robot workers". New Atlas.
  26. ^ Kim, Eugene (August 22, 2016). "This 25-person startup just raised $9 million using these 9 slides". Business Insider.
  27. ^ Ha, Anthony (June 11, 2015). "Vettery Raises $1.7M And Officially Launches Its Job Marketplace". TechCrunch.
  28. ^ Lee, Allen (August 7, 2022). "How Brett Adcock Achieved a Net Worth of $300 Million". Money Inc.
  29. ^ Ha, Anthony (June 11, 2015). "Vettery Raises $1.7M And Officially Launches Its Job Marketplace". TechCrunch.
  30. ^ Ha, Anthony (August 16, 2016). "Vettery raises $9M as it expands its hiring marketplace to San Francisco". TechCrunch.
  31. ^ Kim, Eugene (August 22, 2016). "This 25-person startup just raised $9 million using these 9 slides". Business Insider.
  32. ^ Ha, Anthony (February 20, 2018). "Adecco Group acquires recruiting startup Vettery for $100M". TechCrunch.
  33. ^ Garsten, Ed (June 10, 2021). "Archer Aviation Unveils Electric Vertical Takeoff/Landing Air Taxi". Forbes.
  34. ^ Alsup, Allison (March 26, 2021). "UF Warrington alumni taking intracity travel to new heights". UF Warrington News.
  35. ^ Korosec, Kirsten (February 10, 2021). "Archer lands $1B order from United Airlines and a SPAC deal". TechCrunch.
  36. ^ Pallini, Thomas (February 10, 2021). "United just ordered $1 billion worth of eVTOLs from a startup that aims to launch intra-city passenger flights in 2024". Business Insider.
  37. ^ Reichmann, Kelsey (February 11, 2021). "United Airlines Forms Partnership with Archer to Purchase 200 eVTOL Aircraft". Avionics International.
  38. ^ Rucinski, Tracy; Nishant, Niket (February 10, 2021). "Archer to go public, United Airlines invests and orders electric aircraft". Reuters.
  39. ^ Rucinski, Tracy; Nishant, Niket (February 10, 2021). "Archer to go public, United Airlines invests and orders electric aircraft". Reuters.
  40. ^ Pallini, Thomas (February 10, 2021). "United just ordered $1 billion worth of eVTOLs from a startup that aims to launch intra-city passenger flights in 2024". Business Insider.
  41. ^ Korosec, Kirsten (February 10, 2021). "Archer lands $1B order from United Airlines and a SPAC deal". TechCrunch.
  42. ^ LeBeau, Phil (February 10, 2021). "United Airlines orders electric vertical aircraft, invests in urban air mobility SPAC". CNBC.
  43. ^ Bogaisky, Jeremy (February 10, 2021). "Archer To Go Public In Reverse Merger As United Airlines Places Order For Its Electric Air Taxis To Shuttle Passengers To Airport". Forbes.
  44. ^ "Archer's Brett Adcock steps down as co-CEO". Vertical Mag. 2022-04-25. Retrieved 2024-11-11.
  45. ^ Wolfsteller2022-05-09T18:43:00+01:00, Pilar. "Archer co-founder Adcock resigns from board weeks after leaving CEO post". Flight Global. Retrieved 2024-11-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  46. ^ Heater, Brian (September 22, 2022). "Archer's co-founder is bootstrapping an all-purpose humanoid robot". TechCrunch.
  47. ^ Kingson, Jennifer A. "Humanoid robots are coming". Axios.
  48. ^ Palmer, Annie (February 29, 2024). "Humanoid robot startup Figure AI valued at $2.6 billion as Bezos, OpenAI, Nvidia join funding". CNBC.
  49. ^ "Humanoid robot-maker Figure gets funding from OpenAI, Jeff Bezos, Nvidia, and other tech giants". Fast Company. 3 March 2024.
  50. ^ Eaton, Kitt (August 6, 2024). "Robot Startup Figure Takes on Tesla's Optimus With Next-Gen Model". Inc.
  51. ^ Heater, Brian (August 6, 2024). "Figure's new humanoid robot leverages OpenAI for natural speech conversations". TechCrunch.
  52. ^ Shibu, Sherin (August 6, 2024). "Figure 02 Humanoid Robot Steps Into BMW Factories For Test". Entrepreneur.
  53. ^ Staff, The Robot Report (August 7, 2024). "BMW tests Figure 02 humanoid on production line". The Robot Report.
  54. ^ May, Tom (August 7, 2024). "Tech startups aim to prevent school shootings using AI and smart camera tech". Digital Camera World.
  55. ^ Lee, Allen (2022-08-07). "How Brett Adcock Achieved a Net Worth of $300 Million". Money Inc. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  56. ^ "Figure vs. Tesla: Who Leads the Humanoid Robot Revolution?". Peter Diamandis. March 3, 2024.
  57. ^ "The 100 Most Influential People in AI 2024". TIME. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
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