Team
AIRA is led by an expert and grounded team with many decades of experience in software and robotic development and deployment in construction as well as development and deployment of AI and Machine Learning tools within Built Environments.
CEO and Founder Tom Lipinski
CEO and Founder
Tom Lipinski
Founder of a construction robotics company with successful deployment of robots on over 5,000 construction sites across Europe, expert in Building Physics with several academic papers and 500+ citations worldwide, and a Built Environment degree from Cambridge University.
Advisor/CTO John Burley
Advisor/CTO
John Burley
Experienced CTO with background in construction robotics and previously a leading, SoftBank funded medical robotics startup, as well as development of space technologies at Airbus and Inmarsat. John has a Physics degree from Cambridge University.
CCO (US) Ali Seyedahmadian
CCO (US) Ali Seyedahmadian
Over a decade of experience delivering complex projects using advanced manufacturing technologies, including robotics, in partnership with leading construction firms and research institutions. He has spearheaded innovation initiatives across the AEC industry, bridging design, technology, and commercialization. Ali holds a Master of Architecture from the University of Michigan.
CFO Nick Simmons
CFO Nick Simmons
A strategic CFO/COO with over 25 years of experience across PE/VC-backed scale ups, FTSE 100 groups, and international corporates.
A co-founder of a cleantech disruptor (raising >£30m) and former senior finance leader at Yahoo!, Opodo, Carphone Warehouse, and Omnicom. Nick is fluent in French & German with exposure across UK, EU, and the US.
Data Strategy Advisor Dr Ashley Napier (Solve It With Data)
Data Strategy Advisor
Dr Ashley Napier (Solve It With Data)
15+ years experience in Robotic Perception, Localisation, Mapping, AI, ML, author of several robotic publications, holds multiple patents in robotics and autonomous systems. Expert in Built Environment Data Acquisition. Ashley has a PhD in Robotics from Oxford University.
Head of Product Maddy Clifford
Head of Product
Maddy Clifford
18+ years experience leading complex technology projects in Business Analysis & Product Owner roles in Technology Industry, has both MSc undergraduate & postgraduate degrees (distinction) in Physics and Energy from Imperial College London.
Head of Software Dr Damian Hunt
Head of Software
Dr Damian Hunt
Former Head of Product Technology at LexisNexis. As Technical Director of a streaming startup he worked with UK PM Tony Blair and created the first podcast of the Queen’s Speech. At Q-Bot he built a digital Installation Management platform, which captured, processed, and reported data from site surveys and robot installations. He has a PhD in Physics from Oxford University.
Mechanical Design lead Tom Jolly
Mechanical Design lead Tom Jolly
5+ years experience in product design and manufacturing techniques specialising in robotics with track record in managing full product development cycle. At Q-Bot Tom built & commissioned both robots and robot control units.
Whilst at Q-Bot, the AIRA team has successfully developed and deployed robots in challenging environments such as construction delivering over 5,000 jobs that would need to be otherwise done manually by humans (exposing people to unnecessary risks) and has been collecting and processing model-usable scans from productive sites, building up vast expertise in this field. AIRA team has more experience in real-life robotic and Physical AI deployment than almost any other.
