a16z fellow leaves to found Ixian Robotics, betting on US reindustrialization
lukas_m_ziegler · x · 2026-09-10
Jacob Zietek, former Engineering Fellow at a16z's American Dynamism fund, is leaving to start Ixian Robotics, which aims to deploy intelligent robots to help reindustrialize America.
- At a16z he worked across the AD, infrastructure, growth and speedrun teams, meeting builders in manufacturing and robotics
- Cites Hamming's "You and Your Research" for moving from IC to leadership when vision outgrows individual capacity
- Argues robotics requires more than software, hardware and learning: sales, supply chains, capital markets, policy and public trust
- Believes rapid advances in robot learning let the US leapfrog its outsourced industrial model
Related event: Ex-a16z Researcher Founds Ixian Robotics to Reshore US Industry(2 posts)→
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