Zapata AI Welcomes Derron Blakely as General Counsel
Zapata AI has appointed Derron Blakely as its new General Counsel. Blakely brings extensive experience in licensing, contracting, compliance, and administration from his previous roles in the AI, government, and defense sectors. His legal expertise is expected to support Zapata AI's expansion as a newly public company. Blakely previously served as General Counsel at C3.ai and Deputy General Counsel for Elbit Systems of America. He will replace Nicole Fitchpatric, who leaves for personal reasons on June 14. CEO Christopher Savoie expressed confidence in Blakely's ability to build a robust legal infrastructure to support the company's growth.
- Appointment of experienced General Counsel, Derron Blakely, with a strong background in AI and defense industries.
- Blakely’s expertise in licensing, contracting, and compliance could support Zapata AI’s expansion.
- Potential to enhance legal infrastructure and streamline operations during critical growth phase.
- Blakely's history with public companies may help Zapata AI navigate its recent transition to a public entity.
- Departure of previous General Counsel, Nicole Fitchpatric, could cause temporary disruption.
- Blakely’s integration into the company might take time, potentially affecting short-term operations.
The industry veteran brings a wealth of experience in licensing, contracting, compliance, and administration at public companies in the AI, government, and defense industries
BOSTON, June 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zapata Computing Holdings Inc. (“Zapata AI” or “the Company”) (Nasdaq: ZPTA), the Industrial Generative AI company, announced today that Derron Blakely has joined the Company as its General Counsel, effective today. Mr. Blakely’s track record of counseling public companies in the AI, government, and defense industries will add tremendous value in supporting Zapata AI’s growth as the recently public company expands its offerings, customer pipeline, and partnership network.
“Derron brings invaluable expertise in counseling varied clients throughout his career that have had a similar journey to our own, including public companies in the defense, software and AI sectors,” said Christopher Savoie, CEO and co-founder of Zapata AI. “We’ve seen a lot of interest in our anomaly detection, generative AI, optimization, and predictive capabilities from the government and defense sectors and we will lean on Derron’s background to negotiate contracting and licensing agreements in these sectors as well as other industries. I have confidence that Derron will help us build the world-class legal infrastructure that we will need as we scale our business.”
Mr. Blakely brings a strong legal background at fast-growing public companies in the AI and defense industries. In his most recent position as General Counsel at C3.ai, a public enterprise AI company, Mr. Blakely played a critical role in commercial and federal contracting, compliance, employment, litigation, and corporate governance. He previously served as Deputy General Counsel for Elbit Systems of America where he played a pivotal role in all aspects of federal procurement and strategic growth initiatives, including large scale M&A. Mr. Blakely began his career at Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C., and holds a J.D. from Washington & Lee University School of Law.
Mr. Blakely will join the Company reporting to CEO and co-founder Christopher Savoie. “Zapata AI is at the forefront of a transformative movement in industrial generative AI, empowering organizations with unparalleled operational insights that will catalyze growth and unlock value," said Mr. Blakely. "The Company already has a world-class team of problem solvers that Christopher has assembled to reshape how organizations conduct their business, and I am looking forward to building a legal function to match. It is a truly exciting and unique opportunity to help the Company in this critical growth phase.” Mr. Blakely will replace Nicole Fitchpatric, who is leaving Zapata AI on June 14th for personal reasons. "I want to thank Nicole for her contributions over the past few years as we transitioned to operating as a public company," said Savoie. "Her legal counsel was critical to our success during this transformative period. We wish her all the best in her future endeavors."
About Zapata AI
Zapata AI (Nasdaq: ZPTA) is an Industrial Generative AI company, revolutionizing how enterprises solve complex operational challenges with its powerful suite of generative AI software applications and cutting-edge reference architecture. By combining numerical and text-based generative AI models and custom software applications to power industrial-scale solutions, Zapata AI enables enterprises and government entities to drive growth, cost savings through operational efficiencies, and critical operational insights. With its proprietary data science and engineering techniques, and the Orquestra® platform, Zapata AI is accelerating Generative AI’s impact across industries by delivering solutions which are higher performing, less costly, and more accurate and expressive than current, classical approaches to AI. The Company was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made herein are not historical facts but are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally are accompanied by words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “would,” “plan,” “predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,” “outlook,” and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding future events and other statements that are not historical facts. These statements are based on the current expectations of Zapata AI’s management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied on, by any investor as a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction, or a definitive statement of fact or probability. These statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties regarding Zapata AI’s business, and actual results may differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, Zapata AI’s ability to attract new customers, retain existing customers, and grow; competition in the generative AI industry; Zapata AI’s ability to raise additional capital on non-dilutive terms or at all; Zapata AI’s failure to maintain and enhance awareness of its brand; and the risks and uncertainties discussed in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (including those described in the Risk Factors section in the Company’s Annual Reports on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q).
While Zapata AI may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, Zapata AI specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing Zapata AI’s assessments as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements.
Contacts:
Zapata AI:
Media: press@zapata.ai
Investors: investors@zapata.ai
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