Caleb Horan is Co-Founder and CEO of Salem Robotics, a Y Combinator S26-backed company building autonomy software for robotic inspections in hazardous nuclear and industrial environments.

Caleb earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Colorado State University and spent five years conducting research at Los Alamos National Laboratory before pursuing a PhD in Mechanical Engineering and Robotics at UT Austin.

A PhD roboticist with deep expertise in embodied AI, autonomous radiation inspection, and deterministic manipulation, Caleb has won national research awards and presented robotics demonstrations to world leaders.

Alongside co-founder Kate Whitmire, Caleb brings 15+ combined years of nuclear industry experience; Salem Robotics was accepted into Y Combinator's Summer 2026 batch, validating their approach to a $17B+ automation market.

Salem Robotics enables hazardous facilities to deploy autonomous robots for radiological surveys, compliance reporting, and inspections, replacing slow and risky manual workflows across nuclear, critical infrastructure, and energy sectors.