Russell Smith is the Co-Founder and CEO of 9 Mothers Corporation, a Y Combinator-backed company building AI-powered autonomous counter-drone systems for the modern battlefield.

Russell holds a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science from Staffordshire University and previously co-founded Rainforest QA (YC S12), where he served as CTO for nearly a decade, scaling the company from a 4-person team to over 100 employees.

A serial YC founder with deep roots in software engineering, DevOps, and scalable infrastructure, Russell brings rare dual expertise in both enterprise software and autonomous hardware systems.

Before 9 Mothers, Russell served as Managing Director at Beyond Equity Partners and as an angel investor in 8 companies, reflecting a broad portfolio of technical and investment leadership across the tech sector.

9 Mothers' flagship product EDDA is the only known system capable of countering multiple fast-moving FPV drones at close range, using AI detection and a sub-15ms response motion platform to defend vehicles, bases, and personnel.