True, the only tech and data-first global executive talent platform, today announced the formal launch of its HardTech Practice. This launch underscores the firm’s dedication to identifying and placing world-class executive talent within the critical hardware infrastructure that underpins ongoing advancements in AI. True’s dedicated hardtech team will serve venture capital, private equity, and public firms and their portfolio companies operating at the intersection of breakthrough innovation and infrastructure. They are focused on sourcing top-tier executive talent for organizations across key hardware sectors, including:
- Semiconductors: The foundational building blocks of AI
- Compute/Processing/Data Center Infrastructure: The engine rooms powering AI algorithms
- Communications Networks & IoT: Enabling seamless data flow and connectivity for AI-driven devices
- Robotics & Drones: Bringing intelligent automation to the physical world
- VR/XR & AI-to-Human Interfacing (Holographics, Displays, Wearables): Physical devices revolutionizing how humans interact with AI
“The initial wave of AI adoption has been defined by software applications like language models and productivity tools,” said Josh Withers, True co-Founder and GM, Platform and North America Search Operations. “As the AI revolution accelerates, there is massive, untapped potential in the foundational hardware enabling AI advancements and the hardware areas that will be transformed most by AI. Our clients need partners who not only understand this technology, but who can deliver the executive leadership required to commercialize and scale it globally. That’s where True comes in.”
True’s hardtech team brings together domain experts and a curated network of executive talent in the US, Europe, the Middle East & Africa, and Asia to help companies scale transformative technologies from the lab to the global stage. They’ve done work with companies like Quantum Motion, Plus One Robotics, Vertiv, and Berkshire Grey to place executives in roles imperative to hardtech advancements like faster semiconductors, increased computing power and communication networks, unlocking quantum advantage and more intelligent robotics and ways in which we will physically interact with AI.
“To truly be a leader in executive talent during this age of AI, we must deeply understand and engage with the foundational hardware that makes it all possible,” said Tom Willie, Partner and lead of True’s hardtech team. “Our new HardTech Practice ensures we are primed to partner with the innovative companies and investors driving this revolution.”
Joining Tom are True Search partners Dave Beuerlein, Eoin O’Neill, and Richard Goddard—all bring a unique combination of expertise and a deep understanding of the hardtech space.
ABOUT TRUE
True is a global talent management platform renowned for executive search excellence. The sixth largest in its industry, True leverages 10+ years of industry data, market insights, and talent lifecycle expertise to help companies make high-impact talent decisions quickly. Products and services include True Search (retained executive search), TrueBridge (advisory, interim, and fractional executive placement), Thrive (Talent CRM software), True Advance (coaching and assessment), SearchEssentials (tech-enabled hiring services), and AboveBoard (inclusive executive community). True also backs promising companies through investment brands True Equity and Vera Equity.
