Josh Araujo, Forterra CEO on Scaling Autonomous Defense Systems

Josh Araujo is the CEO of Forterra, where he leads the company’s mission to deploy autonomous ground vehicle technology at scale. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This episode is brought to you by Nebius — the ultimate cloud for AI innovators. Nebius provides AI infrastructure you can count on, combining reliability and speed with flexibility and engineering support unmatched by hyperscalers. AI leaders like Meta, Shopify, and Higgsfield already partner with Nebius to run their AI workloads. Plus, venture-backed startups can save up to $150,000 on compute costs when they apply for access. Visit nebius.com or nebius.com/startups to learn more ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Since joining in 2021, he helped lead Forterra’s growth from Series A through Series C while developing its Autonomy-as-a-Service business model and serving as COO before becoming CEO. Prior to Forterra, Josh was CFO of OGT Engineering & Construction and spent nearly a decade on Wall Street at Jefferies and Lazard, advising aerospace, defense, and industrial companies on M&A and capital markets transactions. Before entering finance, he served as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. His career spans military leadership, investment banking, operations, and executive management, giving him a unique perspective on scaling mission-driven technology companies. Topics Leadership Lessons Across Military Service, Finance, and Autonomous systems How Forterra successfully scaled from its Series A in 2021 to its Series C in 2025 From Prototype to Deployment: Building Culture and Alignment in Defense Tech #DefenseTech #Autonomy #Robotics #Leadership #Startups