Persona AI Hires Commercial Strategy Chief to Accelerate Industrial Humanoid Deployment

New updates have been reported about Persona AI.

Persona AI has appointed robotics veteran Michael Perry as Head of Commercial Strategy, underscoring the company’s transition from R&D to commercial deployment of humanoid robots for heavy industry. His mandate is to build the commercial infrastructure needed to scale Persona’s humanoids into shipyards, steel mills, offshore platforms, and construction sites, where customers are facing structural shortages in welding, fabrication, and heavy maintenance capacity.

Perry’s arrival follows Persona AI’s recent agreements with HD Hyundai and POSCO Group to advance humanoid automation in shipbuilding and steel manufacturing, as well as a pilot program with the state of Louisiana in active industrial environments. In his new role, he will develop the commercial framework, forge strategic partnerships, support early adopters, and work directly with customers on their first humanoid deployments, including defining business cases, solving integration challenges, and building a repeatable playbook for safe, scalable adoption.

Perry brings experience from DJI, Boston Dynamics, and Dexterity AI, where he consistently focused on turning advanced robotics and so‑called Physical AI into enterprise-scale products, a background Persona’s leadership views as critical for moving robots “from the lab to the factory floor.” CEO and Co‑Founder Nicolaus Radford said the company is targeting real operational problems in some of the harshest industrial settings and now requires a commercial engine that can sustain growth as deployments expand.

Persona AI, founded in 2024 and headquartered in Houston with operations in Pensacola, is developing humanoid robots designed to use standard industrial tools such as welding torches, grinders, and power tools in human-scale workspaces. Backed by specialist robotics and industrial-technology investors, the company will showcase its approach to industrial humanoid deployment at NVIDIA GTC 2026 in San Jose and through a presentation by Radford at SXSW 2026, positioning itself as a contender in the emerging market for humanoids that can alleviate skilled-trades labor constraints in heavy industry.