Ed Kearney

Yo, you gotta hear about Ed Kearney. This dude’s a straight-up water tech wizard from down under, originally from Canberra. Studied civil and coastal engineering at UNSW Sydney-so dude’s always been into messing with water and how stuff moves in it. No surprise he’s now all about that hydrofoil life.

Started out pretty humble, jumping into e-commerce-selling university gowns-nothing fancy, just figuring out how to get things done. But then, Ed jumped into the startup game for real. Co-founded Snappr back in 2017, which was basically an on-demand photography marketplace. Think Uber but for your photos. That thing got Y Combinator backing, so it was legit. It showed Ed’s got that hustle and knows how to build platforms that people actually need.

He’s not just about snapping pics. Dude’s always been obsessed with water tech. He co-founded Boundary Layer Technologies, another YC-backed startup, focused on hydrofoil tech for boats and marine gear. Basically, he’s been pushing to make water travel faster, cleaner, and way cooler. Now he’s running Valo, which is developing electric hydrofoil vessels. These things are like flying boats-gliding over water with barely any noise or hassle. It’s advanced-revolutionizing how we move on water, making it super eco-friendly and fast. Ed’s all about breaking barriers in water transport and making the impossible happen.

What’s wild is that his process shows a guy who’s always been about solving real problems, whether it’s making photography easier or changing how we get around on water. His background in engineering? That’s his secret weapon-he’s got the technical chops to turn crazy ideas into real-world things. And he’s not doing this just for the hype. Ed genuinely wants to make a difference, shake up industries, and create something that lasts.

He’s now based in San Francisco, which is basically startup central, surrounded by the best tech minds. But even outside work, he’s into cooking, photography, cycling, skiing-stuff that gets him out of the grind and keeps his creative juices flowing.

Bottom line? Ed Kearney is one of those rare founders who’s got the brains, the grit, and the vision. He’s not just building companies-he’s changing how we think about water travel and tech. The guy’s got that “no bullshit” attitude, and he’s crushing it in a space most people don’t even understand yet. No Cap, he’s the real deal.