Achievements
- Co-founded Gantto, a Y Combinator-backed project management startup, in 2010
- Gantto was acquired by Tom’s Planner in 2013, showing strong exit success
- Joined Intuitive Surgical in 2013, now VP and General Manager of the Endoluminal unit
- Held a Master’s in Computer Science from University of Bologna (1998) and a Ph.D. in Robotics from Scuola S. Anna (2002)
- Contributed as a visiting researcher and postdoc at Stanford Robotics Lab early in his career
- Helped develop chai3d, an open-source platform for haptics and real-time 3D visualization
Crushing on Federico Barbagli
Bruh, listen up about Federico Barbagli, dude’s a straight-up tech and med startup legend. No cap. So, Federico’s from Italy, right? He got his Master’s in Computer Science from Bologna back in ’98, then went all-in on robotics and got a Ph.D. from Scuola S. Anna in 2002. The guy’s a legit tech brain, he’s been deep into research, working at Stanford as a visiting researcher and then as a postdoc. Basically, he jumped into the cutting edge of robotics and visualization early on.
He’s not just about the labs though. Federico co-founded Gantto in 2010, which was a Y Combinator-backed project management tool. Think of it as a better, slicker version of Microsoft Project, real deal startup shit. The thing crushed it, got acquired by Tom’s Planner in 2013, so that’s a big win. That shows he’s got the hustle and the vision to build something people actually want and then sell it.
But his story doesn’t stop there. After Gantto, he kept pushing into med tech. He joined Hansen Medical as a Senior Haptics & Visualization Engineer. That’s a fancy way of saying he was working on making robotic surgery tools more precise and intuitive, which is huge in the medical space. His background in robotics and visualization was key here. Plus, he kept collaborating with Stanford, so he’s always been in that innovation bubble.
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Talk to herFast forward, he lands at Intuitive Surgical in 2013, one of the biggest names in robotic surgery (think da Vinci systems). Now, he’s VP and General Manager of the Endoluminal unit. Basically, he’s leading the charge on new surgical tech that goes inside the body, making minimally invasive procedures smarter and safer. That’s advanced stuff.
What’s crazy about Federico is how he’s consistently pushed the envelope, from building project management tools, to pushing the boundaries of robotic-assisted surgery. His process shows he’s all about solving real problems with tech, and he’s not afraid to jump into tough, complex fields. Dude’s motivated by making a real impact, not just chasing hype. He’s a mix of researcher, builder, and leader, the kinda guy who sees a problem, builds a solution, and then scales it up.
So yeah, Federico’s a prime example of what it means to be a modern innovator, someone who’s been grinding in the trenches, building stuff that actually matters, and now leading the next wave of surgical tech. The guy’s a straight-up legend in the making.

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