From Tickets to Autonomy: Reinventing IT with AI Agents | The Pair Program Ep87

On today’s episode of The Pair Program, we’re joined by Jake Stauch, Founder & CEO of Serval, and Patrick Chase, Managing Director at Redpoint Ventures, for a deep dive into the future of IT service management. The conversation explores why legacy ITSM tools are breaking under modern demands, how AI-native automation is changing the way work actually gets done, and what it takes to build and back a category-defining infrastructure company.

What we cover:

1. Why ITSM remains painfully manual, and where automation truly breaks through
2. Building AI agents that don’t just assist, but take action
3. Code generation as the next platform shift in enterprise software
4. What investors look for in next-gen infrastructure startups
5. How timing, models, and product vision intersect in AI adoption

About Patrick Chase: Patrick is a Managing Director at Redpoint Ventures, where he focuses on infrastructure, SaaS, and AI. He has been at Redpoint for over seven years and works closely with companies including Modal, Serval, LiveKit, Hex, Attio, MotherDuck, and Zed.

About Jake Stauch: Jake is the Founder and CEO of Serval, an AI-driven IT automation and service management platform. Before founding Serval, he spent more than five years at Verkada, leading products from early concept through launch and scaling efforts across hardware and software, operating at the intersection of product, operations, and AI-powered infrastructure.

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Mission Modernized: How AI is Reshaping Intelligence from the Inside Out | The Pair Program Ep86

On today’s episode of The Pair Program, we’re joined by Sheetal Patel, former CIA Assistant Director for the Transnational and Technology Mission Center, and Bruce Frost, Vice President of Intelligence at Rhombus Power, to discuss how AI is reshaping modern intelligence. With decades of experience across government and industry, they break down what it really takes to modernize analysis, move faster in high-stakes environments, and build trust in emerging technologies.

What we cover in this episode:

1. How AI is transforming open-source intelligence
2. Predictive models and threat forecasting
3. Bias and transparency in AI systems
4. Public-to-private sector career transitions
5. Innovation inside national security missions

About Sheetal Patel: Sheetal is a former CIA senior executive with 28 years of service across national security and intelligence. She served as Assistant Director for the Transnational and Technology Mission Center, where she built and led a new team focused on emerging technologies. She also previously held the role of Assistant Director for CIA for Counterintelligence.

About Bruce Frost: Bruce joined Rhombus Power in September 2022, where he serves as Vice President of Intelligence. Prior to joining Rhombus Power, Bruce was a senior executive at CIA where he held a variety of leadership roles including Associate Deputy Director of CIA for Operations.

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Feeding the Beam: Powering Directed Energy & Counter-UAS | The Pair Program Ep85

In today’s episode, we’re joined by Adam Warmoth, Founder & CEO of Chariot Defense, and Michael LaFramboise, CEO & Co-Founder of Aurelius Systems, for a deep dive into one of the most overlooked constraints in modern warfare: power. Together, they explore how energy, autonomy, and cost collide at the tactical edge, and why rethinking power systems is critical for counter-UAS, directed energy weapons, and future defense stacks. The conversation blends real-world demos, lessons from commercial tech, and candid insights on what it actually takes to deploy hardware that works beyond day one.

We dive into:

1. Why power, not software, is the real bottleneck at the edge
2. The economics of lasers vs. missiles for counter-drone defense
3. Batteries as power, not just energy storage
4. Lessons defense can borrow from EVs, automotive, and industrial tech
5. Scaling hardware from demo to sustained deployment

About Adam Warmoth: Adam is Founder & CEO of Chariot Defense, building edge-deployable power systems for modern battlefields. Former engineering leader at Anduril Industries, with experience spanning counter-UAS, robotics, AI, and sensor fusion. Previously worked on advanced electric power systems at Archer Aviation, Uber Elevate, and Kitty Hawk. Stanford-trained engineer focused on bringing commercial-grade power tech into defense.

About Michael LaFramboise: Michael is CEO & Co-Founder of Aurelius Systems, developing autonomous laser platforms to defeat drones at radically lower cost. Brings a rare mix of experience across automotive manufacturing, high-power laser systems, and defense sales. His team’s flagship system, Archimedes, combines AI, sensors, and directed energy to neutralize drones in seconds—turning electricity into ammunition.

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