TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA — June 2026 — Epirus, a high-growth defense technology company focused on advancing next-generation national security solutions, has announced the appointment of Mark Cuyler as Chief Operating Officer (COO). The appointment comes as the company enters a critical phase of operational scaling and production growth to meet increasing demand for its innovative defense technologies.
Cuyler joins Epirus with more than three decades of leadership experience across advanced manufacturing, autonomous systems, electric vehicles, aerospace, and technology-driven operations. Throughout his career, he has built a reputation for transforming complex engineering programs into scalable production operations while driving operational excellence, quality, and growth.
Prior to joining Epirus, Cuyler served as Chief Operating Officer at Saildrone, where he was responsible for production, fleet deployment, mission operations, service delivery, and customer programs. He played a central role in scaling autonomous ocean intelligence capabilities while driving year-over-year growth and operational standardization.
Before Saildrone, he served as Director of Global Fleet Vehicle Design, Engineering & Execution at Amazon, where he led the development and deployment of Amazon’s global electric last-mile fleet. His responsibilities included vehicle design, engineering, manufacturing oversight, supply chain execution, and the launch of Amazon’s electric delivery vehicles in partnership with Rivian.
Earlier, Cuyler held senior leadership roles at Faraday Future, including Vice President of Manufacturing & Supply Chain and Senior Global Director of Advanced Manufacturing Engineering & Contract Manufacturing, where he led vehicle development, manufacturing readiness, supply chain strategy, and factory operations.
His career also includes leadership positions at Webasto, where he drove advanced manufacturing engineering and operational excellence initiatives, and Tesla, where he played a significant role in establishing manufacturing systems supporting the launch of the award-winning Model S. Earlier in his career, he spent nearly fifteen years at General Motors, leading manufacturing engineering teams responsible for assembly systems across North American operations.
At Epirus, Cuyler will oversee operational scaling, manufacturing readiness, production execution, supply chain optimization, deployment capabilities, and overall operational performance as the company expands commercialization of its flagship Leonidas™ high-power microwave platform.
About Epirus
Epirus is a U.S.-based defense technology company dedicated to solving some of the most complex challenges in national security. The company’s flagship technology, Leonidas™, is a scalable, software-defined high-power microwave system designed to counter drone swarms and other emerging threats through advanced directed energy capabilities.
By combining intelligent power management, advanced engineering, and software-defined architecture, Epirus is helping redefine modern defense systems while supporting military and national security missions globally.
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