True Launches Hardtech Practice
May 12, 2025 – Global talent provider True has launched its hardtech practice, a specialized initiative aimed at identifying and placing top executive talent in hardware-focused industries that drive advancements in artificial intelligence (AI). “The initial wave of AI adoption has been defined by software applications like language models and productivity tools,” said Josh Withers, True co-founder and GM, platform and North America search operations. “As the AI revolution accelerates, there is massive, untapped potential in the foundational hardware enabling AI advancements and the hardware areas that will be transformed most by AI. Our clients need partners who not only understand this technology, but who can deliver the executive leadership required to commercialize and scale it globally. That’s where True comes in.”
The hardtech practice will serve venture capital, private equity, and public companies, alongside their portfolios, that operate at the intersection of innovation and hardware infrastructure. It focuses on locating leadership candidates across key sectors such as semiconductors, computing and data center infrastructure, communications networks and IoT, robotics, drones, and human-AI interfacing technologies like virtual reality and extended reality.
The practice, led by partner Tom Willie, leverages a global team of domain experts, spanning regions such as the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. It draws on an extensive network of executive talent to help companies scale technologies from development stages to global adoption. The team includes True Search partners Dave Beuerlein, Richard Goddard, and Eoin O’Neill, each recognized for their expertise in the hardtech space.
True’s hardtech team has already collaborated with organizations like Quantum Motion, Plus One Robotics, Vertiv, and Berkshire Grey, placing executives in critical roles to advance innovations such as faster semiconductors, enhanced computing power, and more intelligent robotics.
“To truly be a leader in executive talent during this age of AI, we must deeply understand and engage with the foundational hardware that makes it all possible,” said Mr. Willie. “Our new hardtech practice ensures we are primed to partner with the innovative companies and investors driving this revolution.”
Working in both the private and public sectors, True Search has offices throughout the U.S. as well as the EMEA and APAC regions. Since the late 1990s, the firm’s founders have refined their search process with a blend of data-centric insights, relationship-building, and experience to produce a methodology that consistently improves hiring decisions and accelerates growth. The firm’s clients include Jet, Work Front, and Summit Partners. True Search is a subsidiary of True Platform, a global portfolio of human capital services and products for high-growth tech and tech-enabled organizations. True recently placed No. 6 on the Hunt Scanlon Media “Top 50 Recruiters” ranking.
New Dedicated MedSci Functional Team
True also recently launched a dedicated MedSci functional team within its healthcare & life sciences practice. The firm explained that the MedSci team is designed to meet the growing demand for highly scientific, technical, R&D, and medical leadership across industries transforming healthcare and science. “The lines between discovery, treatment, prevention, and population health are becoming increasingly interconnected,” said Jim O’Sullivan, managing director, global co-lead of True’s healthcare & life sciences practices. “MedSci was created to address the growing need for strategic medical and technical leaders who can navigate this multi-layered landscape. By aligning the right talent with the right opportunities, MedSci aims to accelerate breakthroughs that improve lives and shape the future of healthcare”
Related: True Acquires Jopwell
“The convergence of breakthroughs in biotech, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare is ushering in a transformative era in medicine,” said Sophia Mowla, managing director, global co-lead of True’s healthcare and life sciences practices. “Scientific innovation is driving the development of precision treatments, novel diagnostics, and preventative solutions that have the potential to profoundly impact patients’ lives. MedSci was created to address the urgent need for leaders who can navigate this complex landscape, bridging cutting-edge R&D with real-world patient outcomes.”
True Launches Hybrid Talent Solution SearchEssentials
True has launched SearchEssentials, a versatile technology and services hiring solution designed for flexible customization. Focusing on roles that may not require a fully retained executive search, SearchEssentials offers an adaptable, tech-enabled, partially retained search model tailored for team expansions, key individual contributor positions, and leadership roles in smaller or early-stage companies. “SearchEssentials is differentiated by its adaptability that offers flexibility and cost-effectiveness for clients, and represents a significant advancement in how we deliver exceptional talent solutions, ” said Joe Riggione, president of True Technologies, founder and co-CEO of True. “Led by Josh Kohler, this innovative offering leverages our data-driven platform to empower organizations of all sizes to access top talent and achieve their strategic goals.”
True’s MedSci consultants identify and place senior executives driving advancements in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare services, digital health, and beyond. “While True has been placing R&D and medical talent for years, formalizing this sub-function will bridge the gap between scientific discovery and patient impact, addressing the evolving needs of organizations in an era defined by breakthroughs in precision medicine, genomics, and population health,” the firm said.
Mr. O’Sullivan joined True after a 15 year tenure at Ross & Company. Over his career, he has completed more than 500 projects, ranging from CEO, president, COO, board member, CRO, CFO, and other top management searches to capital sourcing and company formation. Mr. O’Sullivan specializes in health information, health data analytics, medtech, pharma IT/services, healthcare services, managed care, tech-enabled services and enterprise software/SaaS/cloud computing businesses.
Ms. Mowla is the co-founder of True’s global life sciences practice and now leads True’s healthcare and life sciences practices in EMEA & APAC specializing in biotech & pharma, life science tools / techbio, diagnostics and medtech. She was the chief growth officer / member of the executive team of an ARCH backed San Diego / Oxford biotech, leading HR, talent and investor relations where she built out the company’s U.S. presence, organizational structure, trans-Atlantic leadership and board.
Related: True Appoints Regional Lead for Middle East and North Africa
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
