# John Keh

> John Keh is the Founder and CEO of Valtec, a San Diego-based maritime AI and drone company that deploys autonomous VTOL systems on commercial fishing vessels to detect tuna schools in real time. A UC Berkeley alumnus and former US Air Force geospatial intelligence analyst with 250+ missions across South Korea and the Middle East, Keh pivoted from food delivery (3rd employee at Caviar, Uber Eats courier intelligence lead) to maritime defense after four years building startups in Taiwan. Valtec raised a $2M pre-seed round in March 2025 backed by SparkLabs Taiwan, Wavemaker VC, DRONE FUND, Guitar Hero founder Kai Huang, and Twitch co-founder Kevin Lin, with the company's Larus VTOL drone and Fulcan AI platform now deployed on 40+ fishing vessels across Taiwan and the Philippines.

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at Valtec
- **Organizations:** Valtec, Y Combinator, Orbit Startups, SparkLabs Taiwan
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BA, Political Economies of Industrialized Societies, University of California, Berkeley, YC W2020 Program, Y Combinator
- **Known for:** Founded Valtec in 2023, growing company from 4 to 22 employees in two years, Closed $2M pre-seed round in March 2025 from top-tier maritime and defense tech investors, Deployed Valtec's maritime drone system on 40+ fishing vessels across Taiwan and the Philippines

## Career timeline

- **2000s** — Served as Geospatial Intelligence Analyst, US Air Force - completed 250+ missions in South Korea and the Middle East
- **2010s** — Early career at PwC in consulting
- **2013-2014** — Joined Caviar as the 3rd employee; launched New York and LA city operations; became West Coast Operations Lead after Square's $100M acquisition
- **2018-2020** — Courier Business Intelligence Team Lead and Courier Experience Team Lead for US & Canada at Uber Eats
- **2020** — Participated in Y Combinator Winter 2020 cohort
- **2020-2024** — Nearly four-year tenure at SparkLabs Taiwan evaluating early-stage companies and supporting startup ecosystem
- **Various** — Co-founded Impakt and Gather Wholesale; co-founded and operated Chick'n Rice restaurants
- **Various** — Mentor at Orbit Startups (now Orbit Ventures)
- **2023-01** — Founded Valtec in January 2023, bringing AI and drone technology to commercial maritime operations
- **2025-03** — Closed $2M pre-seed round led by SparkLabs Taiwan, Wavemaker VC, and DRONE FUND; notable angels include Kai Huang (Guitar Hero founder) and Kevin Lin (Twitch co-founder)
- **2025-07** — Valtec opened Kaohsiung office; company deployed on 40+ fishing vessels in Taiwan and the Philippines

## Achievements

- Founded Valtec in 2023, growing company from 4 to 22 employees in two years
- Closed $2M pre-seed round in March 2025 from top-tier maritime and defense tech investors
- Deployed Valtec's maritime drone system on 40+ fishing vessels across Taiwan and the Philippines
- Attracted angel investment from Kai Huang (Guitar Hero founder) and Kevin Lin (Twitch co-founder)
- Completed 250+ Air Force intelligence missions across South Korea and the Middle East
- 3rd employee at Caviar; helped scale before Square's $100M acquisition
- Led courier operations for US & Canada at Uber Eats
- Completed Y Combinator Winter 2020 program
- Replaced helicopter-based fish-finding operations with drone systems that search 3-5x more area

## Latest updates

- **2025-07** — Valtec opened a Kaohsiung office to supervise drone operations for Taiwan's tuna fishing industry
- **2025-03** — Closed $2M pre-seed round with SparkLabs Taiwan, Wavemaker VC, DRONE FUND, and notable angel investors
- **2025-03** — Company deployed on 40+ fishing vessels in Taiwan and Philippines; preparing second deployment with Filipino customer in Papua New Guinea
- **2024-12** — DIGITIMES featured Valtec's drone and AI system for commercial fishing; company announced partnership with Evergreen Marine

## Links

- Website: https://valtec.ai
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-keh-936a539

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/john-keh
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-14