# Will Ross

> Will Ross is the New York-based co-founder and CEO of Federato, an insurance software company founded with William Steenbergen in 2020. His background combines IBM Watson, venture investing at Venrock, and Stanford wildfire research. Federato emerged from extensive interviews with underwriters and connects portfolio strategy to daily insurance decisions; it has since expanded across the policy lifecycle.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & CEO at Federato
- **Organizations:** Federato, IBM Watson Group, Venrock, Stanford University, Science & Arts Engagement, New York
- **Education:** BA in Philosophy and Environmental Science, Tufts University, MS in Climate and Atmospheric Modeling, Stanford University, MBA, Stanford Graduate School of Business
- **Known for:** Co-founded Federato in 2020 and leads it as CEO., Authored Being the Fire, presented at the NeurIPS 2021 Workshop on Tackling Climate Change with Machine Learning., Helped educate more than 1,000 executives through Udacity’s AI for Business Leaders program.

## Career timeline

- **Before 2020** — Worked in IBM Watson corporate development and spent time at Venrock; precise dates are not established by the sources used.
- **2018-2026** — Served on the board of Science & Arts Engagement, New York, according to his LinkedIn profile.
- **2020** — Co-founded Federato with William Steenbergen while at Stanford; joined PearX S20.
- **2021** — Earned his Stanford MBA; published Being the Fire at the NeurIPS workshop on Tackling Climate Change with Machine Learning.
- **2022** — Federato announced a $15 million Series A.
- **2023** — Federato raised a $25 million Series B.
- **2024** — Federato raised a $40 million Series C led by StepStone Group.
- **2025** — Discussed Orchestrate on NYSE TV; Federato announced a $100 million Series D led by Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives.
- **2026** — Continued public discussions of AI in insurance; Federato’s platform includes policy administration, billing and claims.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Federato in 2020 and leads it as CEO.
- Authored Being the Fire, presented at the NeurIPS 2021 Workshop on Tackling Climate Change with Machine Learning.
- Helped educate more than 1,000 executives through Udacity’s AI for Business Leaders program.
- Federato reported $80 million raised by November 2024 and announced a further $100 million Series D in November 2025.
- Federato reported tripling revenue in the year preceding its November 2025 Series D.
- With William Steenbergen, conducted more than 1,250 hours of underwriter interviews, as described in company interviews.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Federato’s September 14 culture article describes Ross’s road-bike metaphor and a final founder interview for every candidate.
- **2026-09** — Listed as a speaker for the September 29 ITC Vegas session on why some insurers get value from AI.
- **2026-09** — Federato’s September 18 platform article describes shared architecture across underwriting, policy administration, billing, claims and renewal.
- **2026-02** — Discussed his Uber analogy and portfolio-oriented approach to AI in a Crowdfund Insider interview.
- **2025-11** — Federato announced a $100 million Series D and reported revenue tripling over the previous year.

## Links

- Website: https://www.federato.ai
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamross826

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/will-ross
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-11