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Ilya Kelner

Founder

Founder at Red Barn Robotics

Greater Seattle Area

FoundedRed Barn Robotics · YC

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About

Ilya Kelner is CTO and cofounder at Red Barn Robotics. He previously led flight software development at Relativity Space, where he designed fault-tolerant flight computer architecture and deployment systems, and held engineering roles at SpaceX (Starlink), Nvidia (autonomous vehicles), and Microsoft (Xbox).

Founder at Red Barn RoboticsYC W25

Intro paths

YC

Ilya went through Y Combinator (Winter 2025) — any YC alum in your network can reach them through the YC community.

GP

Their group partner at YC was Brad Flora, Backing expeditions into the future — the partner who ran Red Barn Robotics's batch and knows the company first-hand. YC profile ↗

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In turn, Ilya can intro founders to Red Barn Robotics's investors below.

Red Barn Robotics's investors · 12

Agrolimen VenturesAliaksandr HudzilinBatch VenturesFounder CapitalSilicon Valley · $25K – $100K checksPioneerToronto, OntarioPonderosa VenturesSan Francisco · $100K – $750K checksPreston-Werner VenturesSan Francisco Bay Area · $500K – $3M checksRegion CuatroCaliforniaSingularity VenturesVermilion Cliffs VenturesNew York · $200K – $500K checksVermilion VenturesLihueY CombinatorSan Francisco · $500K checks · since 2025

Co-founders at Red Barn Robotics

AIAdam Iseman
Adam IsemanFounder
ANAlex Neff
Alex NeffFounder

Experience

  1. Red Barn RoboticsChief Technology Officercurrent2024 — present
  2. Relativity SpaceStaff Flight Software Engineer2022 — 2024Seattle, Washington, United States
  3. NVIDIASenior Software Engineer2020 — 2022Seattle, Washington, United States
  4. Maka Autonomous Robotic SystemsSenior Software Engineer2020
  5. SpaceXSoftware Engineer2015 — 2020
  6. Mark OneDirector of Firmware and Algorithms2014 — 2015
  7. MicrosoftSoftware and Algorithms Engineer2012 — 2014Redmond
  8. MicrosoftIncubation Engineer2011 — 2012
  9. Carnegie Mellon UniversityResearch Assistant2007 — 2011

Skills & more

Software Engineering5Machine Learning1Digital Signal Processing2Low Level ProgrammingBig DataComputational Mathematics1Physics3Computer Science5Algorithms8Programming1Software DevelopmentDistributed Systems1
+12 moreHardwareDebuggingApplication Security ArchitectureSoftware DesignSecure CodingMatlabJavaC/C++Assembly LanguageCPythonEmbedded Systems

Languages English · Russian

  • Developing Secure Software — LinkedIn

From Ilya's professional profile.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Ilya Kelner?
Ilya Kelner is CTO and cofounder at Red Barn Robotics. He previously led flight software development at Relativity Space, where he designed fault-tolerant flight computer architecture and deployment systems, and held engineering roles at SpaceX (Starlink), Nvidia (autonomous vehicles), and Microsoft (Xbox).
Where does Ilya Kelner work?
Ilya Kelner is Founder of Red Barn Robotics.
What companies did Ilya Kelner found?
Ilya Kelner founded Red Barn Robotics.
Where did Ilya Kelner go to school?
Ilya Kelner studied at Carnegie Mellon University (Bachelor's Degree, Electrical and Computer Engineering).

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