William Santana Li, Knightscope CEO, Fireside Chat with David Cao, Founder World 2021
William Li, CEO & Founder, Knightscope
Bill is an American entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience and has a broad and deep range of expertise gained from several global assignments in the automotive sector and a number of startups. He is presently the Chairman and CEO of Knightscope, developer of crime-fighting Autonomous Security Robots (ASRs).
At Ford Motor Company, Bill held over 12 business and technical positions, focused on 4 continents, cutting across each functional area. These positions ranged from component, systems, and vehicle engineering with Visteon, Mazda, and Lincoln; to business & product strategy on the US youth market, India, and the emerging markets in Asia-Pacific and South America; as well as the financial turnaround of Ford of Europe. In addition, he was on the AMAZON team, which established an all-new modular plant in Brazil. Subsequently, he served as Director of Mergers & Acquisitions.
After internally securing $250 million, Bill founded and was COO of GreenLeaf, a Ford subsidiary that became the world’s 2nd largest automotive recycler. Under his leadership, GreenLeaf grew to a 600-employee operation with 20 locations and $150 million in sales. At the age of 28, Bill was the youngest senior executive at Ford worldwide.
Bill was then recruited by SOFTBANK Venture Capital to establish Model E Corporation as its President and CEO, a new car company where the “Subscribe and Drive” philosophy was first pioneered in California. He subsequently co-founded Build-To-Order Inc. (BTO) as its President and CEO, a new car company based on the direct distribution of build-to-order products. Bill also founded Carbon Motors, and as its Chairman and CEO, focused it on developing the world’s first purpose-built law enforcement patrol vehicle. He also built a world-class advisory board comprised of senior officials that had worked directly for 3 different U.S. Presidents.
Bill earned a BSEE from Carnegie Mellon University and an MBA from the University of Detroit Mercy.
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David Cao is a community builder, investor, and entrepreneur at the forefront of the Physical AI and Embodied AI ecosystem. He is the Curator of the Physical AI Newsletter and Managing Partner at F50, where he leads initiatives engaging innovators, investors, and industry leaders across manufacturing, construction, and real estate.
He is the Producer of the F50 Physical AI Summit and the Future 50 Physical AI Builders Program, platforms designed to spotlight and accelerate breakthrough entrepreneurs. As a community and ecosystem builder, David has founded and nurtured networks spanning Silicon Valley and the Greater Austin–San Antonio Corridor, including SVE, Silicon Valley’s largest and oldest entrepreneurs community.
David is also a seasoned venture investor, having backed more than 40 companies across multiple sectors, including Knightscope (IPO 2022), Doc.AI (acquired by Sharecare, IPO 2021), Gummicube (acquired by Airship), Oculii (acquired by Ambarella), and Voke VR (acquired by Intel).
Beyond entrepreneurship and investment, he is a leading thinker on the North America Manufacturing Corridor from Monterey Mexico to Dallas, helping frame its role as one of the most dynamic and economically vital regions in the world. David is helping shape the next wave of Physical AI innovation in North America and beyond.
In his spare time, David explores the intersection of mindfulness and entrepreneurship. He is the upcoming author of Standing Meditation (forthcoming), and shares the practice with entrepreneurs as a tool for clarity, resilience, and presence.
F50 Physical AI Summit: http://physical.f50.ai
Future 50 Physical AI Builders: http://f50.ai/future
SVE Silicon Valley Entrepreneurs 