Carl Stauffer founded and leads Riften and scouts for Andreessen Horowitz. He previously worked as a forward-deployed engineer at Palantir, conducted nuclear research at Jefferson Lab, and studied computer science and applied mathematics at Johns Hopkins.
Carl Stauffer founded and leads Riften and scouts for Andreessen Horowitz. He previously worked as a forward-deployed engineer at Palantir, conducted nuclear research at Jefferson Lab, and studied computer science and applied mathematics at Johns Hopkins.
Career
RCEO/Founder at Riften from 2026 to Present in San Francisco, California, United StatesFounder and CEO of Riften, an AI infrastructure company and Y Combinator S26 company.
Scout at Andreessen Horowitz from 2026 to PresentScout supporting the American Dynamism team.
1st Neurodivergent Fellow/FDE at Palantir from 2026 to Present in New York City, New York, United StatesJoined through Palantir’s Neurodivergent Fellowship to work on software and AI. FDE means Forward Deployed Engineer.SESWE & Growth for startups at Startup ecosystem from 2017 to 2017 in San Francisco, California, United StatesSoftware engineering and growth work for startups including hf0, a16z Scout, and Y Combinator.
JLNuclear Fusion Research at Jefferson Lab from 2016 to 2016 in Virginia, United StatesConducted nuclear fusion research at Jefferson Lab, part of the U.S. Department of Energy.
BGData Science at BMF Group from 2016 to 2016 in Virginia, United StatesWorked in data science at BMF Group.
KPAssociate Swim Coach at Kingswood Pool from 2015 to 2016 in Williamsburg, Virginia, United StatesWorked as an associate swim coach.
CWSenior Corps Fifer at Colonial Williamsburg from 2010 to 2016 in Williamsburg, Virginia, United StatesServed as a Senior Corps Fifer.