# Rick Smith: CEO, Axon Enterprise

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Founder and CEO of [Axon Enterprise](/companies/axon) (NASDAQ: AXON), the public safety technology company behind TASER energy weapons, body-worn cameras, and Evidence.com. Smith founded the company as TASER International in a Tucson garage in 1993 after two of his college friends were shot and killed, with a mission to make bullets obsolete. He holds a B.S. cum laude in Neuroscience from Harvard University, a Master's in International Finance from the University of Leuven (Belgium), and an MBA from the University of Chicago. In 2019, he authored 'The End of Killing,' arguing that lethal force is a technology problem solvable through innovation. Under his leadership, Axon has grown into a $40B+ market-cap company pioneering AI-powered drones for first responders (DFR program) and Dedrone counter-drone systems.

- **Nationality:** American
- **Verification posture:** verified

## Current roles (2)

- [Axon Enterprise](https://registry.deploy.report/companies/axon.md) Founder & CEO (secondary-verified)
- [Axon Enterprise](https://registry.deploy.report/companies/axon.md) Founder (secondary-verified)

## Sources (4)

1. https://investor.axon.com/management-team?item=126
2. https://www.axon.com/leadership/rick-smith
3. https://www.forbes.com/profile/rick-smith/
4. https://www.axon.com/blog/founders-day


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