Team
Meet the team engineering the foundational hardware authority layerthat replaces reusable secrets with dynamic, cryptographic intent.
John Killoran
Founder & Chief Executive Officer
John Killoran founded UniKey in 2011 with a vision of eliminating passwords from the Internet. Over the past fifteen years, that vision has evolved into a much larger mission: building the Internet’s missing authorization layer for the AI era.
A mechanical engineer, attorney, inventor, and entrepreneur, John previously founded Clover Leaf Environmental Solutions, a technology and infrastructure company that was successfully acquired by private equity. Earlier in his career, he created one of the world’s earliest password-free information management systems, technology that was later acquired by Workday.
Since founding UniKey, John has led more than $20 million in research and development, built a worldwide portfolio of more than 100 patent assets, and guided collaborations with leading engineers, technology companies, and U.S. national laboratories. Today, he is focused on building an ARM-style licensing company and an Anchor License Consortium to establish a universal authorization standard for the Internet.
Isaiah Baca
Chief Technology Officer
Isaiah joined Swoop in 2012 and now serves as Chief Technology Officer of the platform. He leads UniKey’s technical architecture, policy, and strategy. He is responsible for the RFCs defining UniKey’s four trust primitives, the foundation of the UniKey authority layer. He also manages UniKey’s proof-of-concept integration with the Snowball Fundraising platform.
Luis Sierra
Investor & Board Member
Luis is an investor and board member of UniKey. Throughout his career in energy and chemicals, he has led large, complex, global organizations. Most recently, he served as CEO of NOVA Chemicals, a $14 B materials and petrochemicals manufacturer based in Canada. He is also an experienced board member and currently chairs the Compensation Committee of Steel Dynamics, a $40 B low-carbon steel and aluminum conglomerate. Luis holds an MBA from the University of Chicago and a Master of Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech.
Patrick Killoran
Director of Intellectual Property
Patrick is UniKey’s Director of Intellectual Property, a 14-year UniKey veteran overseeing the full IP portfolio — patents, trademarks, and licensing agreements — along with legal matters, investor relations, and operations. Prior to UniKey, he was a founding member and Creative Director at @Pay, now Snowball Fundraising. Before that, he spent nearly a decade at Nickelodeon/MTV Networks. Patrick holds a BFA from the Tyler School of Art at Temple University.
Gerald “Jay” B. Halt Jr.
Advisory Board Member
Jay is a Shareholder at Volpe Koenig, one of the largest intellectual property law boutiques in the U.S. With a background in electrical engineering, he helps clients — from startup entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 companies — secure, manage, and protect their IP portfolios. Jay partners with attorneys and businesses throughout Europe and Asia to facilitate their U.S. intellectual property needs. He advises UniKey’s board on intellectual property strategy.
Tom Connolly
Director of Industry Solutions & Implementation
Tom is a proven technologist, business leader, and serial entrepreneur with over 20 years of professional Information Technology experience in the areas of IT Strategy and Business Alignment, Advanced Technologies and IT Frameworks, ERP and Supply Chain Applications, E-Commerce, Data Management, Cybersecurity, Systems Integration and Governance.
Executive leader with advanced degrees in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Tom has twice built and managed an Enterprise IT Services consulting practice from startup to over one hundred full-time members. Tom lead the development of BizTech, the second largest Oracle Cloud Consulting practice in North America.
Tom’s focus on best practice solutions by industry has included extensive work within Financial Services, Consumer Goods, Professional Services, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Energy, Life Sciences, Non-Profit and Govt Contracting.
Brandon Theiss, PE, Esq.
Patent Counsel
As UniKey’s Patent Counsel, Brandon is responsible for the complete patent application lifecycle, from prosecution before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office through monetization. He has built a successful engineering career across a wide range of technologies, translating complex ideas into effective business solutions. Brandon has directed UniKey’s patent portfolio for the past 7 years and has practiced as a patent attorney for 20 years. He is recognized as an inventor, teacher, and entrepreneur skilled at turning great ideas into tangible value.