Tanner Smith

Tanner Smith is a Principal-in-Residence at MVP Ventures, where he focuses on defense, energy, and AI technologies. 

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Prior to MVP, Tanner was an operator at Rolls-Royce PLC and Scale AI. At Rolls-Royce, he worked in Business Operations and Corporate Strategy for the firm’s defense division, with experience spanning aerospace, naval, and advanced nuclear markets. Most recently, he helped shape product strategy within Scale AI’s Public Sector business.

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Across these roles, Tanner has partnered with leadership teams on strategy development, go-to-market execution, and long-term positioning in technically complex industries. 

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He sees venture as a way to champion founders tackling the most technically complex challenges – helping ensure their ideas scale into lasting companies.

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In addition to his role at MVP, Tanner is pursuing his MBA at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

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