Nicholas Bhai

TPM @ Hellbender Inc.

About

I’m a founder-minded builder with a bias for action and a compass for clarity. At the intersection of AI, robotics, and systems integration, I lead with hands-on execution and a long view—willing to carry the water when needed, always pushing toward scalable, transformative outcomes. Over 15 years, I’ve built and led robotics and AI programs in highly regulated, high-stakes environments—from autonomous inspection systems in nuclear reactors to global AI deployments that unlocked millions in manufacturing value. I specialize in aligning the messy middle: translating ambitious ideas into working systems, guiding cross-functional teams through ambiguity, and creating the kind of technical-cultural environment where innovation becomes inevitable. What I bring: Deep Leadership in Autonomy & AI – From early prototyping to global scale, with hands-on experience in perception, motion planning, and real-time systems. Systems Thinker, Ground-Level Doer – I’ve reported to the C-suite on multimillion-dollar R&D programs and debugged ROS pipelines or tweaked inference models in the same week. Cross-Functional Synthesizer – Equally at home in technical reviews, strategy sessions, or on the factory floor—wherever the product needs momentum. Cultural Architect – Built hubs that attracted top robotics talent, accelerated go-to-market, and sustained collaboration across startups, academia, and enterprise. I’m energized by teams solving hard problems at the edge of what’s possible. If that’s you, let’s connect.

Country

United States

City

Greater Pittsburgh Region

Industry

Utilities

Skill

Technical Program Management, Cross-functional Leadership, End-to-End Platform Ownership, Model-Driven Decision Systems, Stakeholder Alignment & Change Enablement, Agile Delivery in Regulated and Multidisciplinary Environments, Cross-Disciplinary Technical Leadership in Regulated Robotics, Robotics Deployment in Safety-Critical Environments, Cross-Disciplinary Technical Leadership, Computer Vision & Localization Systems, Agile Software Development for Regulated Systems, Network & Systems Modernization, Business Strategy, Cross-Functional Stakeholder Alignment, Operational KPI Integration, Spatial Data, Autonomous Systems Development, AI/ML Product Leadership, Innovation Culture & Team Building, Strategic Clarity

Experience

TPM

Hellbender Inc.

2025-8 - Present · 1 yr 2 mos

Head of R&D & Product

ForSight Assistive Devices

2025-1 - 2025-8 · 8 mos

Leading product direction, prototyping, and strategy for wearable spatial feedback systems creating assistive robotics for blind and visually impaired users. Joined as Co-founder to progress from idea to accelerator program through Innovation Works’ Robot Factory, prototype iteration and user testing, and production. Prototyped somatosensory feedback wearable using vision-based algorithms. Positioned startup for pilot testing and manufacturing. Inclusive design and real-world testing with blind users.

Principle Product Manager AI/ML

PPG

2023 - 2025 · 2 yrs

Led development and scaling of AI/ML platforms across global manufacturing lines, unlocking $18M+ in forecasted savings. Orchestrated cross-functional teams spanning chemists, data scientists, and IT stakeholders to deploy inference pipelines, close the loop with production KPIs, and build cloud-first AI products with measurable business impact. Delivered 33% capacity gains at key sites by integrating ML into decision workflows. Established global dashboards, KPIs, and CI/CD for AI models; aligned executive stakeholders around value metrics. Drove platform adoption through hands-on technical collaboration and user-centered design.

Principal Technical Program Manager | Robotics & AI R&D

Westinghouse Electric Company

2016 - 2023 · 7 yrs

Built and led robotics and AI/ML programs across regulated, high-reliability domains. Spearheaded early initiatives in autonomous inspection robotics, anticipating billion-dollar markets years ahead of industry trends. Directed multimillion-dollar portfolios, advanced platform architectures, and delivered field-tested systems that modernized nuclear operations. Founded and led a robotics innovation hub, partnering with CMU, ARM Institute, and regional startups. Launched >10 robotic systems, including autonomous radiation mappers, decon arms, and SLAM-enabled submersibles. Delivered modular platform architectures reused across programs; emphasized edge compute + real-time safety. Secured internal buy-in across engineering, QA, safety, and field ops in a legacy enterprise setting.

Robotics Systems Engineer & Project Manager

Westinghouse Electric Company

2008 - 2016 · 8 yrs

Madison, PA

Led onsite deployment of robotics and data systems during nuclear outages, supporting safety-critical inspection workflows. Modernized legacy communications infrastructure and built telemetry pipelines that saved over $1M/year and thousands of labor hours. Developed vision systems and localization pipelines for inspection robots in high-radiation environments. Earned company’s highest technical honor for leadership and innovation. Delivered software reliability improvements via CI/CD tooling and network modernization. Enabled real-time robotic control in mission-critical environments through system-level thinking.

Education

Naveen Jindal School of Management, UT Dallas

Technology Management / International Business

Texas A&M University

Computer Engineering

International Engineering Certificate, Mathematics Minor

Udacity

Fused lidar point clouds, radar signatures, and camera images using Kalman Filters to perceive the environment and detect and track vehicles and pedestrians over time.