About Signswift LLC
Signswift LLC is the consulting practice of Ian Mercer, a technology executive with 30+ years building and scaling software products from startup to global enterprise.
Background
Most recently, Ian was CTO of Willow Inc., an operational AI and digital twin platform for buildings and critical infrastructure, where he led a 40-person engineering organization across four countries, cut Azure cloud costs by 50% (saving over $1M annually), and drove an AI-first transformation of both product and engineering.
Earlier, Ian founded NextBase Ltd. / Automap Inc., pioneering commercial route planning and mapping software, and sold the company to Microsoft in 1994. At Microsoft, he led 100+-person product organizations and launched category-defining products including MapPoint, Expedia and MSN Maps, and Windows Movie Maker.
Ian holds an MA in Mathematics and Computer Science (1st Class Honors) from Jesus College, Cambridge, and 15+ granted patents spanning geographic software, video editing, streaming, and multimedia. Between executive roles, he has consulted on projects spanning financial services, AI/ML architecture, and enterprise technology for companies including Garmin, TeleAtlas, Samsung, and Commonwealth Bank.
Today, Ian brings this depth of experience to Signswift LLC, consulting on strategy, architecture, and AI transformation for companies building complex software systems.
Locations
Signswift LLC operates from Sammamish, WA, USA and Staines, UK.