James Cook

James Cook is President at GuideTech, a Palladyne AI company. In this role, he is responsible for GuideTech’s best-in-class, efficient, and cost-effective UAS design process, as well as GuideTech’s advanced UAS avionics and flight software product lines.

Prior to joining Palladyne AI in 2025, Cook served as the President and Co-Founder of aerospace company GuideTech, where he spent 10 years leading multidisciplinary teams in the development of autonomous air-vehicle systems and advanced flight technologies. During his tenure, Cook oversaw GuideTech’s contributions to programs spanning the full flight envelope, including Stratolaunch’s Talon hypersonic research vehicle, Anduril’s Fury unmanned fighter, Portal’s SuperNova spacecraft, and multiple counter-UAS efforts. He also leads the company’s development of ALRRM, a low-cost near-hypersonic missile, under a Navy Phase II SBIR contract.

An aerospace engineer by trade, Cook also held positions at Raytheon Missile Systems and Sierra Space. At Raytheon, he served in the Advanced Programs division, contributing to the company’s Active Protection System, Joint Air-to-Ground Missile, and related programs. He later joined Sierra Space, where he was a member of the Dream Chaser flight-dynamics team.

Cook holds a Master of Science degree in Dynamics and Control from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from Iowa State University. He is an inventor on four U.S. patents in missile guidance and control.