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Patrick Coughran
Co-Founder & CTO at Foxtrot Systems
Patrick Coughran is the Senior Director of Machine Learning at Descartes Systems Group, a position he has held since April 2022.12 He joined Descartes through the acquisition of Foxtrot Systems, a company he co-founded and served as CTO for over 9 years.2
With a background in computer science from Tufts University, Coughran is an accomplished entrepreneur and technologist.2 He was a Thiel Fellow from 2015 to 2017, a prestigious program for young innovators.2 His expertise lies in logistics AI, machine learning, and route optimization.2
At Descartes, Coughran has established a machine learning organization and led the development of an internal ML service to enhance global products.2 His work has significantly contributed to reducing prediction errors.2
Coughran is also an inventor with one patent and two pending, focusing on applying machine learning to revolutionize delivery routing.2 His innovations have led to substantial fuel savings, with his work reportedly saving 18 million gallons of fuel annually through real-time routing.2
Beyond his professional achievements, Coughran is committed to addressing climate change. He completed a climate-focused fellowship from Climatebase and holds a certification in the Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard from the Greenhouse Gas Protocol.2
