I’m originally from Rio de Janeiro and now live in London. I work at Nettle, an early-stage AI company, where my role covers everything from building agents to developing and executing GTM strategy.
What I do
Over the last four years, I have taken on broad operating roles across commercial work, fundraising, company operations, hiring, and applied AI.
The scope has changed with the needs of each company, but the underlying pattern has remained the same: I take ownership of important problems that don’t have clear owners and build the processes, systems, and operating rhythms required to address them.
I come from a non-technical operating background. Building Atrie served as a forcing function for me to use AI-assisted tools and become more technical, allowing me to build systems that previously would have been beyond me. I enjoy that puzzle-like combination of working out what the problem actually is, learning whatever is required, and doing the practical work needed to solve it.
After several years in broad operating roles, I am now spending more of my time on the commercial side: supporting sales, developing GTM strategy, and building applied AI systems that help us scale sales and marketing.
Experience
My career so far has centered on three chapters: helping build Climate X from its Pre-seed to Series A stage, founding Atrie, and working at an AI native startup at Nettle.
Chief of Staff
I joined Nettle in January 2026, when we were still at the pre-seed stage. We build AI products for commercial insurers. I have worked on our commercial systems, hiring, investor reporting, financial planning, and internal agents. My role is now moving toward more direct responsibility for selling, delivery, and new commercial ideas.
Founder
I left Climate X in 2025 to build a company. Atrie was a company brain designed to give AI agents a consistent, queryable model of a business. It was built around a managed warehouse and shared metric definitions, aimed at companies without a data team. Over five months, I ran discovery and built a working pre-MVP. I stopped before fundraising: the idea needed founder-level technical ownership that I could not provide alone.
Business Development Manager → Founder’s Associate → Chief of Staff
I joined Climate X as employee 13 and its first Business Development Manager. I later became Founder’s Associate and then Chief of Staff. My work included fundraising, finance, company operations, people systems, and commercial projects. I project-managed the company’s $18 million Series A process with Google and spent two months in New York helping set up its first international office.
“Julio Othon was an exceptional Chief of Staff at Climate X – highly organized, trusted and respected, and someone who truly understands the grit and reality of startup life; being a core part of the team across everything from fundraising to US expansion.”
Lukky Ahmed ↗ · Co-founder and CEO, Climate X
Before full-time work
Before Climate X, I interned at Sylvera, Unrest, MOV Investimentos, Kraft Heinz, Brazil’s Mission to the WTO, and Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The work ranged from climate technology and venture investing to sales and international development.
My time at MOV Investimentos opened the door to tech startups. I fell in love with the pace and ambition of the environment and, over time, realized I would have more fun on the execution side. It is still where I can see myself spending the rest of my career.
Education
MSc Climate Change, Management, and Finance · 2021
MA (Hons) International Relations · 2020
Studied Law before moving to Scotland. Indefinitely deferred.
Outside work
I use this website for longer pieces and ideas I want to work through properly. Most will be about AI agents, operating early-stage companies, and whatever I am trying to understand at the time.
Read my essays →I build agents to solve problems my family and I have, including tools that help me manage my health and organize my day.
See my projects →I occasionally speak about startup operating roles and mentor people working on early-stage ideas.
Speaking and mentoring →Elsewhere