Remitly CISO names; Joseph Williams leads cybersecurity ed at WWU; Yoodli gets VP of product – GeekWire
– Jeff Lyon he is now Seattle’s chief information security officer Remit. Lyon joins from Coinbase, where he was head of infrastructure security for two years. Previous roles include security leadership at Robinhood and Amazon Web Services. Lyon also served as a petty officer with the US Navy for over nine years.
“Remitly’s mission to transform lives through trusted financial services that transcend borders resonates deeply and is a natural continuation of my organizations building security, secure applications, and automation platforms across fintech,” Lyon said in a LinkedIn post.
Remitly has seen leadership changes since founder and CEO Matt Oppenheimer left in February. Ankur Sinha stepped down as chief product and technology officer in June, and Rina Hahn left as chief marketing officer earlier this month. Technology and finance veteran Sebastian Gunningham now leads the company.
– Joseph Williamsa longtime Seattle-area leader in the intersection of technology and public service, has been named director of Cybersecurity Programs at Western Washington University.
Williams most recently served as director of governance, risk management and compliance (GRC) at consulting firm Artemis Connection. His diverse career includes serving as the information and communications technology lead for the Washington State Department of Commerce; director of the Seattle office of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; and Divisional CTO at Microsoft.
In 2025, Williams was named GeekWire’s Public Policy Champion for Innovation.
Williams’ experience “sets the stage for advancing our cybersecurity programs to the next level as we seek to equip and empower our graduates to succeed in exciting careers in a rapidly changing technology environment,” said Filip Jagodzinski, chair of the computer science department.
– Kartik Murthy he was named vice president of product Iodinea role-playing platform that uses AI to help people improve their professional skills.
Murthy joins the Seattle-based startup from cybersecurity firm Coalition, where he served as head of product for four years. He has held product management roles at companies including Meta, Google and Uber.
“In a world where many AI products are trying to automate workflows, Yoodli is betting on people and it’s paying off,” Murthy said on LinkedIn.
– Phoebe Weiser he is now an investor in an old Seattle company Madrona. He joins from Databricks, where he worked as a product manager, and previously held internship and full-time roles at Microsoft.
“After strengthening security at Microsoft and data engineering at Databricks, I’m looking forward to working with the next generation of innovators. I’m so grateful to my managers, mentors, and colleagues over the past few years for everything they’ve taught me about building quality products,” he said on LinkedIn.
– Salman Taherian he is now the head of AI for Grant Thorntona Chicago firm that provides audit, assurance, tax and advisory services. Taherian, who is based in the company’s office in Bellevue, Wash., joins from Amazon Web Services where he was global head of AI for the agency and partner accounts. Previous employers include Wipro Limited and Relx.
