Revolutionizing Underwater

Rescue

Archaeology

to Protect Our Past

Our history

Seafarer Exploration Corp (OTCQB: SFRX) is an underwater archaeological exploration and technology company innovating how underwater history is discovered, conserved, and experienced. Its mission is to rescue an unparalleled collection of historical artifacts from the waters of the world while adhering to the highest code of archaeological ethics.  To achieve its mission, Seafarer Exploration Corp has originated the practice of underwater rescue archaeology, which involves sensitive research, documentation, exploration, recovery, and conservation of historic underwater sites before they are lost to the elements forever. Seafarer Exploration Corp has assembled a multi-disciplinary team of experts in the fields particular to underwater rescue archaeology – from underwater archaeologists and conservationists to engineers and experienced mariners. This team has developed and continuously advances breakthrough technologies and state-of-the-art processes essential to the unique demands of underwater rescue archaeology.  For example, innovative technology developed by Seafarer Exploration Corp has revolutionized how the location, depth, size, and composition of buried objects are determined. This radically reduces the time and resources required to explore a site and enables surgical underwater archaeological investigations. Artifacts recovered by Seafarer Exploration Corp are meticulously conserved, documented, and reported in its archaeology lab, which boasts capabilities like that of a major institution or top museum but on a smaller scale.

Unlike most salvors of the past, Seafarer Exploration Corp is not selling any of the artifacts it recovers. Instead, it will keep its collection whole and work with media partners, museums, governments, and private companies to reconsider how underwater artifacts are recorded and presented for the good of the public.

Seafarer Exploration Corp was founded in 2007 by Kyle Kennedy, who set the vision and assembled the team. A successful investment banker, Kyle sold his broker/dealer firm to invest money and time in the development of the Seafarer Exploration Corp. Recognizing the capital requirements associated with underwater exploration and the tremendous opportunity to advance the state of the art, Kennedy took Seafarer Exploration Corp public in 2008 in a reverse merger. His expertise in finance and negotiation ensured Seafarer has had resources and acquired critical assets for success when many others have fallen short.

Corporate Leadership

Kyle Kennedy

Founder and Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Kennedy spent decades in the securities business with eight securities licenses covering investment banking, trading, mergers and acquisitions, sales, and taking companies public. During his tenure as a broker/dealer, Mr. Kennedy was responsible for taking over 600 companies public.

Mr. Kennedy founded Seafarer in 2007 and negotiated a reverse merger in 2008, resulting in Seafarer becoming a public company. Mr. Kennedy has raised over $23 million in paid-in capital through family, friends, and other investors and has structured a viable footprint in multiple countries, including France, Spain, and Cuba. Mr. Kennedy also has the distinction of being the only person in the United States to receive a full 1A-31 Recovery Permit from the Florida Bureau of Archaeological Research in over 37 years.

Tim Reynolds

Head Engineer

Andrew Owens

Archaeologist

Bob Baer

Archaeologist

Dante Volpe

Senior Engineer

Tom Soeder

Board Member

Brad Clark

Board Member

Tim Reynolds

Head Engineer

Andrew Owens

Archaeologist

Andrew Edward Owens is a seasoned archaeologist with a wealth of diverse skills. He’s an experienced four-field anthropologist with an undergraduate degree from Western State Colorado University and a Master of Science from Utah State University. Andrew’s expertise is broad, ranging from field supervisor and conservator/curator to legal consultant and principal investigator. His professional journey has taken him to Italy, France, Mexico, and the American West. Currently, he works in Florida, leveraging his extensive experience as an independent archaeological contractor, providing consultation, management, and leadership for Seafarer Exploration Corp.

Andrew loves great questions and exploring history through archaeology. Academically, he enjoys ‘modeling’ and contemplating every site’s who, what, when, where, why, and how. Andrew understands that “the devil is in the details” and “rigor is required” when investigating archaeological queries. As with all archaeological stewards, he seeks to “do right by the site” and ensure that historic resources are documented appropriately with care and consideration.

Andrew dreams big and seeks grand ideas. He knows that “you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” and “you can only achieve what you can imagine achieving.” That is why he finds Seafarer so exciting. In his estimation, “Seafarer has a unique potential to pioneer new archaeology markets by investing in our passion for the past and sharing those passions and stories with a wide audience.”

Andrew’s broader goal is to ignite a new wave of interest in archaeology. He envisions a ‘golden age’ of exploration and research, where the public’s fascination with ‘real archaeology’ provides the value and resources to help rescue our vanishing archaeological places.

Bob Baer

Archaeologist

Dr. Robert H. Baer is a Professional Archaeologist who has a career in a number of specialties that include archaeology, academia, and the military. These specialties have been furthered by professional writing and research. Dr. Baer gained his archaeology education (doctoral, master’s, and undergraduate degrees) at the University of Oxford & Leicester in the UK. Dr. Baer was an Archaeology and Public Administration Professor at Nova University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he taught in both the Schools of Oceanography and Public Administration. While at Nova, Dr. Baer specialized in shipwreck research and conducted numerous projects, including fieldwork and professional writing. Dr. Baer is also an experienced terrestrial archaeologist, having performed hundreds of investigations. Dr. Baer has written numerous books and monographs that include studies of shipwrecks at Jupiter Inlet, Pompano Beach, Cape Canaveral, and Melbourne Beach.

Dante Volpe

Senior Engineer

Dante Volpe began working in the marine environment early on as a lifeguard. His enthusiasm for the water only increased as he became recreationally SCUBA certified while studying Oceanography at the Florida Institute of Technology, where he received a B.S. in Ocean Engineering. He ultimately became a scientific diver with an AAUS certification and would dive for the university while conducting biofouling research. 

With previous professional experience in the marine environment, as well as experience as a mechanical designer and architectural 3D Modeler.  Mr. Volpe focuses on submersible electronics, rapid prototyping, and geophysical surveying. Since starting with Seafarer, Mr. Volpe has worked to develop new and innovative technologies to advance remote sensing capabilities in the marine sector. He works to manage on-site field operations, conduct marine surveys, pilot underwater AI drone technology, and analyze collected data while also being a member of the dive team.

Tom Soeder

Board Member

An experienced businessman, inventor, patent holder, sales manager, college educator, and manufacturer, Mr. Soeder has almost 50 years of computer, electronics, industrial engineering, and telecommunications background. As a business development manager for a major defense contractor and distributor, Mr. Soeder was responsible for millions in revenue. His duties included tracking and coordinating strategic and tactical efforts across the branches of government on major federal programs, including Future Combat Systems and Naval Open Architecture.

Brad Clark

Board Member

A loyal supporter of Seafarer Brad S. Clark has joined the board of directors. Always at the ready to help in any way, Mr. Clark has been an investor and supporter of Seafarer for more than nine years. Mr. Clark has a background in the Air National Guard, law enforcement education and a degree in business administration but it’s his personal experience in business and production efficiency that will be a great asset to Seafarer and shareholders as will his unique hands-on experience with employee and operations management. In 2012, Mr. Clark was a tireless worker in Missouri with members of Seafarer and shareholders while they followed a long-time diver and dug for Jesuit gold.

Mr. Clark’s success in multiple businesses and his boundless energy and enthusiasm will fit perfectly with Seafarer’s holistic approach to opportunities in the marine exploration, salvage, and conservation industry. Seafarer is dedicated to looking at every side, every angle of every situation, whatever it takes to succeed, and Mr. Clark is a part of that solution. Welcome aboard, Mr. Clark.

Maximilian Thyssen

Advisor

Mr. Thyssen has been a full-time angel investor since 2007, particularly focused on tech-enabled startups. Mr. Thyssen’s experience in the tech sector makes him keenly aware of the unique operational and customer acquisition challenges that growing companies face and how to navigate them. Mr. Thyssen has a banking background, as well as a BA (honors) in International Management studies with a finance major from the European Business School in London. Some of his startup investments include companies like Mister Spex SE, which went public in 2022 with about $230m in revenue and 1,350 employees serving 6.6M customers sending out 20,000 orders a day. He is also an investor in Tala, a US-based microloan tech company that has raised more than $370M in funding and serving 6M+ customers. Mr. Thyssen was also involved in several M&A transactions and successful exits to Apple Inc., the German media company Pro7 SE as well as several private equity funds.

Peter Ensio

Advisor

Mr. Ensio has over 15 years of experience in entrepreneurship and operational management and has a long history of building successful technology-focused companies. An avid treasure hunter since he was young, Mr. Ensio was drawn to Seafarer due to its business plan of scaling its technology to fundamentally change several industries.

Frederick Rector

Advisor

Frederick Rector has over thirty years of business experience, beginning his career at Motorola. During his tenure, he was pivotal in transitioning inventories to accommodate IS 95, the first significant advancement in digital cellular technology. Additionally, he contributed to a team that identified the need to integrate customer marketing requirements with evolving technological standards.

He has traveled extensively throughout Asia, successfully building a meaningful book of business in North America and introducing and successfully selling the company’s first branded product in North America.  Mr. Rector has successfully exited two startups, with his last successfully exiting in 2022 to a Fortune 100.

Throughout his career, Mr. Rector has been able to pivot industries, i.e., telecom, agriculture, carbon-neutral cement, and insurance, because he understands technology can improve processes but recognizes technology can only gain its forecasted efficiency with a world-class team.  Mr. Rector says his current employment has given him the most significant insight into what a world-class team can bring to technology.

Mr. Rector has been involved with Seafarer Exploration since 2013 and has helped with his involvement, specifically with the Advisory Board.  Mr. Rector says, “Seafarer has been able to build platforms, technologies, and hardware in-house, including a world-class team, over the years. I am excited to play a small part in a company that is changing Rescue Archaeology by its tools and the people it hires.”