Wyatt Hilkene

Operator, Strategist, Builder

I design and build AI-powered operational systems - from an autonomous agent running delivery logistics for a seafood distributor, to Feral Golf Co., the patent-pending product brand I co-founded and scaled from concept to manufactured reality. 12 years in Ops, Strategy, GTM Systems, and Startup Leadership sits underneath all of it.

Portrait of Wyatt Hilkene
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About

A builder first, an operator by trade

I'm the co-founder and Head of Product/Operations at Feral Golf Co., and I hold an MBA from UCLA Anderson (2023-2025), focused on AI, marketing, and strategy. Before that, I spent twelve-plus years building the operations, partnerships, and go-to-market systems that let companies scale - seven of them at 3Diligent (an additive manufacturing marketplace) taking the partner network from under 100 to 400+ across six continents, then running operations for a Web3 collectibles platform at 4K.com, then as VP of Operations & Strategy at Raiinmaker, an AI dataset training platform, where I served as the operational right hand to the CEO.

Today that shows up as an independent AI consulting practice, alongside running Feral Golf. I don't hand a client a slide deck and a roadmap - I build the system. For a California seafood distributor, that meant an autonomous operations agent handling delivery logistics end to end. At Raiinmaker, it meant evaluating and integrating 18+ marketing and analytics tools into one attribution system. For Feral Golf, it's a Three.js 3D product configurator and the manufacturing pipeline that took the brand from a sketch to a patent-pending, 3D-printed product line.

I'm based in Venice, CA, and I'm currently looking at AI-consulting, Chief of Staff, and Strategy & Operations engagements where that combination - systems thinking, hands-on build capability, and GTM execution - is the actual job, not a nice-to-have.

Based in
Venice, CA
Education
MBA, UCLA Anderson (AI, Marketing & Strategy)
BA, University of Pennsylvania
Experience
12 years, Ops, Strategy, GTM Systems & Startup Leadership
Currently
Co-Founder, Feral Golf Co.
Areas of Expertise

Where I operate

Five overlapping lanes - the case studies below are the receipts for each one.

AI Consulting & Automation

Designs and builds AI-powered operational tooling - hands-on with agent frameworks, not just strategy slides.

  • Built an autonomous operations agent (Claude Agent SDK) for a seafood distribution business
  • Evaluated and integrated 18+ marketing/analytics tools into a unified attribution system at Raiinmaker
  • Comfortable in the code, not just the roadmap

Operations Strategy / Chief of Staff

Builds the RevOps/GTM infrastructure that lets founders scale without adding headcount.

  • Snowflake, Salesforce, Hightouch/Census, Clay, Bombora
  • Reverse ETL pipeline design

Marketing & GTM Execution

Runs paid media, brand partnerships, and content/creative production end-to-end.

  • Feral Golf's Meta & Google ad programs
  • SCGA / FORE Magazine placements
  • Video production management (e.g. Pelican Hill shoot)

SaaS / RevOps Systems

Deep systems background across data pipelines, CRM architecture, and GTM tooling stacks.

  • 3Diligent - additive manufacturing RevOps
  • Raiinmaker / Coiin - Web3 operations systems

Founder / Brand Building

Took Feral Golf from concept through patent-pending manufacturing and a real supply chain.

  • Manufacturing & supply agreements
  • Brand identity, retail partnerships, paid acquisition
Experience

A quick scan of the timeline

  1. Nov 2025 - Present

    Co-Founder & Head of Product / Operations

    Feral Golf Co.

    Patent-pending, 3D-printed golf ferrule line - product, operations, and GTM.

  2. Sep 2023 - Jun 2025

    MBA - AI, Marketing & Strategy

    UCLA Anderson School of Management

    Director of EMBA Relations (AnderTech); Unchained Web3 Conference Moderator.

  3. Apr 2024 - Sep 2025

    VP of Operations & Strategy

    Raiinmaker

    AI dataset training platform - operational right hand to the CEO.

  4. Nov 2021 - Nov 2023

    Director of Operations

    4K.com Corporation

    Web3 digital collectibles platform - operations strategy and sprint planning.

  5. Oct 2014 - Nov 2021

    VP of Operations & Special Projects / Director of Operations

    3Diligent Corporation

    Additive manufacturing marketplace - scaled the partner network to 400+ across six continents.

Reading

Books I come back to

Hyperion

Dan Simmons

Six pilgrims, one dying planet, and the best structural trick in sci-fi.

Rendezvous with Rama

Arthur C. Clarke

First-contact scale done right - pure hard-sci-fi wonder.

The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

Robert A. Heinlein

A lunar revolution run like an ops problem.

The Caves of Steel

Isaac Asimov

Robot noir that's really about how humans and systems learn to trust each other.

The Name of the Wind

Patrick Rothfuss

Prose I'd reread for the sentences alone.

Mistborn

Brandon Sanderson

The gold standard for a magic system with actual rules.

Farseer Trilogy

Robin Hobb

The slowest possible burn, and worth every page.

Station Eleven

Emily St. John Mandel

What survives collapse, told with no interest in cheap dread.

Finn, the personal assistant
Personal Assistant

Finn - quality control, morale, and the occasional deadline enforcement. Reports to no one. Has floppy ears.

Contact

Let's talk

Open to Chief of Staff, Strategy & Operations, AI-consulting, and marketing-leadership conversations - happy to just talk shop, too.