BOSTON, April 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Merlin, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRLN), an aerospace and defense technology company building the operating system of record for autonomous flight, today announced the appointment of Mark Brunner as Chief Revenue Officer. Brunner will lead global revenue strategy and growth initiatives as the company scales the Merlin Pilot across defense and civil aviation programs, playing a critical role as Merlin enters its next chapter as a publicly traded company.

Brunner is an industry veteran with more than 25 years of experience spanning military service, defense policy, and business development at the intersection of government and advanced technology. He brings a deep understanding of how innovation moves from emerging capability to scaled adoption, with a proven track record driving strategy, government relations, growth, and business development across the national security and technology sectors. Prior to joining Merlin, he led public sector growth initiatives at PsiQuantum and served as President of Public Sector at Primer AI, where he built and expanded the company's government business around large language model technology. Earlier in his career, he advised leading defense and technology companies on market strategy at The Cohen Group and spent six years as Senior Advisor to U.S. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, shaping defense and technology policy initiatives. He also served 20 years in the U.S. Navy as a pilot, bringing operational experience that informs his approach to scaling mission-critical technologies.

"Scaling revenue across defense and civil aviation requires strong technology but also trusted relationships, a deep understanding of complex procurement environments, and the ability to translate innovation into long-term programs of record," said Matt George, CEO and founder of Merlin. "Mark brings to Merlin operational military experience, insight into policymaking, and a proven track record driving business development and government relations. As Chief Revenue Officer, he is expected to play a critical role in aligning our growth strategy to the realities of how government and commercial customers adopt new capabilities, helping convert Merlin's technology leadership into durable partnerships and scalable revenue as we enter our next phase as a public company."

"Merlin is solving one of the most technically demanding and strategically important challenges in defense and aviation today, and doing so in a way that has the potential to fundamentally reshape what autonomy can be," said Brunner. "Having spent my career across national security, Capitol Hill, and high growth technology companies, I understand firsthand the critical needs to translate breakthrough innovation into operational programs that accelerate the capabilities of government and commercial customers. Merlin is building technology that is not only advanced, but designed for real world adoption within complex procurement and operational environments. I'm excited to help scale that capability to bring Merlin's autonomy platform into the programs where it can deliver a valuable impact."

About Merlin

Merlin is an aerospace and defense technology company building the operating system of record for autonomous flight. Through a first-principles approach, the company is redefining what's possible across aviation, aerospace, and defense with the goal of delivering full-stack autonomy for any aircraft, military or civilian, from takeoff to touchdown. The Merlin Pilot system powers a growing range of aircraft and mission profiles, proven through hundreds of autonomous flights from test facilities across the globe. With awarded contracts from military customers, Merlin is advancing American leadership in autonomous aviation by helping to solve national security challenges through safe, reliable autonomy. To learn more, visit www.merlinlabs.com or follow us on X @merlinaero.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including without limitation statements regarding Merlin's revenue growth strategy, the expected contributions of Mark Brunner as Chief Revenue Officer, and the scaling of the Merlin Pilot across defense and civil aviation programs. These forward-looking statements are based primarily on our current expectations and projections about future events and trends, and are neither promises nor guarantees. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties, or other factors that may cause actual future results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by these forward-looking statements, including the risks discussed in our reports filed with the SEC, including Merlin Labs' S-4/A filed with the SEC on February 12, 2026, which are available on our investor relations website at https://investors.merlinlabs.com and on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. Except as required by applicable law, we undertake no obligation to update these statements as a result of new information or future events.

Media Contact

Kristen Georgette

617-842-6064

merlin@pluckpr.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/368ea8dd-210e-4fb6-9c0c-887bc5643e29

Merlin Further Expands Executive Team Appointing Mark Brunner as Chief Revenue Officer