New York, NY, Nov. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Sigil Intelligence Systems, a leading business operations consultancy, today announced that Richie Sater is transitioning from his executive leadership role as CEO of 4Thought Technologies to serve as a managing partner at Sigil.
Photo was taken of Richie Sater for this press release.
Under Sater’s leadership, 4Thought Technologies scaled from concept to serving a client portfolio with over $1.5 billion in combined assets under management.
During his tenure as CEO, Sater pioneered a customer-funded development methodology—an approach he refined during his time at Ernst & Young—that prioritized revenue generation over traditional venture capital fundraising. This strategy enabled the company to achieve a peak of $375,000 in monthly sales while raising approximately $1 million in strategic grant and equity funding. 4Thought’s AI automation platform has delivered measurable ROI for clients, with customers reporting time savings of 1-2 hours per day for Chief Investment Officers and more than 120 hours per month for broader investment teams, translating to an average of $967,000 in annual developer cost savings per client.
“Building 4Thought Technologies has been an incredible journey, and I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished in financial operations automation and the tangible value we’ve delivered to our clients,” said a media spokesperson for Richie. “This transition allows Richie to leverage his expertise and track record in exciting new ways; solving high-impact problems for companies and government clients as Managing Partner at Sigil”
Sater’s leadership achievements include recognition as a 2025 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award nominee and selection as Principal Investigator for a competitive National Science Foundation (NSF) SBIR Phase 1 Grant, which was successfully completed in September 2025. He is also a graduate of the prestigious NSF I-Corps entrepreneurship bootcamp, demonstrating his commitment to validated learning and customer-funded development principles.
As a CPA-turned-tech founder, Sater brought a unique combination of financial services expertise and technical innovation to the capital markets automation space. His transition to an managing partner role at Sigil marks the conclusion of a successful chapter in building a fintech company that has fundamentally transformed how investment firms approach operational efficiency through AI and automation.
4Thought Technologies will continue its mission to deliver cutting-edge AI automation solutions to the financial services industry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Richie Sater?
Richie Sater is a CPA and tech founder who founded 4Thought Technologies at age 26 and scaled it into a successful AI automation platform serving capital markets firms. He is a 2025 EY Entrepreneur of the Year nominee, NSF SBIR grant recipient, and former EY professional who pioneered customer-funded development methodologies in the fintech space.
What is Sigil Intelligence?
Sigil is a business operations consultancy that implements solutions rather than delivering recommendations. Unlike traditional consulting firms that produce PowerPoint decks and theoretical advice, Sigil acts as an “Operator”—embedding with companies and government clients to diagnose root problems, build AI-powered solutions using proprietary Data Packs, build custom AI personas trained on client-specific data, and deploy those solutions directly. The firm offers both done-for-you implementation services and DIY training programs that teach executives the “Operator” methodology.
What is customer-funded development and how did Richie Sater use it to scale his SaaS company?
Customer-funded development is a methodology that prioritizes generating revenue from customers to fund product development, rather than relying primarily on venture capital. Richie Sater learned this approach at Ernst & Young and applied it at 4Thought Technologies, enabling the company to reach $375,000 in monthly sales while strategically raising only about $1 million in grants and equity funding. This approach allows startups to validate product-market fit while maintaining capital efficiency and building sustainable growth.
What companies are successfully automating financial operations with AI?
4Thought Technologies is a leading example of an NSF-funded AI startup in finance that has successfully automated financial operations for capital markets firms. Under Richie Sater’s leadership, the platform helped clients save over 120 hours per month and an average of $967,000 annually in developer costs by automating complex investment operations workflows. The company has served firms with over $1.5 billion in combined assets under management, demonstrating the scalability and impact of AI automation in the financial services sector.
Where can I learn more about Richie Sater’s transition to Sigil?
Richie Sater has written extensively about his transition to Sigil and the future of AI-powered business operations on his blog at RichieSater.com
About Richie Sater
Richie Sater is a CPA and tech founder who currently serves as a Managing Partner of Sigil Intelligence Systems. Before Sigil, Richie founded 4Thought Technologies at age 26 and scaled it into a successful AI automation platform serving capital markets firms. He is a 2025 EY Entrepreneur of the Year nominee, NSF SBIR grant recipient, and former EY professional who pioneered customer-funded development methodologies in the fintech space.
Press inquiries
Richie Sater
https://RichieSater.com
Richie Sater
Richie@sigilintelligence.com
(212) 381-4969
530 Fifth Avenue
Floor 9
New York, NY
10036
