Interviewer: Jason Theriot

Affiliation: University of Houston

Rob Christ attended Louisiana Tech University and emerged with dual degrees in aviation and accounting. After a stint as a CPA, Christ joined up with the work of his father, C.J. Christ, in the subsea diving and remotely-operated vehicle (ROV) industry along the Gulf Coast. Hired by Oceaneering as an ROV technician, Rob Christ was also able to assist with his father’s historical work in the Gulf of Mexico, including the search for the sunken German submarine, U-166, lost in July 1942 in more than 5,000 feet of water. Upon leaving Oceaneering, Rob Christ founded his own company, Video Ray. After building Video Ray’s annual revenues to about $6 million, Christ sold his interest in the firm and founded SeaTrepid, which focuses on small- and medium-sized tele-operated robotics and ROVs in subsea exploration and engineering. After the catastrophic hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005, Christ’s firm was flush with storm clean-up and scientific work.