Tristan Smith

Vice President, Mining & Technology

Tristan Smith brings a technology founder’s perspective and international business experience to risk management and insurance. At Axis Insurance, he works with advanced technology and mining businesses in Canada and internationally, helping them understand how their technical operations, commercial commitments and growth plans shape their exposure to loss.

He partners with executive leadership and legal counsel across artificial intelligence, robotics, autonomous systems, SaaS, digital assets, technology hardware and mining. He helps clients identify exposures arising from their technology, contracts and operational dependencies, alongside gaps in how those risks are managed and insured.

Through discovery, structured risk assessments, contractual risk analysis and research into emerging technology risks, Tristan translates these findings into practical risk management and insurance strategies. His advisory work, published guidance and market intelligence help business leaders strengthen operational resilience and make informed decisions about coverage, limits and program design as their organizations grow.

His approach draws on more than 14 years of experience in business development, international commerce and entrepreneurship across Canada, the United States, China and Thailand. Before joining Axis, Tristan was CEO and Co-Founder of Beacon Technology, where he built a 10,000-square-foot data centre with custom GPU and ASIC systems serving blockchain and data-processing clients. He led the business from infrastructure development through customer delivery, completing an equity exit in 2025.

Tristan also led sales for Defender Cameras, working with commercial clients on connected security systems, including camera hardware, networking and monitoring software. His experience in business ownership and technical sales gives him a practical understanding of infrastructure dependencies, supplier relationships, customer commitments and business continuity. He brings this perspective to his advisory work, explaining technical and operational risks in clear commercial terms to help executive leadership make informed decisions.