NatSec Tech

What if space became a parking lot for munitions? Michael Hochberg, founder and president of Paraplus LLC, joins the show to make the case for pre-positioning military supplies in low Earth orbit. Drawing on his recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, he argues that reusable heavy-lift rockets like SpaceX’s Starship could let the U.S. deorbit munitions, drones, and other cargo anywhere on the globe within minutes to a couple of hours, without relying on foreign bases that host nations may close off at a critical moment.

The conversation covers how the idea compares in cost and sp...

AI's growth depends on data centers, but communities are increasingly pushing back over their land use, electricity and water demands, and noise. Host Jeanne Meserve is joined by Dr. Griffiths, chancellor of Dakota State University, and Stephen Tims, president of Thermo Bond Solutions, to look at how government, industry, and academia are tackling these problems. They discuss smaller, distributed, and rural data centers, more efficient chips and cooling, the future of nuclear power, and the race with China for power and compute. They also cover underwater and space-based options, and why transparency with local communities may be the key...

In this episode of NatSec Tech, Jeanne sits down with Dr. Nina Kottler, practicing radiologist and Chief Medical AI Officer at Mosaic Clinical Technologies, at the recent AI+ Health Summit. They discuss why AI hasn't yet transformed radiology despite the hype, how vision-language foundation models are changing that, and what it means for radiologists to shift from dictating reports to supervising them. Kottler also explains how AI could predict cancer years before a human can see it, and where data access, FDA rules, and a fee-for-service payment system stand in the way.

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In this episode of NatSec Tech, Jeanne sits down with Dr. Charity Dean, founder and CEO of PHC Global and former public health officer for the State of California. They discuss why Dean calls COVID "a dry run," why she left government to build an AI-powered bio-threat intelligence platform, and how agentic AI and large language models are simultaneously lowering the bar for bad actors to engineer novel pathogens and giving defenders powerful new tools to detect and counter them.

The conversation ranges from the mechanics of early-warning biosurveillance and rapid medical countermeasures, to the private sector's...

As the U.S. marks the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, host Jeanne sits down with Dr. Philip Zelikow, executive director of the original 9/11 Commission and now the Botha-Chan Senior Fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution. They explore whether America is truly safer today, how terrorist threats have evolved from centralized sanctuaries to online radicalization, and why conflicts in Gaza and Iran may not drive terrorism the way many assume. 

The conversation ranges widely — from the fate of key 9/11 Commission reforms like the DNI and NCTC, to the politicization of U.S. intelligence agencies, to Zelikow's stark warning tha...

Data has been called the new oil, but for AI, power may be the real bottleneck. In this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve is joined by Jennifer Obernier, CEO of Gristmill Exchange, to discuss why commercial data, not just government-collected intelligence, is now central to national security. 

Obernier explains how a century of stovepiped, agency-by-agency data acquisition is giving way to shared infrastructure that lets the US and its allies buy exactly the data they need, at the speed missions demand, and why nations that master data velocity, not just data volume, will hold the r...

In this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve is joined by Aliya Haq, President of Clean Econ, to discuss why "speed to power" may be the biggest constraint on America's ability to win the AI race. Haq breaks down why the century-old U.S. electric grid, with roughly 1.3 terawatts of capacity, is struggling to keep pace with surging demand, and how China has added that same amount of capacity in just three years.

They discuss the two terawatts of energy projects stuck in interconnection queues, why hyperscalers are resorting to building their own power plants "behind...

Conflict no longer requires troops or tanks. Increasingly, authoritarian regimes wage war through cyberattacks, disinformation, election interference, sabotaged infrastructure, and even weaponized migration, deniable tools designed to catch open societies off guard and erode trust from within. In this episode, we ask: As AI supercharges these hybrid threats, can the world's democracies build the resilience to withstand them? 

Dr. Teija Tiilikainen joins NatSec Tech from Helsinki to share her perspective on hybrid warfare and how democracies can defend themselves. Teija is Director of the European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats and previously served as Director o...

Disinformation has always shadowed elections, but artificial intelligence now lets bad actors produce it at a scale and speed never seen before. With the midterms approaching and government election-security agencies diminished, the question grows urgent: Can the same technology fueling the threat also be used to defend against it? 

Mark Murray joins NatSec Tech to share his perspective on AI, disinformation, and election integrity. Mark is Editorial Director at OpenAI and previously served as senior political editor at NBC News. Drawing on decades covering elections and his work at the frontier of AI, he explains how AI c...

Artificial intelligence is advancing faster than any technology before it, yet the United States still has no federal framework to govern it, leaving a patchwork of state and foreign rules that startups can barely navigate. With Europe regulating aggressively and China surging forward, the central tension is sharper than ever: regulate too much and risk falling behind, regulate too little and risk chaos. In this episode, we ask: As AI reshapes jobs, children's lives, and the integrity of our information, can America strike the right balance between innovation and safety before it's too late? 

Teresa Carlson joins N...

For decades, the path from scientific breakthrough to real-world impact has taken ten to twenty years, with researchers relying on tools not far removed from a high school chemistry lab. The Department of Energy's Genesis Mission aims to change that, harnessing artificial intelligence to compress discovery from decades to mere years. In this episode, we ask: Can a "Manhattan Project 2.0" for science deliver the breakthroughs America needs to stay ahead of China? 

Angela Sheffield joins NatSec Tech live at the 2026 AI+ Expo to share her perspective on AI's power to revitalize American science. Angela is the Director o...

Propaganda has existed for centuries, but artificial intelligence and neurological research are transforming it into something far more dangerous: cognitive warfare. Today, adversaries aren't just shaping what we think, they're targeting how we think, exploiting fear, anxiety, and tribalism at massive scale. In this episode, we ask: As AI gives bad actors the power to destabilize populations and cloud the decision-making of leaders, is the world prepared for this new kind of war? 

Anshu Roy joins NatSec Tech live at the 2026 AI+ Expo to share his perspective on the rise of cognitive warfare. Anshu is the founder a...

In Ukraine and the Middle East, cheap and easy-to-produce drones have fundamentally altered the battlefield. But while technology moves at the speed of a text message, the Pentagon’s procurement process remains stuck on a different clock. In this episode, we ask: Is the Department of Defense actually equipped to counter this evolving threat, or are we just buying the wrong things faster?

Pete Newell joins the show to share his perspective on the drone revolution. Pete is a 32-year Army veteran, the former Director of the Army’s Rapid Equipping Force (REF), and the co-founder and CEO...

In this episode of NetSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve sits down with Sal Khan, the visionary founder and CEO of Khan Academy, at the AI+ Education Summit. As AI reshapes national security and the global workforce, Khan shares how his nonprofit is leveraging artificial intelligence to solve the "two-sigma" problem: providing every student with a personalized, one-on-one tutor.

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To celebrate our 100th episode, NatSec Tech is evolving. We are moving from audio-only to a full video and audio experience. You can now watch our deep dives into the intersection of technology and national security on the SCSP YouTube channel and Spotify, or continue listening on your favorite podcast platform. 

For this milestone, host Jeanne Meserve welcomes Keith Strier, Senior Vice President of Global Markets at AMD and a leading global voice on the geopolitics of computing. In a wide-ranging conversation, Strier breaks down the transition from "AI as a novelty" to "AI as a matter o...

In this episode of NatSec Tech, Former Rhode Island Governor and Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Former Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb joined host Jeanne Meserve, live at the AI+ Education Summit, to discuss how states can stay competitive as AI reshapes the workforce. The conversation focused on outcome-based retraining programs, stronger employer participation, AI literacy and education reform, and state-led efforts to prepare workers for automation. Raimondo & Holcomb emphasized aligning public-private incentives, expanding digital infrastructure, and making states “AI-ready” rather than attempting to restrict the technology.

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In this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve sits down with Dr. Erik Brynjolfsson, Director of the Stanford Digital Economy Lab and member of the newly formed SCSP-NVIDIA Task Force on AI and the Future of Work. 

Dr. Brynjolfsson argues that we are entering a "Second Machine Age" that will be ten times faster and significantly larger than the Industrial Revolution. As artificial intelligence races ahead of our economic institutions, the United States faces a critical turning point: will we lead the most advanced workforce in history, or succumb to a new "technology shock"?

In this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve explores India's emerging role as a global AI superpower. Guests Rama Elluru, Senior Advisor at the Special Competitive Studies Project, and Eli Sugarman, Director of Special Projects at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, provide a firsthand account of the massive AI Impact Summit in New Delhi. The discussion highlights a shift in the global AI narrative from Western-centric safety concerns to the population-scale adoption of technology in the Global South.

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In this episode of NatSec Tech, recorded at the Munich Security Conference, host Jeanne Meserve is joined by André Loesekrug-Pietri, Chairman and Scientific Director of the Joint European Disruptive Initiative (JEDI). JEDI focuses on accelerating frontier technologies across energy, life sciences, and computing.

Loesekrug-Pietri offers a candid assessment of why the West must move past "innovation theater"—the tendency to talk about technological advancement without fundamentally changing how organizations operate. The conversation explores the urgent need to move from linear, years-long procurement cycles to an exponential model measured in days and weeks, as seen on the mod...

Jeanne Meserve is joined by Sree Ramaswamy, Chief Innovation Officer at the NobleReach Foundation. The conversation explores how NobleReach is addressing this through the NobleReach Scholars Program, which recruits engineering and computer science graduates to enter public service for short-term, high-impact stints. The conversations cover the critical need to bridge the "tech talent gap" within the U.S., the U.S. Tech Force initiative, and the necessity of creating "dual citizens" who can move fluidly between the public and private sectors to maintain America's technological edge.

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Jeanne Meserve is joined by Steve Blank, adjunct professor at Stanford and co-founder of the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation. They discuss the Department of Defense's proposal to transform its defense acquisition system. The conversation covers the shift from a requirements-based process to a problem-solving model, the introduction of portfolio management, and the challenges of integrating Silicon Valley-style innovation into a three-million-person organization to better compete with adversaries like China.

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In this episode of NatSec Tech, Planet Labs CEO Will Marshall joins host Jeanne Meserve to discuss the vital role of satellite constellations in modern conflict, specifically as seen in Ukraine. Marshall explains how daily global imaging, paired with AI at the edge, is providing a critical information advantage by enabling rapid threat detection and "tipping" systems for drone operations. The conversation highlights how the democratization of this unclassified data allows not only militaries but also NGOs and journalists to hold global actors accountable in real time.

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On this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve sits down with General Jay Raymond, the first Chief of Space Operations for the U.S. Space Force. As the service marks its sixth year, Raymond discusses the rapid transition of space into a warfighting domain where active satellites have surged from 1,500 to nearly 13,000 since 2019. He details how the Space Force is leveraging AI and "digital twins" to manage this massive congestion, track maneuvering "nesting doll" satellites from adversaries, and accelerate decision-making at the speed of space.

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On this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve is joined by Dr. Dimitri Kusnezov to examine the critical risks and opportunities at the intersection of AI, nuclear, and biosecurity. Dr. Kusnezov explains that the democratization and convergence of emerging technologies—like AI and gene editing—have lowered the barriers to creating highly sophisticated threats. He details NTI’s Future Safe initiative, which uses these same technologies to generate real-time risk awareness and develop new mitigation strategies, stressing that fighting technology with technology is the only path forward.

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In this episode, host Jeanne Meserve welcomes Andrew King, Executive Director of Future Union, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to galvanizing the private sector to stand with democracy. The conversation addresses the critical issue of how U.S. firms and investors are, sometimes unwittingly, fueling Chinese technological innovation, fundamentally undercutting U.S. national security.

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In this episode, host Jeanne Meserve welcomes Dr. Amber Jaycocks, Senior Vice President of Data Science at Dun & Bradstreet, and Mounir Ibrahim, Chief Communications Officer and Head of Public Affairs for TruePic, to discuss the critical challenge of digital visual deception in the age of AI. They explore how deepfakes and AI-generated content are being used to perpetrate widespread business fraud and detail the necessary technological counter-measures, such as robust authentication and cryptographic verification, for maintaining national security and global commerce.

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In this episode, host Jeanne Meserve welcomes Dr. Sarah Miller, Assistant Professor of Emergency Management at Pierce College and co-chair for the International Association of Emergency Managers Emerging Technology Caucus, to discuss how Artificial Intelligence is poised to radically transform emergency management. They discuss the critical role AI is playing across the entire crisis timeline—from predicting a storm's course and screening 911 calls to assessing damage and speeding up long-term recovery efforts.

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How does the American public really feel about artificial intelligence? On this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve is joined by Justin Lall of Gallup and Rama Elluru of the Special Competitive Studies Project to discuss the findings of their joint poll on public opinion on AI. They break down what Americans think about AI's impact on the economy, national security, and daily life. 

Read our Substack about the Gallup poll: https://scsp222.substack.com/p/we-commissioned-a-poll-with-gallup

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In this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve welcomes Steve Bowsher, the Chief Executive Officer of In-Q-Tel. Bowsher explains In-Q-Tel's role in identifying and funding cutting-edge commercial technologies for a wide range of government customers. He discusses why In-Q-Tel is needed, its rigorous process for vetting companies, its collaboration with other innovation entities, and its strategic priorities for the future, including autonomy software, generative AI, and the reindustrialization of the U.S.

NatSec Tech is a product of the Special Competitive Studies Project.

The 25th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit wasn't just a meeting; it was the unveiling of a strategy. Hosted by Xi Jinping, the summit served as a calculated demonstration of Sino-Russian convening power. More importantly, it marked a concrete effort to operationalize an alternative, multipolar system designed explicitly to bypass Western economic and technological architectures.

We just witnessed a significant inflection point in the global strategic competition. The rhetoric in Tianjin was overtly adversarial, with Xi Jinping denouncing "bullying behavior" and a "Cold War mentality." But beyond the rhetoric, the summit launched China's Global Governance Initiative (GGI...

Jeanne Meserve hosts a conversation with David Barboza, co-founder of WireScreen and The Wire China, on the complexities of China's business ecosystem. The discussion highlights Wirescreen, a data analytics platform that maps out business networks to reveal potential risks. They explore how the platform is used to uncover ties to sanctioned entities, and more.

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Rob Geckle, Chairman and CEO of Airbus U.S. Space and Defense, joined Jeanne Meserve for a conversation on the future of military and defense technology. They discussed adapting commercial technology for military use, the "Golden Dome" missile defense project, and the strategic necessity of closer U.S.-European defense cooperation.

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Horacio Rozanski, CEO of Booz Allen Hamilton, joined Jeanne Meserve live at The Exchange for a conversation on delivering tech solutions rapidly to the warfighter. They discussed the pivotal role of AI and space-based technology in national security, the AI competition with China, and more.

Miss any of the recent episodes of NatSec Tech recorded live at the AI+ Expo? Catch up below!

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Meredith Potter, Executive Director of the American Security Fund, joined Jeanne Meserve live at SCSP’s AI+ Expo for a conversation on working with allies in the emerging technology space. They discussed India and Taiwan, the strategic importance of building democratic tech alliances, and more.

Miss any of the recent episodes of NatSec Tech recorded live at the AI+ Expo? Catch up below!

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Jaap van Etten, Co-Founder and CEO of Datenna, joined Jeanne Meserve live at SCSP’s AI+ Expo for a conversation on rethinking tech policy in the U.S.-China competition. They discussed leveraging open-source intelligence to track China’s technological and military-civil fusion ecosystem, and more.

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In this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve is joined by Rye Barcott, co-founder and CEO of With Honor, live from the AI+ Expo. Barcott discusses With Honor's mission and bipartisan efforts, offering insights from his military background on the importance of service and an optimistic outlook for America's future.

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In this episode of NatSec Tech, host Jeanne Meserve welcomes Greg Little, Senior Counselor for Palantir and former Deputy Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Officer at the Pentagon. Recorded live at the AI+ Expo, this discussion tackles the state of American shipbuilding, highlighting the contrast between the U.S. and global leaders like China in shipbuilding capacity and efficiency.

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Margaret Woolley Bussey, Executive Director of the Utah Department of Commerce, joins host Jeanne Meserve to discuss Utah's establishment of an Office of AI Policy, Utah's thriving tech sector, and regulations and protections on AI. Bussey explains the office's three core objectives—encouraging innovation, protecting the public, and building a continuous learning function within government. The discussion highlights the office's successful work on mental health chatbots and its future plans to tackle deepfakes and AI companions.

Nadia Schadlow, National Security Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution and Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute, and John Maslin, CEO and co-founder of Vulcan Elements, join host Jeanne Meserve to discuss the critical role of rare earth magnets, in everything from consumer electronics to advanced military systems like F-35s and submarines. The conversation covers how China's near-monopoly on rare earth processing and magnet manufacturing poses a significant national security and economic vulnerability for the United States, along with the urgent efforts to build a resilient, independent U.S. rare earth magnet supply chain.

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Dr. Nandita Balakrishnan, Director of Intelligence at the Special Competitive Studies Project, and Anna Knack, Senior Research Associate at the Alan Turing Institute join Jeanne Meserve to discuss their recent report, “Applying AI to Strategic Warning.” The conversation covers applying AI for strategic warning, examining how artificial intelligence could forecast geopolitical risks, and the report’s benefits, challenges, and future implications.

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