Panelists
Lieutenant General John (Jack) N.T. Shanahan, United States Air Force, Retired, concluded a distinguished 36-year military career in 2020. In his final role, he served as the inaugural Director of the U.S. Department of Defense Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, where he led efforts to integrate AI across the defense enterprise. Over his career, Jack held a variety of operational and staff positions spanning flying operations,
intelligence, policy, and command and control. He commanded at the squadron, group, wing, Agency, and Numbered Air Force levels. As the founding Director of the Algorithmic Warfare Cross-Functional Team (Project Maven), he pioneered the DoD’s first operational AI program, advancing the use of AI for military operations and intelligence collection and analysis.
Jack earned a Master of International Studies degree from North Carolina State University in 2022 and serves on the NCSU Shelton Leadership Center Board of Advisors. He is an Adjunct Senior Fellow with the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) Technology and National Security Program, a non-resident Senior Fellow with the Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs (ACF) at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and serves on the Executive Council at Fathom. Additionally, Jack serves on numerous defense- and intelligence-focused committees, boards, and advisory groups, and advises on the use of AI for national security.
Len Khodorkovsky is Senior Advisor to the Chairman of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue. He previously served as U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Digital Strategy and Senior Advisor to both the U.S. Special Representative for Iran and the U.S. Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment.
During his public service, Len devised the communications strategy for the “maximum pressure” campaign on the Iranian regime, developed the marketing strategy for the Clean Network alliance of 60 countries to secure global 5G infrastructure, and played a key role in the multibillion-dollar onshoring of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) to the United States. Prior to government, he was an advertising executive, leading campaigns for Fortune 100 companies.
Event Information
Lunch: 11:15 AM, Hesburgh Center Great Hall
Panel: 12:00 to 1:00 PM, Hesburgh Auditorium
Moderated by: Amy McAuliffe, Visiting Professor of the Practice, Keough School of Global Affairs and ONDISC Fellow