You're Invited! Transforming Defense: A Panel Discussion & Book Launch on Innovation in National Security
Tuesday, November 12, Panel discussion and book launch event at Stanford University with Steve Blank, Joe Felter, Jeff Decker, Steve Weinstein, Jamie Porchia, Jeff Fields and Maria Tranquilli
On Tuesday, November 12, Stanford University’s H4D program and the Common Mission Project will host an exclusive panel discussion and book launch for The Hacking for Defense® Manual, a groundbreaking guide reshaping innovation in national security. This event will explore how H4D’s unique methodologies are driving new advances in defense. The program will showcase the transformative Hacking for Defense (H4D) class, which brings together academic insights and real-world solutions to the toughest challenges in defense technology and feature a panel discussion with top voices in defense innovation including:
Steve Blank - co-founder of the Hacking for Defense program, adjunct professor at Stanford and co-founder of the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation. Blank has been described as the Father of Modern Entrepreneurship. Credited with launching the Lean Startup movement and the curriculums for the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps and Hacking for Defense and Diplomacy, he’s changed how startups are built; how entrepreneurship is taught; how science is commercialized, and how companies and the government innovate.
Joe Felter, PhD - center director of the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation. Felter is an educator, researcher and entrepreneur with over 30 years of organizational leadership and management experience including 15 years working at the nexus of Stanford University and Silicon Valley. He maintains teaching and research appointments at Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation, the Hoover Institution and Stanford Technology Ventures Program.
Steve Weinstein - currently Weinstein is the director of H4XLabs, a dual use accelerator focused on mission driven entrepreneurs. Weinstein has been focused recently on extracting technology and creating companies. Previously he was the founder and CEO of MovieLabs, the research consortium of the 6 Hollywood major studios focused on exploring and investing in emerging technologies to advance the consumer experience in the new media environment. He is also the co-founder of KineTrope, a small design shop for small consumer and professional electronics. Additionally, he is currently teaching entrepreneurship as part of STVP at Stanford teaching Lean LaunchPad and Hacking for Defense as well as teaching at U.C. Berkeley and Hacking 4 Oceans at UCSC.
Jeff Decker, PhD - program director of the Hacking for Defense program at Stanford University and managing director of the Tech Transfer for Defense program at the Precourt Institute for Energy. He is also a social science research scholar and author of The Hacking for Defense® Manual and director of education with the Common Mission Project. Decker served in the U.S. Army as a 2nd Ranger Battalion light infantry squad leader in Iraq and Afghanistan. Following his service, he earned a MS in International Relations (Laws), and a doctorate in International Relations before conducting national security and international affairs research at the RAND Corporation.
Jamie Porchia, Lt Col, USAF - assistant professor with the Department of Defense Management (DDM) at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS). Lt. Col. Porchia has been involved in several innovation initiatives while serving at NPS. These initiatives have supported and assisted Air Force and Navy stakeholders with addressing key issues within their organizations. She also instructs and works closely with military students in DDM to implement H4D principles across a wide range of problem sets. Her experience applying H4D principles with military students offers a unique perspective on how military members can utilize entrepreneurial methods to solve challenging DoD problems.
Moderator: Jeff Fields - assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Branch in San Francisco. With close to 20 years of experience conducting global operations in support of U.S. national security, Fields has had a remarkable career, including deployments with U.S. Special Operations in Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa.
Emcee: Maria Tranquilli - as the new executive director for the Common Mission Project (July 2024), the nonprofit arm of BMNT Inc, Tranquilli brings more than 20 years of experience at the intersection of innovation, entrepreneurship and defense. Most recently, she served as the national senior director of Venture Innovation at the Mission Acceleration Center, overseeing national new venture engagement, defense portfolio services, and investor partnerships. Previously, as the founding director of Defense Ventures, Tranquilli played a pivotal role in fortifying defense-industrial partnerships crucial to America's national security and economic vitality, earning recognition in the 2023 National Defense Science and Technology Strategy.
Event Details:
Transforming Defense: A Panel Discussion & Book Launch on Innovation in National Security
Date: Tuesday, November 12, 5:00 p.m. (doors open at 4:30 p.m.)
Location: Stanford University, Shriram Center Tearoom and Sunken Terrace
443 Via Ortega, Stanford, CA 94305
Book Signing after the panel discussion
The Hacking for Defense® Manual by Jeff Decker, PhD, provides a practical guide for applying Lean Startup principles to solve complex defense challenges. It’s essential reading for anyone interested in shaping the future of defense technology, and is already spurring new ventures, with over 70 startups emerging from H4D programs to date. To learn more about the manual, visit Amazon.
This event is hosted by the Common Mission Project, a nonprofit supporting H4D programs worldwide, and the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation at Stanford University. Both organizations are dedicated to fostering innovation for a safer and more secure world.
REGISTER FOR THE EVENT VIA EVENTBRITE
