Schmidt Futures
Schmidt Futures began as an idea. I helped build it as part of the founding 10-member team that worked with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and his wife Wendy to launch what is now a 100 person venture philanthropy. Together, we designed and scaled $1 billion in philanthropic programs. I led grantmaking and initiatives in technology and society, including on AI for social good, the ethics of invention and innovation, and technology for underserved populations.
How can advanced technology be leveraged for social good?
Defense Innovation Unit Experimental (DIUx)
The Pentagon's Silicon Valley office — DIUx — is the most significant motor of technological renewal in the U.S. military since DARPA’s founding in 1957. I was appointed by the Secretary of Defense to create and lead it. Our 67-person team piloted over 100 projects deploying advanced commercial technology—from flying cars to microsatellites—in military missions. We fielded capabilities now used worldwide, from air operations software that prevented ISIS from committing genocide to space-based SAR imaging that detects North Korean and Russian missile launches. The rapid acquisition pathway we pioneered is now responsible for $39 billion dollars of technology acquisition by the Department of Defense. DIUx has spawned over 40 innovation cells across the U.S. and allied militaries.
How can a small group drive innovation inside a large organization?
The Chairman of the Joint Chief's Strategy Cell
It was my privilege to lead the Chairman of the Joint Chief's 8-person strategy cell, helping the 18th Chairman, General Martin E. Dempsey, prepare for meetings with the President and Secretary of Defense. Our job was to see things that others did not, consider unexpected implications, and to seek out the adjacent possible. During my tenure, we advised the Chairman on the conduct military operations worldwide and helped him prepare the military for a future in which cyber and technology will transform conflict. Among other global events, we responded to the rise of ISIS, the Syrian regime's chemical attacks, the outbreak of Ebola, and the revelations of Edward Snowden.
What resources should leaders and organizations have to help them navigate the present?
The Situation Room
As Director for Strategic Planning at the National Security Council, I led the NSC's Strategic Planning Small Group, a 15-person unit that advises the President and National Security Advisor on strategic trends. In partnership with the National Intelligence Council and CIA's Red Cell, we studied future trends and their implications for United States policy, presenting our findings to meetings of the National Security Council.
Is your organization mapping its future strategic environment and the trends that will define it?
Ebola Crisis Management
Months before the Ebola outbreak threatened global security, I worked with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs to prepare for the possibility that the U.S. military might have to fight the epidemic. So began a two year adventure that led me to work on Operation United Assistance, in which 3,000 U.S. troops deployed to West Africa. On the White House Ebola Task Force, I lead the National Security Council's 74-person after-action review of the U.S. response, which is widely credited with accurately presaging the COVID pandemic. The outbreak, from start to finish, is a case study in crisis management and of the U.S. government as a learning organization.
How do we prepare to respond to the unforeseen?