JAIC Director Reflects, Bids Farewell to Partners in Government & Private Sector

For the past five years, twice a day, I passed the same two inscriptions on the walls of the Pentagon as I walked into the building early in the morning and departed late into the evening.

On the eve of my retirement after almost 36 years in uniform, I will never lose sight of the core principles embodied in the words of the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States and the Oath of Office.

Their brilliance lies in simplicity. And, breaking from millennia of precedence, in asking every citizen to affirm the deepest possible commitment not to a person, a place, a thing but instead to an ideal embodied in our constitutional republic – the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

I am deeply honored by and incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have served my country and defend these ideals during my career.

As I walk out of the Pentagon for the final time, as the Director of the JAIC, I am convinced more than ever that our future national security, economic security, and preservation of those ideals depend on embracing artificial intelligence across every element of the Department of Defense and society.

I want to thank all of our partners, across government, in the private sector, and academia, for your support.

The JAIC’s future success depends on these partnerships. I am excited about the potential for them to expand significantly over the next year. The JAIC’s vision is bold: to transform the DoD through AI. Yet it is only through boldness, alacrity, and partnerships with our partners that the JAIC can help shape the AI-enabled future of the Department of Defense. And do so in accordance with our core democratic values and the ideals embodied in the Constitution.

As I depart, I offer my deepest thanks and utmost respect to all of you.

“We can only see a short distance ahead, but we can see plenty there that needs to be done.” - Alan Turing