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Convening in the Capital Programming
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Wednesday, November 18, 2026
Opening Remarks: GEN Paul M. Nakasone (USA, Ret.), Founding Director, Vanderbilt University Institute of National Security
Keynote Fireside Chat: Mr. Eric Schmidt, KBE, Former CEO and Chairman, Google
Presentation: Data Integration, Intel Fusion, & Decision Making 鈥� DELTA
Zero Line
Panel 1: Decide - Decision Making & Autonomy
- Session Chair: Nancy Youssef, Staff Writer, The Atlantic; Fellow, Vanderbilt Institute of National Security
- Panelist: HON Mich猫le Flournoy, Co-Founder WestExec Advisors
- Panelist: Lt Gen Jack Shanahan (USAF, Ret.), Inaugural Director, Department of War Joint Artificial Intelligence Center
- Panelist: Peter W. Singer, Strategist & Senior Fellow, New America
- Panelist: Brett Velicovich, Co-Founder & President, PowerUS
Networking Break
Presentation: Remote Launch, Mass Effect
Swarmer
Panel 2: Defeat - Counter-Autonomy
- Session Chair: ADM Frank Caldwell (USN, Ret.), Former Director, Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program; Fellow, Vanderbilt Institute of National Security
- Panelist: LTG Curtis Buzzard (USA, Ret.), Former听Commander, Security Assistance Group 鈥� Ukraine (SAG-U) & NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU)
- Panelist: BG Anthony Gibbs (USA), Capability Program Executive for Mission Autonomy, Headquarters Department of the Army
- Panelist: Serafym "Falco" Hordiienko, 1st Unmanned Systems Center, Armed Forces of Ukraine
- Panelist: Amanda Mercier, Chief Digital & AI Officer, US Army Special Operations Command
Lunchtime Keynote Fireside Chat: GEN David H. Petraeus (USA, Ret.), Partner, KKR; Chairman, KKR Global Institute; Chairman, KKR Middle East
Presentation: Integrating Diversity of Platforms at Scale听
Picogrid
Panel 3: Deliver - Generating Scale & Agility in Autonomy
- Session Chair: Raj Shah, Managing Partner, Shield Capital; Co-Founder, Resilience; Former Director, Defense Innovation Unit; Fellow, Vanderbilt Institute of National Security
- Panelist: Vibhav Altekar, Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer, Saronic Technologies
- Panelist: Catarina Buchatskiy, Co-Founder & Director of Analytics, Serpens Center
- Panelist: Cameron McCord, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Nominal
- Panelist: Oleg Rogynskyy, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, UFORCE
Coffee & Networking Break
Research Challenge Launch & Executive Conclusions
Closing Keynote Address: Oleksandr Kamyshin鈥�, Former Minister, Ukrainian Ministry of Strategic Industries
Reception