Our people are our credentials. Our team consists of specialists with unique, complementary expertise in a range of fields. Our experts combine deft institutional capability with uncommon specializations, introducing novel and effective solutions to national security challenges in the cognitive domain.
CEO
Bob formed Deft9 to bring together experts in the information/influence, intelligence, and cyber domains in support of national security. He is a 30-year Army leader with assignments in command, targeting, special operations, joint warfighting, and congressional affairs. Since departing the military, he has led growth companies from executive and board positions in the weapons, aerospace, thermo-fluid, and physical cybersecurity industries. Bob holds academic degrees in economics, business, operations research, and national security strategy. He is an instrument-rated pilot living in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Vice President, Growth and Innovation
A veteran of over 30 years in national security policy, strategy and operations, and intelligence, both military and civilian, Dr. Segal is an internationally recognized expert in arms control, countering foreign malign influence, and counter-WMD. Dr. Segal spent over a decade as a member of U.S. multilateral arms control delegations in Geneva, Vienna, and The Hague, including the negotiations to finalize the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention and establish the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Since leaving the federal government and then retiring from the military, Dr. Segal serves as an advisor to senior DoD leaders on operations in the information environment and teaches OSINT tradecraft.
Vice President, Counter Foreign Malign Influence
Sasha is a multilingual intelligence, film, media, and policy analyst specializing in information warfare. Synthesizing his cultural heritage and theater past with his law degree, he writes about democratic counter-disinformation legislation and the importance of cultural production in information warfare. He believes that humanities education is key to democracy's success in the information war and is bemused when tactical maneuvers in an information environment are divorced from a coherent, culturally cognizant strategy. He also teaches Soviet and post-Soviet information warfare history, tactics, and strategy at Middlebury’s School of Russian and moonlights as a published translator.
Austin has over 35 years’ experience as a pioneer in information operations and MISO, having served in key positions as a uniformed leader and a senior executive overseeing information and MISO programs and activities in the Department of Defense and National Counter Terrorism Center. He was the original pioneer for DOD web operations since inception of DOD digital influence operations in 1999. Austin also founded the Information Professionals Association and served on the Defense Science Board as an Information SME. He advises a host of professional and industry boards, and U.S. Air Force Concepts, Development and Management, and OSD Personnel and Readiness (P&R).
Co-Founder
Dennis brings decades of experiences in intelligence, policy, sensor/aircraft integration, tagging-tracking-locating technologies, electronic warfare, systems, and software engineering. His assignments as JSOC Chief Scientist, Director of Intelligence and, later, Chief of Staff Security for the Undersecretary of the Navy, and Deputy J2 at Special Operations Command – Europe give him connections and knowledge few possess. Outside of work, Dennis is a pilot, a Porsche enthusiast, and an outdoorsman.
Alex brings over 15 years of experience working at the nexus of technology and national security in various interagency and industry roles. He began his career in the U.S. Army, serving as an intelligence officer, before joining the U.S. Foreign Service as a Political Officer. In government, he was responsible for coordination with allies and industry to address hybrid and asymmetric threats. He left government service to help onboard niche capabilities and emerging technologies in support of national security initiatives. He has delivered projects for a range of U.S.G. clients in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. He continues to serve as a reservist at U.S. Special Operations Command and lives in Europe.
Tanna is a leading expert in cognitive security and sociocultural psychology, specializing in cognitive warfare, the information environment, and the impact of narratives and group identity on conflict, violence, and decision-making. As the lead writer of NATO’s Cognitive Warfare Concept, her insight is defining how member nations within the Alliance view the information environment. She regularly advises international governments on cognitive warfare and information operations, with a specific focus on understanding human factors, local dynamics, and the sociocultural drivers of conflict. She holds degrees in cognitive psychology, peace studies, and conflict analysis and resolution. She resides in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Dr. Lajeunesse is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Public Policy and Governance program at St. Francis Xavier University. Currently a Fulbright Scholar (2024-5), he is part of the foundation’s Arctic Initiative, where he is continuing work on information operations begun as a Killam Scholar (2024) at the University of Calgary. His also the Arctic and Maritime Security Chair at the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government and the Director of the Canadian Maritime Security Network (CMSN), a Department of National Defence funded research network examining maritime defence, safety, and security. In addition, Lajeunesse is the Research Coordinator for the Naval Association of Canada and a Research Associate at the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies and a fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute.
Todd has 25 years of experience in countering Russian, Soviet, Iraqi, and other disinformation, conspiracy theories, and false stories, mainly for the U.S. Information Agency (USIA) and the U.S. Department of State, starting in 1987. He wrote USIA reports to Congress on Soviet disinformation and “active measures” in 1988 and 1992, the latter examining the conciliatory and alarmist themes of Gorbachev’s “new political thinking.” While at State’s Global Engagement Center (GEC) from 2020 to 2022, he wrote 14 GEC Counter-Disinformation Dispatches, summing up lessons learned by first-hand practitioners on disinformation and how to counter it. From 2010 to 2016, he devised ways to use social science to design messaging that would discourage potential jihadis from joining violent extremist organizations. Retired from government, he writes a free Substack on countering foreign disinformation.
Katia has over 20 years of experience in national security matters, conducting investigations and operations domestically and internationally. A retired FBI Special Agent, Katia initiated and led complex counterintelligence, cyber, and technology transfer investigations by developing strategic plans that included establishing working relationships with local, state, federal, and foreign intelligence and law enforcement partners. Katia is an SME in the asymmetric and symmetric threats posed by U.S. adversaries such as Iran, China, and Russia. Katia also worked with and assisted foreign allies in high-priority counterintelligence and counter-terrorism investigations. Katia has a proven track record of mitigating national security threats, including developing a successful blueprint for a national critical infrastructure center in the United States to address foreign threats and mitigate risks using forward-thinking operational and analytical countermeasures.
Dr. Magda Long has almost 20 years of combined work and academic experience in defense and security, intelligence, and risk management. She is a visiting research fellow at several universities in the United Kingdom, where her research examines how states use covert activities to pursue their foreign policy objectives, mitigate national security threats, and as a tool of irregular warfare. She has given guest lectures on covert activities at several academic institutions and at various international academic conferences. Prior to her academic career, Dr. Long worked as a defense and security analyst at RAND Corporation in Europe, as a senior manager in risk management and open-source intelligence-related roles at Deloitte in the United States, and with international organizations in conflict and post-conflict societies on issues related to security, fraud, and corruption.
Matt is a communications professional and subject matter expert in the Spanish-speaking world. As a digital native of Spain's information environment, he focuses on narrative-tracking via social media networks in Spain, Latin America, and the Philippines. His specific research interests are related to myth-making and storytelling in Spain and Latin America, from the growth and waning of regionalist and independence movements to the role of monetary policy in the popular imaginary.
J.D. Maddox is an expert in political warfare and an academic, writer, and former political candidate. He has served as a Central Intelligence Agency branch chief, deputy coordinator of the U.S. Global Engagement Center, advisor to the Secretary of Homeland Security, and a U.S. Army Psychological Operations team leader. He consults on OIE for government organizations and advises commercial and political organizations on strategic communications. He is an adjunct professor of national security studies at George Mason University's Schar School, teaching Disinformation and Policy Responses. He also writes "Tab D," a biweekly report highlighting U.S. adversaries' narrative vulnerabilities.
LTG(R) Darsie Rogers offers more than 30 years of senior executive experience leading
adaptable and high-performing teams in solving challenging problems in uncertain environments and advising C-suite executives in leadership and organizational management. He has an extensive background leading and transforming elite organizations, including U.S. Army Special Forces and U.S. Navy SEALs in combat and peacetime.
Rob has worked to align over a dozen U.S. agencies on issues related to the Russo-Ukrainian War. He was also a creative lead on the War on Pineapple and Harmony Square counter-disinfo tools. Rob has long synthesized his interest in cybersecurity and issues related to the rule of law to counter malign influence in multiple sectors and disciplines. He is a proficient French speaker and a member of the Maryland Bar.
Hallie Stern is the founder and CEO of Terra Optica, where she leads integrative research and development initiatives to uncover gaps in understanding within the data-driven, socially charged information domain. A proud member of The Integrity Institute and a research lead with The Disarm Foundation, she has contributed to multiple experimental projects between government and academia, developing tailored learning programs and conducting research on mobile app user validation. With an M.S. from NYU in Global Security, Conflict, and Cybercrime focusing on the human side of cyber conflict, she was awarded a Boren National Security Fellowship to explore emerging communication technologies in developing countries.
Karl has over 38 years of experience in government, primarily as a U.S. State Department Foreign Service Officer focusing on strategic communications, public diplomacy, education and youth exchanges, sports and cultural programs, and strategic planning and leadership. For the last three years, Karl served as a Deputy Coordinator and Senior advisor at the Global Engagement Center, leading multilateral and bilateral efforts to counter Russian, PRC, Iranian, and other FMI, and working on the GEC's information campaigns to damage morale and disrupt the operational capabilities of ISIS, ISIS-K, al-Qaeda, al-Shabaab, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and other terrorist organizations. Karl has also served as Deputy Chief of Mission at U.S. Embassies in Denmark and Myanmar (Burma) and as Minister-Counselor for Public Affairs at U.S. Embassies in Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, South Africa, and Russia. In Washington, D.C., he has been Director of the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs' Office of Public Diplomacy and the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs' Office of Citizen and Professional Exchanges. Karl also taught at George Washington University's School of Media and Public Affairs as a Public Diplomacy Fellow. He graduated from the University of Virginia with degrees in History and Russian Studies and did graduate work at the Middlebury Language Schools. His foreign languages are Russian, Indonesian, and Malaysian.
Dr. Terner is a multi-lingual geopolitical analyst with expertise in American foreign policy in the Middle East and Middle Eastern political economics, in particular regarding Iran and Israel. He spent six years living, working, and studying in the region. While there, he covered the outbreak of the Arab Spring as a Breaking News Editor, and earned a Ph.D. in Contemporary Middle Eastern History, an M.A. in Government with a Specialization in Counter-terrorism and Homeland Security Studies, and an M.A. in Middle East Studies. Dr. Terner's research on political decision-making processes has led him to understand that politics follows economics, not the other way around. As a result, he actively facilitates business partnerships between Middle Eastern and American companies in order to increase cooperative economic prosperity and reduce strategic tensions. Dr. Terner publishes weekly newsletters covering Iranian and Israeli political economics.
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