THINKER, TINKER · DEFENSE, AI, THE INTERNET · WASHINGTON, DC
“DEFENDING TRUTH IN THE DIGITAL AGE.” BRIEFING, ASTANA, MAY 2024
PBS NEWSHOUR, OCTOBER 2023
“DISINFORMATION, GLOBAL AFFAIRS, AND YOU.” ALBRECHT FELLOWSHIPS, BALTIMORE, MARCH 2026
“WHY YOUR INFLUENCE OPERATION IS PROBABLY A BAD IDEA.” CYBERWARCON, NOVEMBER 2023
“WHY YOUR INFLUENCE OPERATION IS PROBABLY A BAD IDEA.” DOD INFORMATION CONFERENCE, MARCH 2024
“POISONING FAST AND SLOW.” CYBERWARCON, NOVEMBER 2025
Speaking & Media
For a decade, I have helped public and private audiences navigate the transformative effects of technology. I have keynoted large public events, presented novel research at trade conferences of the cybersecurity and influence operations communities, testified to national legislatures, and delivered lectures at numerous war colleges and military commands. I have been frequently quoted in the New York Times, Washington Post, and other international outlets. You can find a selection of my speaking and media engagements on this page.
My recent talks have generally focused on three themes:
- The nature and value of human attention. How human psychology and biases naturally push us to pay attention to certain things, how the rise of the attention economy (and AI) has made this worse, and what we can do to reclaim our agency.
- The weaponization of social media. How online communications changed the character of modern war, how Silicon Valley companies came to wield the power of states, and the hard limits of what trolling and posting can accomplish in the real world.
- The future of communications. How people and organizations can still tell their stories in a world of nonstop falsehoods and endless bots and machine-generated text.
I take care to tailor each talk to my audience. If you want to learn more, contact me and give me a sense of your event and organization.
FEATURED
| PANEL | Emerging Technologies, Intelligence, and Security Initiative Launch 21 OCT 2026 | INSTITUTE OF GLOBAL POLITICS, COLUMBIA SIPA (external) |
| PANEL | USA: Acknowledge, adapt, push back 7 OCT 2026 | EU DISINFOLAB 2026 |
| TESTIMONY | Foreign Interference and the 2025 Canadian Federal Election 27 NOV 2025 | STANDING COMMITTEE ON PROCEDURE AND HOUSE AFFAIRS, CANADIAN PARLIAMENT |
| TALK | Poisoning Fast and Slow: Differentiating LLM Compromise as a Vector for Influence Operations 19 NOV 2025 | CYBERWARCON 2025 |
| KEYNOTE | War, Attention, and You 21 JUN 2024 | CANADA AND THE WORLD CONFERENCE, UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA (external) |
INDEX
| PANEL | Emerging Technologies, Intelligence, and Security Initiative Launch 21 OCT 2026 | INSTITUTE OF GLOBAL POLITICS, COLUMBIA SIPA (external) |
| PANEL | USA: Acknowledge, adapt, push back 7 OCT 2026 | EU DISINFOLAB 2026 |
| PANEL | Automation in Communications 4 JUN 2026 | RIGA STRATCOM DIALOGUE 2026, NATO STRATCOM COE |
| TALK | Disinformation, Global Affairs, and You 14 MAR 2026 | ALBRECHT FELLOWSHIPS, WORLD TRADE CENTER INSTITUTE |
| TESTIMONY | Foreign Interference and the 2025 Canadian Federal Election 27 NOV 2025 | STANDING COMMITTEE ON PROCEDURE AND HOUSE AFFAIRS, CANADIAN PARLIAMENT |
| TALK | Poisoning Fast and Slow: Differentiating LLM Compromise as a Vector for Influence Operations 19 NOV 2025 | CYBERWARCON 2025 |
| LECTURE | Information Operations and Crowds 24 SEP 2025 | GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY (SCHAR SCHOOL) |
| TALK | Disinformation as a Weapon 11 SEP 2025 | OMIDYAR NETWORK |
| PANEL | Should We Attribute Less? Foreign Interference Claims and the 2024 US Election 22 NOV 2024 | CYBERWARCON 2024 |
| TALK | Understanding and Countering Russian Malign Influence 24 OCT 2024 | CASE |
| TALK | Information Manipulation in the Gaza Humanitarian Crisis 10 OCT 2024 | EU DISINFOLAB 2024 |
| LECTURE | Social Media and the Power of Narratives 7 AUG 2024 | AUSTRALIAN COMMAND AND STAFF COURSE (AUSTRALIAN WAR COLLEGE) |
| KEYNOTE | War, Attention, and You 21 JUN 2024 | CANADA AND THE WORLD CONFERENCE, UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA (external) |
| PANEL | Another Battlefield: How Telegram Emerged as a Digital Front in Russia's War Against Ukraine 6 JUN 2024 | RIGA STRATCOM DIALOGUE 2024, NATO STRATCOM COE |
| LECTURE | Defending Truth in the Digital Age 31 MAY 2024 | KAZAKHSTAN INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC DEVELOPMENT |
| TALK | Future of Technology: Radical Transformation or Harmonious Development 30 MAY 2024 | QAZAQ FORUM, IN COORDINATION WITH U.S. EMBASSY KAZAKHSTAN |
| PANEL | Make Your Voice Heard 19 MAR 2024 | NEXT MILAN FORUM 2024 (ISPI, BOCCONI UNIVERSITY, OECD) |
| TALK | Why Your Influence Operation Is Probably a Bad Idea 13 MAR 2024 | DOD INFORMATION CONFERENCE |
| TALK | Impacts of Malign Influence Campaigns on Democratic Institutions 6 MAR 2024 | INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY FORUM, ATLANTIC COUNCIL (external) |
| TALK | 2 FEB 2024 | U.S. ARMY SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND (USASOC) |
| KEYNOTE | 22 JAN 2024 | EUROPEAN EXTERNAL ACTION SERVICE (EEAS) |
| PANEL | Deconstructing the Israel-Hamas Disinformation War 16 NOV 2023 | ATLANTIC COUNCIL (external) |
| TALK | 10 NOV 2023 | TEMPLE ISAIAH |
| TALK | Why Your Influence Operation Is Probably a Bad Idea 9 NOV 2023 | CYBERWARCON 2023 |
| TALK | Defending Truth in the Digital Age 16 OCT 2023 | MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF TURKMENISTAN, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH U.S. EMBASSY ASHGABAT |
| LECTURE | 16 OCT 2023 | INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF TURKMENISTAN |
| KEYNOTE | The Weaponization of Social Media 11 OCT 2023 | EU DISINFOLAB 2023 |
| PANEL | 2 AUG 2023 | WONKCOMMS BREAKFAST CLUB DC |
| LECTURE | 19 APR 2023 | GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY (GWU) |
| TALK | Weaponization of Social Media 8 FEB 2023 | PHOENIX STRIPE COURSE, AIR MOBILITY COMMAND, SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE |
| KEYNOTE | 3 AUG 2022 | U.S. AIR FORCE SENIOR ENLISTED LEADER INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM |
| KEYNOTE | 27 JUL 2022 | DIGITAL COMMUNICATION NETWORK (DCN) BULGARIA |
| TALK | Flashpoints Forum 26 JUL 2022 | ERGO (GEOPOLITICAL INTELLIGENCE FIRM) |
| PANEL | Another Open Source Record of War 6 JUN 2022 | 360/OS: CONTESTED REALITIES | CONNECTED FUTURES, ATLANTIC COUNCIL |
| PANEL | Wartime Content Moderation and the Russian Invasion of Ukraine 18 MAY 2022 | ATLANTIC COUNCIL |
| LECTURE | Lessons Learned in Characterizing and Attributing Influence Operations 25 APR 2022 | CENTER FOR INFORMED DEMOCRACY & SOCIAL-CYBERSECURITY (IDEAS), CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY (external) |
| TALK | Information Warfare in the Conflict in Ukraine 25 MAR 2022 | COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS (ROUNDTABLE SERIES ON DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION) |
| LECTURE | 10 FEB 2022 | SCIENCES PO |
| TALK | 11 JAN 2022 | DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY (DARPA) |
| TALK | 5 NOV 2021 | SWEDISH CIVIL CONTINGENCIES AGENCY (MSB) |
| LECTURE | 15 SEP 2021 | GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY (HUMPHREY FELLOWSHIP) |
| TALK | Foreign Interference Allegations in the 2020 US Election 24 JUN 2021 | 360/OS SUMMIT, ATLANTIC COUNCIL |
| TALK | Disinformation: Targets, Purposes, and What Can Be Done 19 MAY 2021 | CSIS PROJECT ON NUCLEAR ISSUES (PONI) WORKSHOP |
| PANEL | Unmasking Influence Operators: What Are Best Practices for Attribution? 25 MAR 2021 | CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE |
| LECTURE | 10 MAR 2021 | JOHNS HOPKINS SAIS |
| TALK | The Election Integrity Partnership 10 MAR 2021 | UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (UNDP) |
| TESTIMONY | Foreign Interference and the 2020 U.S. Election 12 NOV 2020 | SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN INTERFERENCE, EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT |
| TALK | Student Conference on U.S. Affairs 21 OCT 2020 | U.S. MILITARY ACADEMY |
| LECTURE | 14 OCT 2020 | UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE |
| LECTURE | Foreign Interference, Disinformation, and the U.S. Election 1 OCT 2020 | MERSHON CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL SECURITY STUDIES, OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY |
| PANEL | 2020 Election Integrity and Foreign Interference 29 SEP 2020 | ATLANTIC COUNCIL |
| PANEL | Fighting Election-Related Disinformation with the Election Integrity Partnership 12 AUG 2020 | STANFORD INTERNET OBSERVATORY / FREEMAN SPOGLI INSTITUTE (ELECTION INTEGRITY PARTNERSHIP) |
| TALK | Clicks and Kalashnikovs: Convergence of Tech and Terror 2020 | RAISINA DIALOGUE 2020, OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION AND MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS (INDIA) (external) |
| TALK | 17 JUN 2020 | INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP (ICG) |
| TALK | 7 MAY 2020 | DEFENSE INTELLIGENCE AGENCY (DIA) |
| TALK | 18 FEB 2020 | GOOGLE (TALKS AT GOOGLE SERIES) |
| PANEL | Iran: Propaganda and Perception 41 Years After the Revolution 12 FEB 2020 | ATLANTIC COUNCIL (external) |
| TALK | 10 FEB 2020 | MIDDLE EAST INSTITUTE (MEI) |
| TALK | 18 OCT 2019 | THE FUTURE OF POLITICAL WARFARE CONFERENCE |
| LECTURE | 15 OCT 2019 | AMERICAN UNIVERSITY |
| LECTURE | 7 OCT 2019 | JOHNS HOPKINS SCHOOL OF ADVANCED INTERNATIONAL STUDIES (SAIS) |
| TALK | 4 SEP 2019 | JIGSAW (GOOGLE) |
| TALK | 15 AUG 2019 | SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORCE, PUBLIC AFFAIRS (PENTAGON) |
| TALK | 19 JUN 2019 | HACKS/HACKERS LONDON |
| LECTURE | 10 JUN 2019 | U.S. NAVAL WAR COLLEGE |
| KEYNOTE | 27 MAY 2019 | EU DISINFOLAB |
| TALK | Misinformation: The New Public Health Crisis 6 APR 2019 | TEDXNYU (external) |
| KEYNOTE | 2 APR 2019 | CANADIAN JOINT OPERATIONS COMMAND / DEPT. OF NATIONAL DEFENCE |
| TALK | 13 MAR 2019 | U.S. ARMY, FORT BELVOIR |
| TALK | The Weaponization of Social Media 6 MAR 2019 | GLOBAL SOF FOUNDATION |
| LECTURE | 6 FEB 2019 | COLORADO COLLEGE |
| TALK | 23 JAN 2019 | |
| LECTURE | 22 JAN 2019 | VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY |
| TALK | LikeWar Analytic Exchange 30 NOV 2018 | U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE |
| LECTURE | 24 OCT 2018 | VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY |
| TALK | LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media 5 OCT 2018 | CSIS INTERNATIONAL SECURITY PROGRAM (external) |
| PANEL | LikeWar (DC Launch): The Weaponization of Social Media 4 OCT 2018 | NEW AMERICA (CYBERSECURITY INITIATIVE) |
| TALK | LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media 2018 | POLITICS AND PROSE BOOKSTORE (AT THE WHARF) |
| TALK | The Social Network War: Assessing the Role of Networked Communication in Contemporary Conflict 16 MAR 2016 | INTERNATIONAL STUDIES ASSOCIATION, 57TH ANNUAL CONVENTION |
