Advancements in artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies are redefining what it means to work in the Intelligence Community.
2023 Wash100 Award winner Jennifer Ewbank, deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency for digital innovation, spoke on the monumental changes happening within the IC, the technologies driving this transformation and what it means for intelligence agencies going forward during a new video interview with Executive Mosaic.
Catch Jennifer Ewbank’s keynote address at the Potomac Officers Club’s 9th Annual Intel Summit next week! Ewbank — along with leaders from ODNI, NGA, DIA and other IC agencies — will be taking the stage to share her insights and priorities on Sep. 21. Click here to register.
“We live in this environment of ubiquitous sensing — something is always recording what we do, where we go, who we meet, what we say. You’ve got commercial satellites, telemetry and facial recognition cameras, and let’s not forget, everyone’s carrying around this multi-functional sensor in their pocket in the form of a really powerful cell phone. And so I think you get the picture [of] how challenging that can be to remain unseen, unknown, undetected in conducting a really dangerous mission,” Ewbank explained.
In this ever-expanding digital landscape, not only have secret intelligence missions become more difficult, but cyber threats have also become more and more prevalent. Technologies like AI are being used to strengthen what Ewbank calls “digital autocracies” and perpetuate a rise in cyber crimes, ransomware attacks and misinformation campaigns.
“We have to adapt and we have to embrace these things. We can’t just pretend that they don’t happen and they don’t exist,” Ewbank warned. “We have to embrace these new technologies for our mission, we have to protect ourselves against them being used by our adversaries at the same time.”
But as the U.S. looks to embrace AI technologies more widely, Ewbank urged leaders to keep America’s values at the forefront.
“We can’t just dive headfirst blindly into the future without thinking deeply about things like our values, our policies, our law, ethics. All of that has to be at the core of everything we’re doing in the AI world,” said Ewbank.
Hear Jennifer Ewbank and other top IC decision-makers speak at the Potomac Officers Club’s 9th Annual Intel Summit on Sep. 21. Register here while seats are still available!