NatSec Tech

Disinformation has always shadowed elections, but artificial intelligence now lets bad actors produce it at a scale and speed never seen before. With the midterms approaching and government election-security agencies diminished, the question grows urgent: Can the same technology fueling the threat also be used to defend against it? 

Mark Murray joins NatSec Tech to share his perspective on AI, disinformation, and election integrity. Mark is Editorial Director at OpenAI and previously served as senior political editor at NBC News. Drawing on decades covering elections and his work at the frontier of AI, he explains how AI can empower both bad actors and good ones, how tools like digital watermarking and verification aim to combat deepfakes, and why he's confident the midterms can still be free and fair.

NatSec Tech is a product of the Special Competitive Studies Project.

Disinformation has always shadowed elections, but artificial intelligence now lets bad actors produce it at a scale and speed never seen before. With the midterms approaching and government election-security agencies diminished, the question grows urgent: Can the same technology fueling the threat also be used to defend against it? 

Mark Murray joins NatSec Tech to share his perspective on AI, disinformation, and election integrity. Mark is Editorial Director at OpenAI and previously served as senior political editor at NBC News. Drawing on decades covering elections and his work at the frontier of AI, he explains how AI can empower both bad actors and good ones, how tools like digital watermarking and verification aim to combat deepfakes, and why he's confident the midterms can still be free and fair.

NatSec Tech is a product of the Special Competitive Studies Project.

Artificial intelligence is advancing faster than any technology before it, yet the United States still has no federal framework to govern it, leaving a patchwork of state and foreign rules that startups can barely navigate. With Europe regulating aggressively and China surging forward, the central tension is sharper than ever: regulate too much and risk falling behind, regulate too little and risk chaos. In this episode, we ask: As AI reshapes jobs, children's lives, and the integrity of our information, can America strike the right balance between innovation and safety before it's too late? 

Teresa Carlson joins NatSec Tech to share her perspective on AI policy and the global technology race. Teresa is CEO of General Catalyst Institute, which bridges venture capital and government to advance national resilience, and previously founded and led Amazon Web Services' Worldwide Public Sector business. Drawing on more than two decades at the intersection of big tech and government, she explains why the recent federal executive order on frontier models is only a first step, how the "Mythos moment" became a wake-up call for Washington, and why she believes the gravest risk isn't regulation, but a failure to act with urgency.

NatSec Tech is a product of the Special Competitive Studies Project.

For decades, the path from scientific breakthrough to real-world impact has taken ten to twenty years, with researchers relying on tools not far removed from a high school chemistry lab. The Department of Energy's Genesis Mission aims to change that, harnessing artificial intelligence to compress discovery from decades to mere years. In this episode, we ask: Can a "Manhattan Project 2.0" for science deliver the breakthroughs America needs to stay ahead of China? 

Angela Sheffield joins NatSec Tech live at the 2026 AI+ Expo to share her perspective on AI's power to revitalize American science. Angela is the Director of AI Strategy for Energy at Accenture Federal Services, one of the private partners building the digital infrastructure behind the Genesis Mission. Drawing on her experience as a national lab scientist, military officer, and DOE program manager, she explains how connecting data across the national laboratories could unlock everything from critical mineral independence to next-generation nuclear reactors — and why the mission's aggressive deadlines signal a new era for American scientific ambition.

NatSec Tech is a product of the Special Competitive Studies Project.

Propaganda has existed for centuries, but artificial intelligence and neurological research are transforming it into something far more dangerous: cognitive warfare. Today, adversaries aren't just shaping what we think, they're targeting how we think, exploiting fear, anxiety, and tribalism at massive scale. In this episode, we ask: As AI gives bad actors the power to destabilize populations and cloud the decision-making of leaders, is the world prepared for this new kind of war? 

Anshu Roy joins NatSec Tech live at the 2026 AI+ Expo to share his perspective on the rise of cognitive warfare. Anshu is the founder and CEO of Rhombus Power, an AI company delivering predictive intelligence for national security. Drawing on his experience building predictive intelligence tools and supporting active military operations, he explains how information warfare and kinetic warfare are converging and why cognitive warfare may be the next nuclear weapon.

NatSec Tech is a product of the Special Competitive Studies Project.