Common Threads Fort Meade: AI and Cybersecurity Operations

View event photos courtesy of Cognition AI!

Event recap courtesy of our Digital Recap sponsor, Leidos!

Nearly 125 national security professionals were on hand for our two-day Common Threads Fort Meade program, AI and Cybersecurity Operations. The August 5 program kicked off with Career Conversations, a cleared job fair held in partnership with ClearanceJobs, followed by a lively welcome reception that provided ample time for networking and building relationships. The formal program opened with welcome remarks from INSA President Suzanne Wilson Heckenberg before transitioning into a fireside chat between Dave Imbordino, Director of NSA’s Cybersecurity Directorate and John Doyon, INSA Executive Vice President.

Mr. Imbordino framed the discussion around the Cybersecurity Directorate’s mission to understand, prevent, and counter malicious cyber activity. He outlined General Rudd's priorities of speed, scale, integration, and innovation, emphasizing that partnerships across government, industry, and the national security ecosystem remain essential to defending U.S. systems.

Mr. Imbordino emphasized the importance of artificial intelligence and how it is reshaping both offensive and defensive operations. He noted that adversaries can move faster, while defenders can use AI to detect threats, anticipate vulnerabilities, and strengthen cyber toolboxes. Mr. Imbordino identified AI as a tool, attack surface, and vulnerability, underscoring the need for secure deployments as organizations move toward greater autonomy.

As technology evolves, Mr. Imbordino stressed that foundational cybersecurity practices remain critical. Secure-by-design principles, automated penetration testing, stronger patching, and zero-trust guidance all contribute to resilience. He also cited NSA’s automated penetration testing offerings for the defense industrial base as practical support for partners.

Partnership with industry was extensively discussed. Mr. Imbordino emphasized that industry will continue to lead innovation in AI-enabled security operations, defensive tooling, and broader ecosystem capabilities. He noted that collaboration must extend beyond tools alone, particularly for organizations with fewer resources, and highlighted NSA’s collaboration center as a way to improve shared defense.

Modernization efforts were also a focus, including post-quantum cryptography, zero trust, secure product development, and hunting at scale. Mr. Imbordino observed that senior leaders across government and industry are deeply engaged in AI security and infrastructure modernization, creating an opportunity to accelerate progress.

He pointed to NSA’s improved public-facing resources and the AI Security Center as examples of how the agency is enabling partners. He also described relationships with frontier labs and AI companies, including work on model security benchmarking, autonomy, and the security environment around advanced AI capabilities.

Looking to the future workforce, Mr. Imbordino encouraged cyber professionals to master the fundamentals while becoming agile with AI and emerging technologies. He urged those entering the field to stay adaptable, experiment responsibly, and approach the mission with sustained curiosity.

Mr. Imbordino closed with an optimistic view of the future, emphasizing workforce uplift, modernization, and emerging capabilities as essential to sustaining defensive advantage. He said the United States has a meaningful opportunity to advance secure-by-design systems, strengthen cyber resilience, and use AI responsibly to improve mission outcomes.

The August 6 classified breakfast and panel featured Bruce Jones, Chief, Cybersecurity Collaboration Center, NSA; Maj Gabrielle Nesburg, USAF, J2, U.S. Cyber Command; Dr. Matt Gaston, Director, AI Division, Carnegie Mellon University; and moderator Dave Carroll, VP, Cyber Capabilities, Engineering & Strategy, GDIT. 

Thank you to our supporting partners!