2025 Agenda
Our 2025 agenda will take a broad look at the state of the national security world, running through topics like: AI, Investment in future Defense, Critical Infrastructure, Cybersecurity, Gray Zone Operations, Unmanned systems, to global players like China, Taiwan, Russia, Ukraine, The Middle East and South America. Like every year, we have some surprises planned that will challenge you to bring your very best to the table. We can’t wait to welcome you!
Day 1: Sunday October 19
2:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Sapelo Room
REGISTRATION OPEN
5:00 PM - 5:15 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
A CIPHER BRIEF WELCOME
Suzanne Kelly, Cipher Brief CEO & Publisher
5:15 PM - 5:45 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
2025 GLOBAL CHALLENGES
A Fireside Chat
Dr. Michael Vickers - Former Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
5:45 PM - 6:30 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
A THREAT BRIEFING WITH THE EXPERTS
A Conversation with the experts
Sandra Joyce, VP, Google Threat Intelligence
Yvette Cesario, Director, National Security, AWS
Major Gen. Ryan Heritage (Ret.), Former Director of Operations, U.S. Cyber Command
RADM Mark Montgomery (Ret.), Executive Director, Cyberspace
Solarium Commission
Jennifer Ewbank, Former Deputy Director of CIA for Digital Innovation
Dave Pitts, Former Senior CIA Executive
Major Gen. Charlie Cleveland (Ret.) Senior Counselor, Palantir
Rob Dannenberg, Former Chief of CIA’s Central Eurasia Division
Moderated by Brad Christian, COO and Executive Editor, The Cipher Brief
6:45 PM - 7:30 PM
Black Banks Terrace
COCKTAILS UNDER THE PORTICO
Sponsored by:
Day 2: Monday October 20
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Sapelo Room
REGISTRATION OPEN
8:30 AM - 9:00 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
CIPHER BRIEF THREAT CONFERENCE WELCOME
Suzanne Kelly - Cipher Brief CEO & Publisher
9:00 AM - 9:15 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
THE SITUATION IN SOUTH & LATIN AMERICA
A Live Report from Panama
David Fitzgerald, Former Chief of Station, CIA
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly - Cipher Brief CEO & Publisher
9:15 AM - 9:45 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
LESSONS FROM AN UNDECLARED WAR ON
‘NARCOTERRORISTS’
A Fireside Chat
Chris Maier- Former Asst. Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict
Renee Novakoff - Former Deputy Director of Intelligence for Sensitive Activities and Special Programs, Office of the Secretary of Defense
Moderated by Brad Christian, COO & Executive Editor, The Cipher Brief
9:45 AM - 10:05 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
A PREVIEW: RISKS & OPPORTUNITIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST
A Live Report
Norm Roule - Former National Intelligence Manager for Iran, ODNI
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
10:05 AM - 10:45 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
THE KREMLIN’S GRAND STRATEGY
Dr. Michael Vickers - Former Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence
Rob Dannenberg - Former Chief of CIA’s Central Eurasia Division
Moderated by Natalia Drozdiak, Bloomberg
10:45 AM - 11:15 AM
Cloister Foyer
NETWORKING BREAK
Sponsored by:
11:15 AM - 12:00 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
A GLOBAL BRIEF
Gen. David Petraeus (Ret.) - Former Director, CIA
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Black Banks Terrace
A SEA ISLAND LUNCHEON
1:00 PM - 1:15 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
GROUND TRUTH IN THE MIDDLE EAST
A Live Report
Greg Myre, National Security Correspondent, NPR
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
1:15 PM - 1:45 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
RISKS & OPPORTUNITIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST
A Cipher Brief Expert Conversation
Ralph Goff - Fmr Senior Intelligence Executive & 6-time Station Chief, CIA
Glenn Corn - Former Senior CIA Operations Officer
Moderated by Dan DeLuce - National Security Reporter, NBC News
1:45 PM - 1:55 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
LEVEL-SETTING THE CHINA THREAT
A Live Report
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
Gen. Timothy Haugh (Ret.) - Former Director, NSA & Commander, U.S. Cyber Command
1:55 PM - 2:45 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
HOW WAR WITH CHINA BEGINS (HINT: TAIWAN)
A TableTop Exercise
Led by Mark Montgomery (Ret.), Executive Director, Cyberspace
Solarium Commission
Major Gen. Ryan Heritage (Ret.), Former Director of Operations, U.S. Cyber Command
Chip Usher, Senior Director for Intelligence at the Special Competitive Studies Project / Former Officer, CIA
Matt Hayden, Vice President, GDIT /Former Assistant Secretary for Cyber,
Infrastructure, Risk & Resilience, DHS
2:45 PM - 3:00 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
A DEBRIEF SO FAR
A Conference Wide Group Huddle
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
AFTERNOON INTERMISSION
The Cloister Ballroom
5:00 PM - 5:45 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
THE FUTURE OF DEFENSE
A Cipher Brief Expert Conversation
General David Petraeus (Ret.), Former Director, CIA
Grace Cassy, External Advisor, UK’s Strategic Defense Review
Moderated by Brad Christian, COO & Executive Editor, The Cipher Brief
5:45 PM - 6:00 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
CIPHER BRIEF HONORS DINNER ANNOUNCEMENT
Day 3: Tuesday October 21
8:00 AM - 8:45 AM
COFFEE & SNACKS
The Cloister Foyer
8:30 AM - 9:00 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
WELCOME BACK AND TOP OF MIND
Suzanne Kelly, Cipher Brief CEO & Publisher
9:00 AM - 9:15 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
LIVE SHOT WITH GENERAL PAUL NAKASONE
Gen. Paul Nakasone (Ret.) - Former Director NSA & Commander, U.S. Cyber Command
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
9:15 AM - 10:00 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
TECH INNOVATION IN THE BATTLESPACE
An Expert Conversation
General David Petraeus - Former Director, CIA
Alec Bierbauer - Former CIA Officer, Directorate of Operations
Joey Gagnard - Chief Warrant Officer 5 (Ret.)
Major Gen. Charlie Cleveland (Ret.) - Senior Counselor, Palantir
Moderated by Nataliya Bugayova - Babel Street, Institute for the Study of War
10:00 AM - 10:20 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
STATUS BRIEF FROM THE FIELD
Liveshot from Ukraine
Col. Ivan Pavlenko - Chief of General Directorate of Electronic and Cyber Warfare of The Armed Forces of Ukraine
Moderated by General David Petraeus, Former CIA Director
10:40 AM - 11:00 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
NETWORKING BREAK
Sponsored by The Cipher Brief's Gray Zone Group
10:20 AM - 10:40 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
ADVERSARY ADOPTION OF AI: THE NEXT PHASE
A Live-Action Op-Ed
Sandra Joyce - VP Google Threat Intelligence
11:00 AM - 11:20 AM
The Cloister Ballroom
AI For Defense and National Security
A Fireside Chat
David Appel - Vice President, Global Government, National Security and
Defense at Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Suzanne Kelly
11:20 AM - 11:40 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
INFRASTRUCTURE AT THE SPEED OF CRISIS: MULTI-INT LESSONS FROM PANDEMIC TO BATTLEFIELDS
An Off-The-Record Live Action Op-Ed
Sean Batir - Principal Tech Lead AI, Quantum & Autonomy for National Security, AWS & Former MAVEN Chief Technology Officer, NGA
12:10 PM - 1:10 PM
Black Banks Terrace
A Sea Island Lunch
11:40 AM - 12:10 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
AI, TRUST & THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL DEFENSE
An Expert Conversation
Steve Faehl - Microsoft
Cynthia Kaiser - SVP, HalcyonAI, Former Deputy Director of FBI Cyber
Moderated by Jennifer Ewbank - Former Deputy Director of CIA for Digital Innovation
1:20 PM - 2:00 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
AI & THE WORLD OF CYBER THREATS
A Cyber Initiatives Group Panel
Cynthia Kaiser, SVP HalcyonAI, Former Senior FBI Cyber Executive
Jennifer Ewbank, Former Deputy Director of CIA for Digital Innovation
Teresa Shea, Advisor, Board Member & Former Director of Signals Intelligence, NSA
Jon Darby, Advisor, Retired Director of Operations, CIA
Gloria Glaubman, Former Senior Cyber Advisor at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo
Glenn Gerstell, Former General Counsel, National Security Agency
Moderated by Matt Hayden, Principal, The Cyber Initiatives Group
2:00 PM - 2:20 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
REGULATING AI - INNOVATION, NATIONAL SECURITY AND SAFETY
A Fireside Chat
Matthew G. Olsen - Former Attorney General for National Security &
Co-Chair, Defense, National Security & Government Contracts Practice,
WilmerHale
Moderated by Matt Hayden, Principal, Cyber Initiatives Group
2:20 PM - 2:35 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
THE FUTURE OF AI AND FRAUD
A Liveshot from Microsoft Campus in Redmond, WA
Kelly Bissell, CVP Microsoft
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
2:40 PM - 4:30 PM
AFTERNOON INTERMISSION
4:40 PM - 5:40 PM
The Cloister Ballroom
NAVIGATING THE FUTURE OF AI
A Fireside Chat
Katrina Mulligan, Head of National Security Partnerships, OpenAI
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly
5:45 PM - 6:30 PM
The Cloister Solarium
A SPY WALKED INTO A BAR
Book Signing & Reception
Day 4: Wednesday October 22
8:30 AM - 9:00 AM
COFFEE AND BREAKFAST SNACKS
The Ocean Room - Beach Club
9:00 AM - 9:30 AM
The Ocean Room - Beach Club
A SERIES OF UNSCRIPTED CONVERSATIONS
Off-the-Record
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
The Ocean Room - Beach Club
THE WAR RAGING IN THE GRAY ZONE
Dave Pitts - Former Senior CIA Executive
Austin Branch - Professor, University of Maryland, Applied Research Lab for Intelligence & Security / Partner, Crescent Bridge
Michael Driscoll - Partner, Crescent Bridge, former DoD
John Hultquist - Chief Analyst, Google Threat Intelligence Group
Moderated by Chris Maier - Former Asst. Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict
10:30 AM - 10:45 AM
NETWORKING BREAK
The Ocean Room - Beach Club
10:45 AM - 11:30 AM
The Ocean Room - Beach Club
THE STATION CHIEF'S PANEL
We’re sitting down with former CIA Station Chiefs and former Acting Chiefs to get their perspectives on today’s threat and how technology is impacting the mission.
Rob Dannenberg, Former Senior CIA Officer
Edward Bogan, Former Senior CIA Officer
Ralph Goff, Former Senior CIA Officer
Dave Pitts, Former Senior CIA Officer
Glenn Corn, Former Senior CIA Officer
Moderated by Suzanne Kelly, CEO & Publisher, The Cipher Brief
11:35 AM
The Ocean Room - Beach Club
WRAP UP AND THANK YOU
Suzanne Kelly - CEO & Publisher, The Cipher Brief
*Sessions and Speakers are Subject to Change. Conference tickets are not refundable on a
case-by-case basis.