July 08, 2026
AI, Trust, and the Future of Warfare
Lieutenant General John (Jack) N.T. Shanahan, U.S. Air Force (Ret.), an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, helped shape the Department of Defense's approach to artificial intelligence long before AI became part of the public conversation. As the founding Director of Project Maven and the inaugural Director of the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center (JAIC), Jack led some of the military's earliest efforts to operationalize AI at scale. In this episode of “Tipping Spears,” he reflects on his 36-year military career, the challenge of standing up entirely new organizations, and what it takes to lead through uncertainty while earning trust across large, complex institutions.
Listen to the full episode on Tipping Spears.
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