Coming August 4: CTRL + ALT + DEFENSE podcast hosted by Billy Mitchell and Meagan Metzger!
A raw, unfiltered new podcast from DefenseScoop and Dcode, exploring how cutting-edge technology, institutional barriers, and evolving national security priorities collide in today’s defense landscape.
CTRL + ALT + DEFENSE features candid conversations with leaders across defense, tech, venture capital, and policy—bringing forward diverse perspectives on the future of defense innovation.
From the front lines of government to the forefront of technology, this series examines the challenges and breakthroughs shaping tomorrow’s mission-critical decisions—with no spin, no agenda, and no filter.
Stay tuned.
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About DefenseScoop
DefenseScoop is the premier community-driven news source dedicated to the U.S. military’s acquisition, development and use of technology as a force for modern defense. As the Department of Defense moves in the direction of Joint All Domain Command and Control and other initiatives to connect the joint force and fight future battles, DefenseScoop will deliver the latest insights, trends and analysis on this pivotal transformation and engage Pentagon and service senior leaders to discuss ways technology can be a central fixture in our nation’s ability to understand threats, make decisions and take action in a rapid manner. https://defensescoop.com/about/
Brandi Vincent: Behind-the-byline of one the Pentagon's top tech reporters
What’s it like covering the Pentagon at a moment when artificial intelligence, emerging technologies and even unexplained phenomena are shaping the national security conversation? In this episode of CTRL + ALT + DEFENSE, DefenseScoop Senior Reporter Brandi Vincent joins the podcast to talk about her path into defense journalism and what it takes to cover technology and transformation across the Defense Department in 2026. She shares the storylines defining her reporting, what she’s watching as the Pentagon accelerates its adoption of AI, and why the work of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office — better known as AARO — continues to command attention. Brandi also offers a look ahead at the defense technology developments she’ll be tracking through the rest of 2026, plus a few personal highlights along the way.
Also in this episode: Damon Harvey, Senior Manager of Data Services at Workday, discusses how shifting to an agile, data-driven, and skills-based workforce model can help defense organizations strengthen readiness, improve decision-making and better align talent with mission needs. This segment was sponsored by Workday.
6 Jul 2026
Rob Lehman: Reflections on the Saronic-Powered Rescue Mission in the Strait of Hormuz
In early June, a pair of U.S. pilots flying an Apache helicopter were downed in the Strait of Hormuz. Faced with sending more service members into the perilous body of water near Iran, the U.S. Navy decided to deploy an unmanned Saronic Corsair drone to rescue the pilots, and did so successfully. The first-of-its-kind rescue mission is emblematic of the shifting nature of conflict where unmanned autonomous systems — in the sea, on land and in the sky — are playing vital roles in defense operations. Rob Lehman, chief commercial officer and co-founder of Saronic, joins CTRL + ALT + DEFENSE to give a firsthand look into the unclassified side of the operation, his thoughts on the changing nature of warfare driven by drones and how the defense industrial base is evolving to meet the needs of the modern battlefield.
Also in this episode: SAP NS2 CIO Nick Totten explains why defense agencies and contractors should leverage pre-accredited cloud platforms to move faster on modernization and AI adoption. Totten says that inheriting established security controls can help organizations avoid months of compliance work, reduce the burden of Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification readiness and free up resources for mission-focused innovation. He also discusses why cloud migration must go beyond “lift and shift,” how modern ERP and SaaS environments can create new operational capabilities and why AI tools must work inside tightly controlled, secure environments. This segment was sponsored by SAP NS2.
22 Jun 2026
Lt. Gen. Jeth Rey: Leading the Army's Data-Centric Battlefield Transformation
Many U.S. Army leaders have taken unconventional journeys to where they are today, but Lt. Gen. Jeth Rey's may be one of the most unique. After spending his formative years in the U.S. Virgin Islands where he developed skills as a gymnast and platform diver, he moved to Virginia, where he'd eventually enlist in the Army in 1983, launching a now 40-plus year career. After becoming a warrant officer and then a commissioned officer, he's held 18 ranks across the service. And now as the Army's G6, responsible for planning, strategy, and implementing global command, control, communications, cyber operations, and network architectures, he's ushering in data-centric transformation for an AI-enabled battlefield of the future.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
3 ratings
Spotify
4.5 / 5
4 ratings
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