Episode 35 - J.D. Maddox – Influence Operations, Emerging Technology, and the Battle for Trust
J.D. Maddox – Influence Operations, Emerging Technology, and the Battle for Trust
In this episode of Tipping Spears with Hannah Becker, I sit down with J.D. Maddox, former CIA analytic manager, diplomat, Special Operations soldier, and now executive, professor, and author shaping how America confronts the modern information battlefield. As Founder of Inventive Insights and Vice President of Deft9 Solutions, J.D. has led groundbreaking applications of AI, data analytics, and emerging technologies to counter terrorism, foreign malign influence, and disinformation at the highest levels of government.
We explore how influence operations shape public perception, the erosion of societal trust, and how that trust, or lack of it, impacts national security. J.D. shares insights from his leadership of the State Department’s first AI-enabled influence campaigns, his experience advising the Department of Defense on Operations in the Information Environment, and his academic work teaching disinformation and national security at Tulane and George Mason University. Our conversation also touches on the evolving tactics of cognitive warfare, the ethical use of technology in persuasion, and the strategies that can help strengthen public resilience against adversarial manipulation.
From the frontlines of influence operations to the classroom and policy arena, J.D. offers a sobering and deeply informed perspective on the threats facing democratic societies and the tools, ethics, and innovations required to defend them. Whether you work in national security, technology, or public communication, this discussion unpacks the vital connection between truth, trust, and national stability in an era defined by digital influence.
Guest Bio:
J.D. Maddox is an executive, professor, and author, and he has previously served as a CIA analytic manager, diplomat, and Special Operations soldier. As Founder of Inventive Insights, and Vice President of Deft9 Solutions, J.D. specializes in the application of effective technological capabilities for high-consequence national programs, such as persuading foreign audiences, countering terrorism, encouraging civic engagement, and countering foreign malign influence.
J.D. recently led the State Department’s first uses of AI-enabled messaging, advertising technology, data analytics, online gaming, deepfake detection, and other technologies, against foreign malign influence. He also advises Defense Department organizations on effective uses of emerging technology, such as data analytics and AI, in support of Operations in the Information Environment. Additionally, he consults to commercial and political organizations on creative applications of technology for civic engagement, based in part on his experience running for political office in Virginia.
J.D. teaches Open Source Information Analysis at Tulane University, and teaches Disinformation and Policy Responses, and National Security Challenges, at George Mason University. He Advises the Harvard Belfer Center Trusted Election Analysis and Monitoring information assurance initiative, and lectures at U.S. and international universities.
J.D. is a frequent author of national security assessments, such as “The Day I Realized I Would Never Find Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq” (The New York Times), “It’s Time to Think About (and Fear) Drones and Psychological Operations” (War on the Rocks), “Enable Effective Operations in the Information Environment” (Proceedings Magazine), “The U.S. Is in the Midst of a Perfect ‘Cognitive Warfare’ Storm” (The Cipher Brief), “Fifty-Five Hours of Risk: The Dangerous Implications of Slow Attack Attribution” (Modern War Institute at West Point), and “The Tragedy of the Mass-Shooter Algorithm” (Lawfare).
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