Catalyze Dallas Hosts Center for Advanced Defense Studies Seminar
(Featured photo: Pat Walsh, Tricia D’Cruz, and Tom Leppert.)*
Catalyze Dallas hosted an evening seminar with The Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS), for which Catalyze founder and managing director Joe D’Cruz serves on the Board of Directors. Members of both C4ADS’ and Catalyze’s Boards were in attendance at the event, which focused on how the international nonprofit bridges the critical data gap between traditional public sector and profit-driven institutions.
After cocktails in the Oak Room at Brook Hollow Golf Club, attendees including Bobby Lyle, Frank Cappuccio, and Tom Leppert, of the Catalyze Dallas Advisory Board, participated in a seminar on how the international nonprofit is applying data-driven analysis and evidence-based reporting to address global conflict and transnational security issues.
C4ADS Senior Analyst Mike Saidi presented on Applying Machine Learning to Counter Strategic Threats to U.S. and Global Security, and Senior Analyst Irina Bukharin spoke on Combatting Human Trafficking and Forced Labor Using Publicly Available Information. The presentations were followed by a panel that included Chris Miller, Former Acting Secretary of Defense and Former Director of the National Counterterrorism Center; Pat Walsh, former VP of Boeing Global Services and Senior Fellow – National Security Program at SMU; Ben Trowbridge, former head of EY’s Cyber Security Managed Services as well as founder and CEO of Alsbridge; and Rob Greenway, Executive Director of Abraham Accords Institute of Peace, Former Deputy Assistant to the President and National Security Council Senior Director.
“The work we do to counter the dangers posed globally by illicit networks is ultimately carried out at the local level, so having the opportunity to speak directly with Dallas’ private and public leaders was incredible,” said Dave Johnson, Executive Director of C4ADS. “We have our core ethos emblazoned throughout our offices in Washington, D. C., which is first and foremost ‘Do what is right.’ These community leaders and great minds together hold the key to making it possible for us to effectively do what is right. We were grateful for the fantastic support.”
Using advanced technology and highly trained analysts, C4ADS integrates and interprets data from diverse languages, regions, and sources, incorporating its own field research from conflict zones and fragile states. Engaging with local and international audiences, C4ADS’ analysis covers topics including Corruption, Environmental Crime, Human Trafficking, Weapons Proliferation Networks, and Supply Chain Security.
“My wife, Tricia, and I sought to connect the defense sector’s investments in innovation with the private sector’s efficiency when we founded Catalyze Dallas,” added D’Cruz. “C4ADS connects the two entities in a way that similarly leverages the role and strength of each for a result far greater than the sum of their parts. We felt blessed that we could bring together this group of distinguished leaders to support the mission to eradicate these illicit networks by participating on the panel and adding their real-world experience to the conversation. It was our privilege to host such a powerful evening.”
About Catalyze Dallas
Catalyze Dallas works with defense companies to unleash the full value and potential of their investments in innovation. Commercializing these products using a proven turnkey model developed through decades of experience and with a dozen clients, Catalyze helps partners see their innovations commercialized and more widely applied with an expert touch.
The Catalyze model accelerates time-to-market for key technologies, which then helps inspire and retain innovators as they realize the fulfillment of their products in actual commercial applications. Creating scalable businesses to launch intellectual property into broad markets, Catalyze Dallas ultimately facilitates technological proliferation and accretive profit with low financial and reputational risk. For more information, visit www.catalyzedallas.com.
About C4ADS
C4ADS is a non-profit digital-age think tank dedicated to providing data-driven analysis and evidence-based reporting on global conflict and transnational security issues. Designed to remain agile in an environment where illicit actors are inter-connected, globalized, and deeply embedded in international systems of finance, commerce, and transportation, C4ADS uses cutting-edge technologies to manage, integrate, and analyze disparate data. C4ADS produces compelling analysis and engages with local and international audiences to empower global security and prosperity. In doing so, they fill a critical gap left by traditional public sector and profit-driven institutions to move beyond advocacy to action. For more information, or to donate, visit www.c4ads.org.
*Courtesy photo.
