NGA official takes top AI job at Cyber Command

Then-Cmdr. Ronzelle Green renders a salute during the presentation of colors at the Coast Guard Port Security Unit 308 change of command ceremony, Dec. 5, 2015. Petty Officer 2nd Class Ryan Tippets/Coast Guard

Ronzelle Green succeeds Reid Novotny, who pushed the combatant command to embrace the technology.

Artificial Intelligence

U.S. Cyber Command, the Pentagon’s combatant command responsible for planning and conducting military cyberspace operations, has a new artificial intelligence lead, a spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday.

“U.S. Cyber Command welcomes Rear Adm. Ronzelle Green as the Command’s new Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer and thanks Brig. Gen. Reid Novotny for his leadership and service,” a representative for the combatant command told Nextgov/FCW .

Green, who has worked at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency for roughly three years — most recently as its director of geospatial intelligence innovation and research — is Cyber Command’s second-ever AI head. Novotny was the first official tapped for the position last November and served in a dual role as CAIO and as cyber force generation lead for the Pentagon.

The Record first reported the news of Green’s new role.

In a LinkedIn post last year announcing his new position, Novotny said “part of my role is embracing AI because like anything new, it is not the technology but yet the culture that is difficult to change.”

Novotny further outlined his approach to adopting AI during an April conversation with Axios, saying that he was solely focused on providing Cyber Command’s personnel with the best AI capabilities, regardless of their origin.

"To survive anywhere, just in case our operators want an open-source, made-in-China model or something very boutique, we have to create the infrastructure and that ability to be agile — no politics,” he said at the time.

In addition to his prior work at NGA, Green also brings more than 30 years of IT experience in the private sector and within intelligence community agencies to his new role as Cyber Command’s CAIO. He previously served as the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency’s chief information officer from 2020 until 2022, and has held roles within the Pentagon and National Counterterrorism Center throughout his career. Green is also a senior officer with the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve.

Cyber Command is led by Gen. Joshua Rudd, who also serves as head of the National Security Agency in a dual-hatted leadership role. NSA and Cyber Command, however, have taken somewhat differing approaches in their adoption of and focus on AI.

Under Rudd’s watch, NSA is in the process of a major reorganization that would establish five mission centers focused on AI, China, cybersecurity, combat support and global intelligence. The planned creation of the AI-focused center comes after NSA officials have voiced support in recent months for the use of more AI tools to bolster the agency's cyber and intelligence analysis operations.

NEXT STORY: Russia is weaponizing US-built AI to make killer drones, cyberattack bots, and fake news

2015年12月5日，在海岸警卫队第308港口安全部队指挥权交接仪式上，时任指挥官罗泽尔·格林在升旗仪式上敬礼。照片由海岸警卫队二级士官瑞安·蒂佩茨拍摄。

Ronzelle Green 接替了 Reid Novotny 的职位，Reid Novotny 曾推动作战司令部接受这项技术。

人工智能

美国网络司令部（五角大楼负责规划和实施军事网络空间行动的作战司令部）的一位发言人周二证实，该司令部任命了一位新的人工智能负责人。

“美国网络司令部欢迎罗泽尔·格林海军少将担任司令部新的首席人工智能官，并感谢里德·诺沃特尼准将的领导和服务，”该作战司令部的一位代表告诉 Nextgov/FCW。

格林曾在国家地理空间情报局工作近三年，最近担任地理空间情报创新与研究主管，他是网络司令部历史上第二位人工智能负责人。诺沃特尼是去年11月被任命的首位人工智能负责人，他同时担任五角大楼首席人工智能官和网络部队生成负责人。

《记录报》率先报道了格林的新职务。

去年，诺沃特尼在 LinkedIn 上发帖宣布了他的新职位，他表示：“我的部分职责是拥抱人工智能，因为像任何新事物一样，难以改变的不是技术，而是文化。”

诺沃特尼在四月份与 Axios 的一次谈话中进一步阐述了他采用人工智能的方法，他说他一心只想为网络司令部的人员提供最好的人工智能能力，而不管这些能力来自哪里。

“为了在任何地方生存下去，以防我们的运营商想要开源的、中国制造的模式，或者一些非常小众的东西，我们必须建立基础设施和敏捷的能力——不涉及政治，”他当时说道。

除了此前在国家地理空间情报局 (NGA) 的工作经历外，格林还拥有超过 30 年的私营部门和情报机构 IT 经验，这些经验将为他担任网络司令部首席信息官 (CAIO) 的新职位带来巨大优势。他曾于 2020 年至 2022 年担任国防反情报与安全局 (DCISA) 首席信息官，并在其职业生涯中曾在五角大楼和国家反恐中心担任要职。格林同时也是美国海岸警卫队预备役的高级军官。

网络司令部由约书亚·鲁德将军领导，他同时兼任国家安全局局长，身兼两职。然而，国家安全局和网络司令部在人工智能的采纳和发展重点方面采取了略有不同的方法。

在鲁德的领导下，美国国家安全局正在进行一项重大重组，旨在建立五个任务中心，分别专注于人工智能、中国、网络安全、作战支援和全球情报。此前，美国国家安全局官员近几个月来一直表示支持使用更多人工智能工具来加强该机构的网络和情报分析行动，而此次计划设立的人工智能中心正是在此背景下提出的。

下一篇报道：俄罗斯正将美国制造的人工智能武器化，用于制造杀手无人机、网络攻击机器人和虚假新闻。