Anne Neuberger is an internationally recognized leader in cybersecurity, risk management, and emerging technology policy, with deep expertise developed through senior roles at the White House and National Security Agency. Her strategic acumen and crisis leadership, and collaborative approach with global partners have earned her a reputation for delivering impact in high-stakes environments. She is Senior Advisor at a16z, a Distinguished Fellow at Stanford University and the Royal United Services Institute and a strategic advisor at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.

Ms. Neuberger served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor in the Biden Administration. In that role she had primary responsibility for national policy around cyber warfare, cybersecurity and emerging technologies, including quantum, spectrum and advanced telecommunications (5G/6G) and components of AI policy. She has built and led international coalitions to address transnational threats, most notably establishing the U.S. Counter-Ransomware Initiative, which now includes over 70 partner countries. She has extensive experience coordinating diplomatic, law enforcement, and industry efforts, translating complex technical challenges into actionable strategies and outcomes.

Prior to this role she served for over a decade at NSA and the Pentagon in senior roles where she was responsible for setting strategic direction and guiding execution of complex, global operations. She has led major organizational transformations, including the creation of NSA’s Cybersecurity Directorate (4,000 people), where she drove operational integration and public–private collaboration. At NSA, she was appointed the civilian deputy director of global intelligence operations (19,000 professionals) and director of the Cybersecurity Directorate. In 2013, she was appointed NSA’s first Chief Risk Officer, following sensitive media disclosures of NSA’s operations. In that role, Ms. Neuberger built NSA’s enterprise risk management program and guided the rebuilding of NSA’s private sector and foreign partner partnerships. She was awarded DoD and NSA’s highest civilian awards, as well as a Presidential Rank Award.

Prior to her government service, Ms. Neuberger held several positions related to technology and operations at a large financial services firm. Throughout her government and private sector roles she continued to devote significant effort to transformative non-profit projects.

Ms., Neuberger has an MBA and Master of International Affairs from Columbia University.

Brett McGurk has held senior national security appointments across the Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations. Most recently he was the White House Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa under President Biden, where he spearheaded negotiations on two ceasefire and hostage release deals in the Gaza conflict, leading to the release of nearly 150 hostages, and helped organize the defense of Israel against two of the largest ballistic missile attacks in history.

He was an architect of the India Middle East to Europe (IMEC) corridor concept and managed the deployment of advanced US technology in the Middle East consistent with national security priorities. He previously served as Special Presidential Envoy under Obama and Trump, leading the global campaign to defeat ISIS. McGurk is now a Special Advisor for International Affairs at Cisco, a partner at Lux Capital, and a senior advisor at Todal Partners. He is also Global Affairs Analyst for CNN and a Distinguished Fellow at Harvard’s Belfer Center and the Atlantic Council.

He is finally authoring a book on presidential decision-making based on his first-hand experience serving the last four presidents to be published by Crown.