Brown will lead SEI to drive the cutting-edge development of software, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity research and engineering, and to utilize these advancements as a strategic advantage for national security.

Pittsburgh, November 2nd / PRNewswire / -- Carnegie Mellon University announced that Jason M will serve as the Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Software Engineering Institute ( Software Engineering Institute, abbreviated as SEI ). SEI is a federally funded research and development center ( FFRDC ) operated by the university and funded by the U.S. Department of War ( DoW ). Brown will join Carnegie Mellon University on November 16th, bringing his rich experience in military operations, the Department of War and other national security agencies, academia, and the defense technology industry at a critical moment for the institute and its mission.

For over forty years, SEI has combined its understanding of national security tasks, its profound technical expertise, with the research strengths of Carnegie Mellon University to address challenges of great significance to the nation. As emerging technologies transform defense operations, this institute has the opportunity to further expand its role—helping the department assess new capabilities, understand their potential and vulnerabilities, and use them responsibly in large-scale applications.

As the Director and Chief Executive Officer, Brown will set the strategic direction for SEI, oversee its research, engineering, and technology transfer activities, and serve as its primary representative in interactions with federal funders and partners. He will also collaborate with researchers at Carnegie Mellon University to align the university's strengths with the ever-changing national security needs.

The vice president in charge of research at Carnegie Mellon University, Theresa Mayer, stated: “Jason brings an extremely broad range of experience to this position. He understands national security tasks from the perspective of a military leader, as well as the development and deployment of emerging technologies from his work in the industry, and he also understands the contributions that universities can make through research and education. This combination, coupled with his commitment to public service, makes him very suited to lead the institution as it builds upon past successes and embarks on new chapters with SEI.”

Brown first collaborated with Carnegie Mellon University and SEI during his time serving in the Air Force, which allowed him to see early on how this research institute combined technical expertise with national security tasks. He has experience in various fields closely related to the mission of SEI. Currently, he serves as the General Manager of Government Business at Applied Intuition, responsible for leading the development and deployment of software and autonomous driving technologies for government and defense customers. Before joining Applied Intuition, he led Google's professional services department for defense business.

Brown once held senior leadership positions in the United States Air Force, with a focus on intelligence, emerging technologies, and national security. As the director of the Air Force Chief of Staff's Strategic Studies Group, he developed and implemented the service's strategy for emerging technologies and also founded the U.S. Air Force Artificial Intelligence Accelerator at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

He is also a founding member of the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center at the U.S. Department of Defense. Brown is currently an adjunct assistant professor at Georgetown University, teaching courses on artificial intelligence and national security.

Brown indicates that the most powerful results are achieved when researchers, military professionals, and industry partners collaborate closely enough to identify possibilities that no single organization could discover on its own. SEI can create more such connections—by combining the philosophy and technical capabilities of Carnegie Mellon University with a deep understanding of the tasks at hand, helping to transform them into capabilities that truly make an impact.

Move forward on the basis of successful inheritance.

Brown replaces Paul Nielsen. Nielsen joined SEI in 2004 and later that same year became its director and chief executive officer. Over the following more than 20 years, he led the institute through technological transformations, institutional growth, and an expansion of its mission and responsibilities.

Upon announcing the handover, Nielsen stated: "It is my honor to be able to serve SEI and to work alongside those individuals and leaders who are committed to ensuring national security through advancements in software, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence. The strength of SEI has always been its ability to evolve continuously with changes in technology and national needs, and I believe that the institute will continue to lead the way with influence and a sense of purpose in the coming years."

Nielsen will continue to participate in work during the leadership transition period. Carnegie Mellon University will host a reception at the beginning of 2027 to celebrate his services and contributions to SEI and the country, with more details to be announced soon.

Promote the national security mission of SEI

The ability to connect research with task requirements has run through the entire history of SEI. The work of this institution has influenced how the Department of War develops and procures software, protects the foundation of the defense industry, responds to cyber security threats, and how artificial intelligence has been advanced from experimental models to reliable systems.

The Chairman of the Board, John Gilligan, stated: " SEI is well-prepared for the next chapter, possessing outstanding talent, profound technical capabilities, and credible cooperative relationships established with governments, industry organizations, and academia. The Board of Directors wishes to thank Paul Nielsen for their excellent leadership of SEI over the past 22 years and looks forward to collaborating with Jason to continue developing on this foundation, enhancing the influence of the research institute, and enabling SEI to meet the ever-changing needs of the nation."

With new federal authorization, national influence records, and the arrival of a new leadership team, SEI is entering a new chapter, ready to help the country unleash the potential of emerging technologies, while ensuring that software supporting critical tasks, network security, artificial intelligence, and autonomous systems remain secure, reliable, and always available.

Mayer indicates that: "The influence of SEI stems from the extraordinary professional capabilities of its employees, as well as the trust it has established within the government, industry, and academia. Under the leadership of Jason, the institute will be able to build upon its existing successes, deepen its connections with Carnegie Mellon University in all aspects, and continue its tradition of serving the nation."

About the Carnegie Mellon University Institute for Software Engineering

The Software Engineering Research Institute ( SEI ) leverages software as a strategic advantage for national security by conducting research, development, and deployment of tools, technologies, and practices in the areas of software engineering, artificial intelligence ( AI ), cybersecurity, and procurement transformation. As a federally funded research and development center ( FFRDC ) supported by the U.S. Department of War ( DoW ), we serve the nation. For more information, please visit our website at SEI : https // www.sei.cmu.edu.