Matt Conner joined Westinghouse Electric Company as the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) in September 2022. Mr. Conner leads the global cybersecurity program of WEC, and is responsible for cyber defense, risk management, policy, and cybersecurity governance.
Prior to Westinghouse, Matt served as CISO for the US Intelligence Community (IC). In this role, Mr. Conner was the principal advisor to the Director of National Intelligence for cybersecurity risk and governance. He was responsible for orchestrating the cybersecurity program for the eighteen agencies of the IC and defined the strategy and implementation plan for the people, processes, and technology to lead the IC into the future.
Matt previously served as the Chief Information Security Officer for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency in Springfield, VA between 2015 and 2020. Mr. Conner and his family live in Northern Virginia.
Jervis joins Second Front with over 25 years of finance leadership at public companies and venture-funded start-ups in the technology industry at leading companies such as Hughes Aircraft (F/A-18 Radar Systems Group), Apple, HP, Wind River, VMware and Citrix.
Most recently Jervis served as CFO for Legion Technologies where he led Finance, HR and IT. Prior to Legion, Jervis served as CFO at Metawave where in addition to leading Finance and CFO, he initiated the company’s foray into the defense market with a SBIR award from the Air Force’s AFWERX Agility Prime program.
Jervis earned his MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and his BA from UCLA.
Mr. Rowe is a Principal at AE Industrial and a member of AEI HorizonX, the venture capital investment platform formed in partnership with The Boeing Company. Mr. Rowe has been focused on early-stage investing for the last 12 years. Pulling from a deep experience in music, film, apparel and tech, Mr. Rowe helps identify, evaluate and lead unique early-stage venture investments across all of AEI HorizonX’s target markets. In addition, with his operational experience, Mr. Rowe provides direct support to AE Industrial’s portfolio companies to help create value in their leading innovation platforms.
Education
Drew Podgorski is a member of the investment team at Moore Capital Management, where he is responsible for Deep Tech, Defense, and Space sector coverage. Prior to joining Moore, Drew was an Associate at C5 Capital, a specialist venture capital firm focused on the Cyber, Space, and Energy sectors.
Previously, Drew was an investment banker and strategy consultant supporting M&A engagements across the Aerospace, Defense, & Government Services sectors as well as growth-stage tech companies at Renaissance Strategic Advisors and Bowen Advisors. He also serves as an Infantry Officer in the Army Reserve National Guard. Drew graduated from Macaulay Honors College at the City University of New York, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Global Economics and Middle Eastern Relations.
Austin Walne is a Partner at Artis Ventures focused on investing in breakthrough technologies, primarily at the convergence of technology and biology. Before Artis Ventures, he advised institutional investors in the secondary market for private company shares and held positions in software development and product management in a variety of sectors.
Previously, he managed political and public affairs campaigns at the state and federal level for candidates, interest groups, and corporations including serving as digital director for a major presidential campaign. Austin serves as a Board Director of Second Front Systems and is a Board Observer at Locus Biosciences.
Previously, he was a Board Director at Stringify and a Board Observer at Looksharp. Austin received his B.A. in Communication Studies from the University of Tennessee and holds FINRA Series 62, 63, 65 licenses.
Enrique Oti is the Chief Technology Officer of Second Front Systems, a company focused on providing accelerated access to emerging “dual-use” technology being developed by venture-backed companies in a range of areas, including cybersecurity, advanced analytics, machine learning, and open-source intelligence.
Prior to joining Second Front, Enrique had a 23-year career in the U.S. Air Force, during which he served in multiple assignments as a cyber warfare officer and China Foreign Area Officer. Enrique commanded an intelligence support squadron in Korea, and was a co-founder of the Defense Innovation Unit in Silicon Valley. He founded the Kessel Run software development program, and in his final assignment he was the commander of Air Force Lifecycle Management Center Detachment-12 (Kessel Run).
Enrique earned a BS in History from the U.S. Air Force Academy, an MS in Strategic Intelligence from the Joint Military Intelligence College, and an MA inInternational Relations from Zhejiang University in China, where he studied as an Olmsted Scholar.
Tyler Sweatt is the CEO of Second Front Systems (2F). He works with government and commercial customers to reduce barriers between commercial technology and defense and national security communities. His focus is on changing how global government agencies identify, engage, and vet commercial technology companies and how commercial technology companies deliver software to government users.
He is also a Technical Advisor at Pallas Advisors, and a partner at the non-profit Silicon Valley Defense Group.
Previously, Tyler served as the Head of National Security at CalypsoAI and founded and sold technology advisory firm Future Tense. He also led the emerging technology and security practice at Toffler Associates, working with US and international governments and corporations to build strategies for rapidly changing technology and security landscapes. A graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, Tyler is a former U.S. Army officer.
Michael Neumann is the Chief Data Scientist for Second Front Systems. Michael strives to position Second Front Systems as the premier partner for facilitating informed and secure acquisitions that drive the Department of Defense and Intelligence Community towards being more proactive, machine driven, and integrated across business lines and data stores.
Prior to joining Second Front Systems, Michael was the Director for the Central Intelligence Agency’s Silicon Valley Innovation Outpost, a public-private partnership focused on identifying, evaluating, and delivering transformative technologies to the intelligence community. His 15 tenure in the intelligence community included tours with the Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the United States’ Department of State. Michael was posted to Tripoli, Libya, at the outset of the Libyan Revolution.
Michael holds multiple degrees from the University of Southern California, to include a Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Science, a Masters of Science in Geology , and Bachelor of Science in Physical Science, Chemistry Minor. He is a licensed United States Coast Guard Captain.
Chrissy McGarry is Chief Operating Officer for Second Front Systems, where she is committed to bring innovative, venture-backed technologies to bear on pressing national security challenges. Having worked alongside big brands with Red Bull, E&J Gallo Winery, Motorola Solutions, and Salesforce, Chrissy has spent the last decade helping organizations grow and scale in sales, marketing, and management efforts.
While focused on accelerating the cycle of innovation that enables the Department of Defense and United States Government to access and operationally deploy emerging technologies, Chrissy has recently helped drive a successful $8.2 million Seed Round of funding for Second Front Systems. Additionally, Chrissy has her undergrad and MBA degrees from The University of Notre Dame, currently sits on the Board for Christ Child Society, and advises various technology startups.
Peter Dixon is the Founder and Executive Chairman of the Board of Second Front Systems (2F), a public benefit software company accelerating the delivery of mission-critical software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions to government. He is a co-founder of With Honor, a cross-partisan initiative that was successful in electing 19 veterans to Congress.
Peter has worked in military venture capital, ran the federal practice at cybersecurity firm ThreatMetrix, helped to stand-up Defense Innovation Unit (experimental), and is a visiting fellow at George Mason University’s National Security Institute. A former major in the U.S. Marine Corps, Peter left active duty at the Pentagon where he led an initiative to identify geopolitical shifts and rapidly transition disruptive technology to the battlefields of today and tomorrow.
As a special advisor at the State Department he worked to combat cartel violence in Mexico, mass rapes in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and corruption in Afghanistan. Peter was a combat advisor to Iraqi security forces on the Syrian border and had the privilege to lead platoons of incredibly courageous scout sniper and infantry Marines in Afghanistan during intensive ground operations.
Peter graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he was a vice-president for Carolina for Kibera, a non-profit organization that prevents ethnic violence through community-based development in the Kibera slum of Nairobi, Kenya. He lives in Portola Valley, CA with his wife Gina.