From the Presidential Helicopter to the AI Factory

After more than a decade of flying on the edges of aerospace, Greg transitioned to the emerging AI landscape inside Lockheed Martin. He now serves as Vice President of AI Foundations and Commercialization, overseeing the AI Factory, AI Growth, and AI Consulting portfolios. The AI Factory translates the same disciplined engineering mindset he used for helicopters into the AI lifecycle, ensuring that every model that leaves the lab is as reliable as a flight‑ready rotor system.

Greg’s most vivid memory of impact predates his AI work. While serving as Chief Systems Engineer and Program Manager on the VH‑60N, he walked through a barbed‑wire barrier, climbed into a presidential helicopter, and settled into the POTUS’ seat. “The impact of the mission and the gravity of what we supported hit me square in the chest,” he says. That moment — supporting the President’s office with a zero‑failure aircraft — instilled a lifelong sense of purpose that still drives the AI programs he now leads.

Creating breakthrough AI in a high‑stakes defense environment starts with people, not just technology. Greg explains his formula:

1. Find people who care deeply about the technology and the mission.
2. Surround them with individuals cut from the same cloth.

From there, the culture nurtures itself. Teams share articles, social‑media posts, and announcements in real‑time chat channels; the Communications group curates the latest AI breakthroughs; and everyone collectively asks, “What’s the next thing around the corner?” This collaborative rhythm lets the group move with speed while safeguarding the mission’s criticality.

The Lockheed Martin AI Center (LAIC) operates as a service organization for the broader enterprise. “Getting it right” means three things for Greg’s portfolio:

• Warfighter Enablement: Accelerating trusted AI into the hands of operators to provide asymmetrical advantage, faster decisions and mission readiness.
• Business‑Operations Transformation: Equipping engineering, supply‑chain and operational functions with AI‑driven tools that boost efficiency and reduce cycle time.
• Commercial Expansion: Delivering LM‑developed AI solutions through new acquisition models, exemplified by his board‑level role at Astris AI.

AI is now part of daily life — from chatbots to image‑creation tools — and Greg sees Lockheed Martin translating those advances into the aerospace and defense arena. Yet he warns that generative AI isn’t always the right hammer for the nail when strict certification, safety and performance standards apply.

The upcoming focus will be on AI agents that transition from human‑centric tasks to agentic workflows. By granting large‑language models access to curated data, specialized skills and toolsets, those agents can deliver context‑aware responses and execute precision‑driven processes, which are essential for next‑generation autonomous platforms.