Dr Brad Pietras is currently a Senior Advisor to the Chief of Commercial Strategy at DARPA as well as a board advisor to several companies from start-up to the FTSE 100. He spent twenty years at Lockheed Martin starting in space systems then advanced programs in missile defense, ultimately reaching the position of Vice President of Technology. He led the development and introduction of advanced carbon-based materials in multiple platforms and manufacturing processes, including the Juno spacecraft currently orbit around Jupiter. He also worked closely with US and UK government agencies on technology policy issues and industrial strategy. More recently at Rolls Royce, he held positions as Director of Technology and Business Development Director for AI and Machine Learning.

In 2019, he completed his PhD in Computational Neuroscience from the University of Maryland in collaboration with the Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit at University College London. His thesis explores the mathematical and neural foundations of value in decision-making and reinforcement learning.

Dr Pietras also holds degrees in Physics and Neuroscience and was a visiting scientist at the National Institutes of Health in the US and University College London. He is currently an Honorary Principal Research Fellow at Imperial College, a visiting professor at King’s College London, and an Associate Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute.

Dr Pietras has over two decades of board experience and has served on both corporate and university advisory boards including the Lockheed Martin Emerging Technology Fund and Cambridge University’s Center for Energy Studies. He has also served on and chaired several not-for-profit corporate and public service boards.