Type: AI, Innovation & Emerging Technology

Steve Stasiukonis (Founder of Secure Network Intelligence) details how offensive security firms and dark-web adversaries are weaponizing open-source large language models to automate hyper-targeted physical and digital attacks.

Dynamic threat landscapes require a shift from a reactive mindset—punishing an attacker after a breach—to an absolute architectural defense: Deterrence by Design. The objective is to construct systems that are fundamentally too hardened to penetrate, manipulate, or coerce.  In this forward-looking presentation, security strategy consultant Bidemi Ologunde maps the dramatic evolution of global cyber defense.

Dr. Felix Hernandez (a 25-year IT veteran and CISO) breaks down the alarming reality of modern deepfakes. Moving far beyond old-school Photoshop, today's threat actors are using Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) and advanced open-source tools to execute terrifyingly realistic social engineering attacks. Felix literally transforms himself live on stage into George Clooney and Kendrick Lamar using a standard gaming laptop, demonstrating how effortlessly an attacker can hijack a corporate virtual meeting (like Microsoft Teams or Zoom) using free virtual camera tools like OBS.

In this session, defense contractor and cybersecurity expert Allen Westley lays out a massive paradigm shift. For three decades, cybersecurity has been deterministic—protecting network perimeters, data flows, and hardware. But in the age of agentic AI, the threat model has moved to the cognitive domain.

Buck Bell, head of the Global Security Strategy Office at CDW, cuts through the typical AI marketing hype to deliver a practical framework for achieving modern cyber resilience. Armed with real-world incident metrics from 2025—including a sobering 181-day mean time to detection for standard enterprise breaches—Buck explores why preventing 100% of attacks is no longer a realistic operational goal. Instead, true resilience relies on an organization's capacity to continuously deliver intended business outcomes while actively compromised.

Palanivel Monoharan ("Mano"), a veteran identity security architect with 16 years of experience in Identity and Access Management (IAM), delivers a vital reality check for modern enterprise environments.

In this panel discussion, global cybersecurity experts break down the staggering reality of the quantum migration timeline. While the corporate world remains completely captivated by artificial intelligence, quantum technology is quietly moving at an even faster velocity. From Florida Atlantic University purchasing its first D-Wave quantum computer to Colorado mandating K-12 quantum education, the localized ecosystem is shifting rapidly underneath our feet.

Mark Mahovilich, Vice President of Strategy and Execution at ICM Cyber, cuts through the buzzword fatigue surrounding quantum computing and Artificial Intelligence. Operating inside the specialized "ICM Futures" division, Mark analyzes macro trend lines and technical tipping points to predict how the imminent intersection of AI and quantum arrays will alter the global threat landscape.

Dr. Francia explains the design of an automated evidence repository, the critical role of keeping data secure within localized SLMs to avoid public internet leakage, and why keeping a "human-in-the-loop" is non-negotiable to counter AI hallucinations.

This session with David Kim (DK), seasoned Virtual CISO and Chief AI Officer, tackles the wild west of shadow AI, unvetted GenAI/LLM tools, and the shifting landscape of state-level AI regulations. Discover a practical, real-world methodology for conducting third-party vendor risk assessments, building an organizational "allow list," and utilizing data loss prevention (DLP) to secure the intersection of people, process, and technology.

This session explores how artificial intelligence is reshaping education, workforce development, and the future of human learning. The speaker examines the current state of AI adoption in education, the growing disconnect between traditional teaching models and rapidly evolving technology, and the challenges schools face as students increasingly use AI tools independently. Topics include large language models, neural networks, automation, adaptive learning, workforce disruption, AI-driven productivity, robotics, personalized education, and the long-term impact of AI on white-collar and hands-on professions alike. The presentation also explores how future learning models may shift toward more immersive, hands-on, apprenticeship-style education, while raising important questions about cognitive dependency, changing workforce needs, and what skills humans will ultimately need in an increasingly automated world.

This session provides a deep dive into the rapidly approaching impact of quantum computing on modern cybersecurity, encryption, and digital infrastructure. Cybersecurity expert Roger Grimes explains how sufficiently capable quantum computers could soon break the asymmetric cryptography that protects most of today’s internet traffic, authentication systems, software signing, VPNs, Wi-Fi, and secure communications. The presentation explores core quantum concepts including superposition, entanglement, cubits, Shor’s Algorithm, Grover’s Algorithm, and how quantum systems dramatically outperform classical computing for certain mathematical problems. The discussion also covers the timeline toward “Q-Day,” the global shift toward post-quantum cryptography, the risks of “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks, and the urgent need for organizations to begin quantum readiness and cryptographic migration projects now. Real-world guidance is provided around post-quantum planning, crypto agility, password security, AI-assisted attacks, and how governments and major technology vendors are preparing for the next era of computing.