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The Dangerous Convergence of Cognitive Warfare, AI, and the Chaotic Information Environment
Posted: October 31st, 2024
By Dave Pitts
Pitts is a senior national security executive with over four decades of experience ranging from counterterrorism and special operations to regional and global affairs. Pitts served as the Assistant Director of CIA for South and Central Asia and was responsible for all CIA activities and engagement across South and Central Asia and for policy coordination in Washington.
By J.D. Maddox
J.D. Maddox served as a former Central Intelligence Agency branch chief, deputy coordinator of the U.S. Global Engagement Center, advisor to the Secretary of Homeland Security, and as a U.S. Army Psychological Operations team leader. He consults on Operations in the Information Environment and is an adjunct professor at Tulane University and George Mason University. He initiated “Tab D,” a biweekly report highlighting U.S. adversaries’ narrative vulnerabilities.
During the 2024 Cipher Brief Threat Conference, Dave Pitts joined Brad Christian, Mike Vickers, and Ralph Goff in a discussion about Gray Zone Operations; a term they recognized was lacking in strategic clarity. One topic discussed was the growing threat of “cognitive warfare.”
The authors are focusing here on cognitive warfare as an important strategic element in great power competition, particularly as superpowers increasingly engage in operations just below the level of war.
