The Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) at Georgetown University has named Dr. Cara LaPointe as its new Director of Analysis, bringing decades of experience in defense, emerging technology, and public service leadership to the role.
LaPointe most recently served as Director of Strategic Assessment for the U.S. Department of the Navy, where she led data-driven assessments to support force readiness and protect U.S. maritime interests. Prior to that, she co-founded and served as Co-Director of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Assured Autonomy, guiding efforts to ensure emerging technologies, including AI and autonomous systems, are developed and applied safely, securely, and ethically.
Her career spans more than two decades in the U.S. Navy, where she served as both a Surface Warfare Officer and an Engineering Duty Officer. In those roles, she gained expertise in naval acquisitions, ship design and production, robotics, autonomous systems, and power and energy technologies. She also supported multiple defense operations, bringing a broad perspective on military technology and its integration into national security missions.
LaPointe is no stranger to Georgetown, where she teaches in the Science, Technology, and International Affairs program at the Walsh School of Foreign Service and previously served as a Senior Fellow at the Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation. There, she co-designed the Blockchain Ethical Design Framework to guide socially responsible applications of blockchain technology.
She also has experience advising at the national and international level, having contributed to initiatives at the White House, United Nations, World Bank, and other global institutions. Her academic credentials include a Ph.D. in Mechanical and Oceanographic Engineering from MIT and an MPhil in International Development Studies from the University of Oxford, in addition to her undergraduate degree from the U.S. Naval Academy.
(AI was used in part to facilitate this article.)