The 2026 Strategic Architects is an annual list of individuals who shape the strategic direction of defense capability, force design, and modernization priorities. This list emphasizes long-term influence over policy, budgets, doctrine, alliances, and the decisions that determine how military power is built, organized, and employed.
Senior Defense Policymakers & Civilian Architects
Name
Title
Organization
LinkedIn
Elbridge Colby
Under Secretary of Defense for Policy
U.S. Department of Defense
Pete Hegseth
Secretary of Defense
U.S. Department of Defense
Michael Duffey
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition & Sustainment
U.S. Department of Defense
Steve Feinberg
Deputy Secretary of Defense
U.S. Department of Defense
Troy Meink
Secretary of the Air Force (Department of the Air Force)
U.S. Department of the Air Force
Emil Michael
Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering
U.S. Department of Defense
Brent Ingraham
Assistant Secretary of the Army (Acquisition, Logistics and Technology)
U.S. Army
Dan Driscoll
Secretary of the Army
U.S. Army
Hung Cao
Acting Secretary of the Navy
U.S. Department of the Navy
Adm. Kevin Lunday
Commandant
U.S. Coast Guard
Service Chiefs & Senior Uniformed Leaders
Name
Title
Organization
LinkedIn
Gen. Dan Caine
Chairman
Joint Chiefs of Staff
Gen. Eric Smith
Commandant
U.S. Marine Corps
Gen. Chance Saltzman
Chief of Space Operations
U.S. Space Force
Gen. Christopher LaNeve
Acting Chief of Staff and 40th Vice Chief of Staff
U.S. Army
Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach
Chief of Staff
U.S. Air Force
Adm. Daryl Caudle
Chief of Naval Operations
U.S. Navy
Adm. James Kilby
Vice Chief of Naval Operations
U.S. Navy
Combatant Commanders & International Architects
Name
Title
Organization
LinkedIn
Gen. Alexus Grynkewich
Supreme Allied Commander Europe and Commander of U.S. European Command
NATO and U.S. European Command
Adm. Samuel Paparo
Commander
U.S. Indo-Pacific Command
Adm. Brad Cooper
Commander
U.S. Central Command
Vice Adm. Frank M. Bradley
Commander
U.S. Special Operations Command
Gen. Stephen Whiting
Commander
U.S. Space Command
Gen. Francis Donovan
Commander
U.S. Southern Command
Think Tank & Strategic Thought Leaders
Name
Title
Organization
LinkedIn
Seth G. Jones
President, Defense and Security Department; Harold Brown Chair
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Kori Schake
Senior Fellow & Director of Foreign and Defense Policy Studies
American Enterprise Institute
Richard Fontaine
CEO of Center for a New American Security (CNAS)
CNAS
Nadia Schadlow
Senior Fellow at Hudson Institute
Hudson Institute
Michael Kofman
Senior Fellow
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Hal Brands
Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS); Senior Fellow at American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
Johns Hopkins SAIS / AEI
Thomas G. Mahnken
President & CEO
Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments
Industrial & Technology Strategy Leaders
Name
Title
Organization
LinkedIn
Jim Taiclet
Chair, President & CEO
Lockheed Martin
Kathy Warden
Chair, President & CEO
Northrop Grumman
Stephen (Steve) Parker
Executive Vice President, President and CEO, Defense, Space & Security
Boeing
Chris Kubasik
Chair & CEO
L3Harris Technologies
Brian Schimpf
Co-Founder & CEO
Anduril Industries
Christopher T. Calio
Chair & CEO
RTX
Phebe Novakovic
Chair & CEO
General Dynamics
Shyam Sankar
CTO & Executive Vice President
Palantir Technologies
Bill LaPlante
Former Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition & Sustainment; Trustee, The Aerospace Corporation
U.S. DoD (former) / The Aerospace Corporation
Chris Kastner
President & CEO
HII (Huntington Ingalls Industries)
Luke Savoie
President & CEO
Elbit America
John Baylouny
President & CEO
Leonardo DRS
Matthew Warnick
CEO
American Rheinmetall
John Mengucci
President & CEO
CACI International
Harish Luthra
CEO
SAP NS2
Linden P. Blue
CEO
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems
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