CIA Picks Indian Origin IT Expert Nand Mulchandani As Its First Chief Intelligence Officer

Nand Mulchandani was most lately the CTO and Acting Director of the Department of Defense’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center. But his latest appointment seems to be a bit more high profile as the CIA picks the Indian-origin IT expert Nand Mulchandani as its first Chief Intelligence Officer.

Mulchandani has almost 25 years of experience working in Silicon Valley, as per the CIA, and his nomination for the desirable post was made on social media by Director William J. Burns.

Nand Mulchandani, an Indian-American Silicon Valley IT professional who attended a Delhi school, has been named the first-ever Chief Technology Officer of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), reports The Hindu.

Director William J Burns issued the appointment for the prestigious role on social media. Mulchandani has over 25 years of experience working in Silicon Valley, according to the CIA.

“CIA Director William J. Burns appoints Nand Mulchandani as CIA’s first Chief Technology Officer (CTO). With more than 25 years of experience, Mr. Mulchandani will ensure the Agency is leveraging cutting-edge innovations to further CIA’s mission,” the CIA said in a tweet.

“With more than 25 years experience working in Silicon Valley as well as the Department of Defense (DoD), Mr. Mulchandani brings substantial private sector, startup, and government expertise to CIA,” according to an announcement released by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) on Friday.

“Since my confirmation, I have prioritised focusing on technology and the new CTO position is a very important part of that effort. I am delighted Nand has joined our team and will bring his extensive experience to this crucial new role,” Director Burns said.

“I am honoured to join the CIA in this role and look forward to working with the Agency’s incredible team of technologists and domain experts who already deliver world-class intelligence and capabilities to help build a comprehensive technology strategy that delivers exciting capabilities working closely with industry and partners,” said Mulchandani.

Mulchandani was most lately the CTO and Acting Director of the Department of Defense’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center before entering the CIA. He has co-founded and served as CEO of several prominent firms, including Oblix (which was acquired by Oracle), Determina (which was bought by VMWare), OpenDNS (which was purchased by Cisco), and ScaleXtreme (acquired by Citrix).

Mulchandani holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science and mathematics from Cornell University, a master’s degree in management from Stanford University, and a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard University.