Washington — The Washington AI Network hosted a podcast taping and reception featuring President Trump’s National Cyber Director Sean Cairncross and Cohesity CEO Sanjay Poonen. The standing room only crowd included leaders from technology, policy, and national security. Tammy Haddad interviewed both on the rapidly evolving threat landscape and why current defenses are struggling to keep pace. Cairncross pointed to a fundamental imbalance driving the problem. “The incentive scheme here is way out of whack,” he said, explaining that cyberattacks offer “a huge payoff for very little cost.” At the same time, defenders face an ever-expanding number of vulnerabilities.
From nation-state actors to ransomware groups, he emphasized that the challenge is only intensifying with artificial intelligence. “As AI is infused into this mix, the pace picks up, the speed picks up, and it becomes even more rewarding,” Cairncross said, underscoring the need for a stronger, more coordinated government response.
He also highlighted the importance of working with international allies, noting that cyber threats “don’t know borders,” as countries across Europe and beyond face many of the same attacks. The goal, he said, is to impose meaningful costs on bad actors and shift the current risk-reward dynamic.
Poonen echoed the need for deeper public-private collaboration, pointing to ongoing dialogue between industry leaders and government officials. “It was a really good dialogue…on how we could help in partnership,” he said, emphasizing that while companies are strong on defense, offensive capabilities must be led at the government level. “We can play cyber defense really well, but we need the government to play cyber offense.”
He also stressed the importance of modernizing government systems with secure infrastructure and noted that cyber threats facing the U.S. are increasingly mirrored globally. “Every NATO-friendly country and every democracy is going to see the same attacks,” Poonen said, referencing recent incidents abroad that reflect patterns seen in the United States.
SPOTTED: Alex Flemister, Lara Smith, Seval Oz, Lucy Ferguson, Senay Bulbul, Ryan Williams, Matt Gorman, Patty Stolnacker Koch, David Ashley, Maryam Mujica, Sumi Somaskanda, Phil and Chelsea Mattingly, Stephen O’Dwyer, Liz Johnson, Jaisha Wray, Firas Ibrahim, Nicoletta Giordani, Colin Moneymaker, Cat Zakrzewski, Harry Knight, Deniz Houston, Elizabeth Falcone, Julian Ramirez, Maggie Eastland and Benjamin Guggenheim.
The event brought together a cross-section of Washington’s technology and policy communities, highlighting the growing stakes of cybersecurity as AI accelerates both innovation and risk — and the increasing need for coordination across government, industry, and allies.
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