Some unsung people moving the needle for GenAI in the Department of the Air Force that deserve your attention…

Allow me to introduce to you a few of the best people I know doing Generative AI work in the Air Force today. As a Chief, we have all the stripes on our rank for a reason. It gives us a shield to protect our people, but also a platform to lift others up. Allow me to do just that by spotlighting MSgt Jared Rice, Capt Richard Smith, and Mr Brad Aldridge, MDE. All three shining examples of the great folks across the department doing the hard work to transform Generative AI use cases into capabilities.

It’s not the cool ops stuff, but training is impactful, and serves as the foundation for every career field. This is where the contributions of these three individuals are manifesting through their roles in Air Education and Training Command (AETC). Rather it’s Capt Smith supporting the headquarters staff, MSgt Rice instructing at the Enlisted Maintenance tech school, or Mr Aldridge instructing at Squadron Officer School, AETC is stacked top to bottom with many talented folks getting after the next evolution in training for us all.

AI tutoring, personnel testing, and endless great ideas for Generative AI use cases across all Air Force and Space Force career fields can be found in the hard work done in AETC. It’s the efforts of people like these fine gentlemen, and their supportive leadership across the command, that makes our job at the Department of the Air Force Chief Data and AI Office so much easier to achieve in bringing the big impact to some of the best Generative AI use cases in our services.

It’s the unsexy hard work everyday that really moves the needle for the mission in the military. These individuals, and their command, are prime examples of what it looks like to do the hard work in coordination as a team to deliver on big innovation as an organization.