EFL

Role: Mentor

Tracks: Deep Tech - Digital Tech

Patrick Mahaney

Senior Advisor, National Security Innovation Network

Colonel (USA, Retired) Patrick J. Mahaney, Jr. completed 32 years of service in the U.S. Army. A Special Forces officer (Green Beret), he held key leadership positions from the tactical to strategic levels. Prior to retiring in October 2017, he served as Director and Senior Military Fellow for the Chief of Staff of the Army's Strategic Studies Group, following assignment as the Army Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. His service includes nine combat tours and extensive operational assignments worldwide. He commanded the U.S. Army's Asymmetric Warfare Group, a tactical Special Forces battalion, and a Special Operations Task Force. He served in a range of special operations, military police and cavalry units, as well as in several U.S. embassies. Colonel Mahaney currently serves as a Senior Advisor in the National Security Innovation Network (NSIN), part of the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), Undersecretary of Defense (Research and Engineering). He is co-founder and CEO of the National Center for Urban Operations, a non-profit based in NYC, and serves as Senior Mentor for the Army's Dense Urban Studies Strategic Broadening Seminar. Colonel Mahaney is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and is an adjunct professor at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). He holds a B.A. from NYU (with honors, Phi Beta Kappa), and Master's degrees from Columbia University's SIPA and from the University of Perugia (Italy). He is a graduate of Italy's Institute for High Defense Studies (U.S. Army War College Fellowship) and of Spain's Staff College. An Honorary Battalion Chief of the NYC Fire Department (FDNY) and Trustee of the NYC Fire Museum, he served alongside the FDNY during recovery operations in November 2001 at the World Trade Center following the 9/11 attacks.