In this episode recorded live from the December 2025 Reagan National Defense Forum, hosts Lauren Bedula and Hondo Geurts sit down with David Appel, Vice President of Global Government for Amazon Web Services. With 28 years at Raytheon before joining AWS, David brings a unique perspective on the evolution of the defense industrial base and the critical role cloud infrastructure plays in national security.

David discusses why the traditional defense mindset of "deliver to the requirement" is giving way to a focus on mission outcomes, how AI dominance requires government to fully embrace cloud infrastructure, and why this moment represents an unprecedented opportunity for acquisition reform and innovation. From the convergence of financial institutions and defense to the global talent challenge, David shares insights on what it takes to transform how government operates in the digital age.

Five Key Takeaways:

1. Mission outcomes over requirements: The defense industrial base is shifting from a decades-old model of delivering to specifications toward understanding actual mission needs and innovating around outcomes, enabled by cloud and AI technologies.
2. Not all clouds are created equal: Being a "smart buyer" of cloud services means understanding critical differences in security fabrics, infrastructure construction, and operational experience. True cloud adoption at scale is essential for AI leadership, not on-premise data centers rebranded as "cloud."
3. Infrastructure liberation: Cloud frees organizations from spending resources on undifferentiated infrastructure work, allowing them to focus on mission-specific challenges. For startups and smaller companies especially, this levels the playing field to compete on mission expertise rather than capital resources.
4. Talent through education: The talent challenge for cloud and AI isn't just about hiring, it's about trust and understanding. Investing in education for customers, operators, and the broader public is critical because people won't embrace technologies they don't understand.
5. National security and economic prosperity are converging: The presence of financial institutions like JPMorgan at defense forums signals a fundamental shift; economic stability and market strength are now recognized as inseparable from national security, driving new investment and innovation across sectors.