Charles Lyons-Burt
Three-decade technology industry vet Seth Eaton is an alumnus of Vectrus and PAE and has spent many years helping government contracting companies integrate cutting-edge tools. Eaton is currently vice president of technology innovation at Amentum.
Since we last spoke with Eaton, he has been helping Amentum build a technology strategy that harnesses the collective experience, passion and creativity of technology leaders throughout the organization. He has been instrumental in several key initiatives designed to bring experts and innovators from across Amentum in order to cultivate a culture of growth and collaboration and tell the story of how they are becoming a technology company, all for the benefit of their customers.
He shared new pieces of that story in his latest Executive Spotlight conversation, while also specifically exploring how Amentum is utilizing artificial intelligence and sharing his thoughts on the future of the technology.
AI will be a central subject at all three of Potomac Officers Club’s Department of Defense-focused events this summer. Whether it’s the 2025 Army Summit on June 18, the 2025 Air and Space Summit on July 31 or the 2025 Navy Summit on August 26, top-ranking military speakers will share how their component is using AI to enable mission success. Attend all three GovCon conferences for one very low price.
ExecutiveBiz: What makes Amentum a place where the best and brightest want to work?
Seth Eaton: What really stands out about Amentum is the way we connect big-picture mission work with hands-on innovation. We’ve got a unique blend of national purpose and technical prowess that’s hard to find elsewhere. Every day our teams are encouraged to challenge the status quo and bring fresh thinking to some of the toughest problems our government partners face. For the best and brightest, that’s what makes Amentum special: the chance to build what’s next and see it actually make a difference.
EBiz: How is Amentum using AI in its offerings and services?
Eaton: AI isn’t just a buzzword for us, it’s a core part of how we are working to deliver smarter, faster and more effective solutions to our customers. We’re working to enable our workforce to use AI to crunch data, automate workflows and make better decisions. Like our work with augmented reality and AI-powered tools for maintenance or analysis work. These aren’t just cool gadgets; they’re making our operations safer, more efficient and less prone to downtime. It’s all about using technology to maximize value and solve some of the hardest problems for our customers.
EBiz: Where do you think AI is headed next?
Eaton: AI is clearly going to be everywhere in government and industry, not just in the background. It will be right out front, in both practical and experimental use cases. The next big leap will be AI that can really reason, meaning understand context, adapt to new situations and work alongside people in real time. We’re also seeing a push toward custom silicon and cloud-native architectures, which will make AI even more powerful and flexible. We want an AI that’s not just smart, but also a true partner to our human teams.
EBiz: Can you envision a post-human-on-the-loop future? What are the upsides and downsides of this?
Eaton: I think the idea of AI running everything without a human in the loop is both exciting and a little intimidating. The upsides are clear; more efficiency, increased ability to handle dangerous or impossible jobs, and systems that can work when humans cannot. AI can process mountains of data and execute complex tasks with incredible precision.
But progress always comes with trade-offs. We will still want human judgment in the loop, especially when it comes to ethics, context and accountability. I worry about over-trusting the tech, losing touch with the mission, or not having the right safeguards in place. At Amentum, we focus on building AI that augments, not replaces, human expertise. We believe in using AI within a framework that keeps people informed and in control. That’s how you stay both innovative and grounded.
