Charles Lyons-Burt
Edward J. Sheehan, Jr. is the president and CEO and a member of the board of directors of Concurrent Technologies Corporation, where his leadership has been pivotal in driving the organization’s growth as an independent, nonprofit provider of applied scientific research and development solutions. He also serves as chairman of the board for Enterprise Ventures Corporation, CTC’s affiliate and technology transition partner. Together, CTC and EVC offer transformative, full-lifecycle solutions through research, development, testing and evaluation. From design and prototyping to development and manufacturing, they deliver robust and innovative technologies that safeguard national security, maintain U.S. technological superiority and ensure the primacy of American manufacturing.
CTC’s areas of expertise include energy, resilience & sustainability; engineering and advanced manufacturing; information technology; and readiness solutions. Sheehan takes immense pride in the technologies developed by CTC and EVC to support warfighters and enhance national security. He is inspired by the commitment and passion of all the company’s employees, especially those who serve in the guard or reserves or served in the military. Their dedication fuels Sheehan’s commitment to ensuring they—and all service members—are equipped for their critical missions.
We sat down with Sheehan to discuss key developments in the company’s IT division, including artificial intelligence, machine learning and cybersecurity.
GovCon Wire: Tell me about the current state of the artificial intelligence market. Where are you seeing new opportunities in AI, and where do you think the market is heading?
Ed Sheehan: The AI market is evolving rapidly, transforming industries, particularly in CTC’s core mission of safeguarding national security. We’re seeing strong momentum in developing AI models that process large amounts of data in real-time, which improves tasks like code generation, intelligent testing and debugging. AI integration into next generation command and control—or NGC2—systems, logistics optimization and predictive maintenance is opening new opportunities to boost operational efficiency and enhance mission outcomes.
A key growth area for us is Edge Node AI, which deploys AI directly on devices in the field, rather than relying on centralized cloud systems. This enables analysts and warfighters to make quicker, more informed decisions, especially in low-connectivity environments, which is vital in defense scenarios.
There’s also growing demand for AI-driven cybersecurity tools that proactively detect, analyze, and neutralize threats. Additionally, the market is shifting towards responsible AI, ensuring transparency and trust in both the data used for training and the resulting solutions.
At CTC, our goal is to leverage these AI advancements to enable seamless coordination across air, land, sea, space and cyber domains, ensuring U.S. technological supremacy.
GCW: In which applications are you seeing the highest demand for AI/ML from your federal customers, and can you explain what’s driving that demand?
Sheehan: While AI technologies are advancing, they are still far from matching human decision-making or reasoning. However, federal customers are increasingly turning to AI/ML to enhance decision-making, improve mission preparedness, and strengthen national security. This demand is largely driven by threats from our near-peer adversaries, like China, who are surpassing us in critical technology areas such as unmanned aerial vehicles. As threats grow more complex, with data volumes exceeding human capacity for analysis, federal agencies are recognizing AI/ML as a vital tool for faster decision-making and improved mission outcomes.
AI/ML algorithms are being applied across many areas, with high demand in every step of the “kill chain”—the military’s process of identifying, tracking, targeting, engaging and assessing threats. While AI helps improve information gathering and efficiency, it’s important to note that AI isn’t replacing humans; it keeps them “on the loop,” meaning humans monitor AI systems and can intervene as necessary.
CTC is also addressing other federal needs, such as intelligence analysis, where AI/ML helps filter vast data from multiple sources, enabling analysts to quickly identify patterns, threats and insights. Another growing area is autonomous systems, including UAVs and ground vehicles, where AI enables real-time navigation, object recognition and adaptive decision-making.
GCW: What do you think is the biggest threat facing U.S. cyber systems today, and what can be done to protect against that threat?
Sheehan: The biggest threat facing U.S. cyber systems today is the rise of sophisticated, state-sponsored, and near-peer cyberattacks that target critical infrastructure, exploit supply chain vulnerabilities and jeopardize our sovereignty. These attacks are becoming harder to detect and mitigate, especially as adversaries use AI to bypass traditional defenses.
Advanced AI tools make it easier to create harmful content, such as deepfake videos that can manipulate public opinion, damage reputations and even be used to commit fraud. Another major concern is “AI-first malware,” which can modify its code in real-time to adapt to defenses, and “living off the land” attacks, where AI helps malicious actors hide using everyday system tools.
Looking ahead, quantum computing poses a significant threat, especially with the integration of quantum-resistant cryptography in AI systems.
To combat these evolving threats, we are taking significant steps, but there is much more to do. While tools like HackGPT are on the rise, the dual-use nature of AI has led to the development of detection tools like GPTZero and ZeroGPT, which help organizations identify AI-generated malicious content. At CTC, we’re focused on AI Red Teaming, security analytics and automated responses to analyze threats in real-time and provide actionable insights.
Investing in “Neurosymbolic AI” is crucial for detecting zero-day vulnerabilities. By combining neural networks’ pattern recognition with symbolic AI’s logical reasoning, we can predict security weaknesses before they’re exploited, simulating adversarial thinking to adapt our defenses.
Additionally, CTC implements a zero-trust architecture internally to reduce insider threats and prioritizes cybersecurity training and workforce development. Ultimately, the key to defending our digital environment is developing AI systems that can autonomously detect, respond to, and even predict and prevent threats.
