Ivanka Barzashka

Ivanka Barzashka is an entrepreneur and scholar working at the intersection of technology and international security. She has a background in physics and international relations and an interest in the philosophy of science and ethics. By age 25, Barzashka’s research on Iran’s nuclear capabilities at the Federation of American Scientists was featured in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Science, Nature, the Associated Press and the BBC. Her graduate school essay on the effectiveness of cyber weapons published in the RUSI Journal is today in the top 5 percent of globally cited works scored by Altmetric. Since then, Barzashka founded and directed the first research organization at a civilian university dedicated to establishing wargaming as an academic discipline. After completing her PhD on missile defense strategy at King’s College London, she has led projects for the Secretary of State’s Office for Net Assessment and Challenge in the UK Ministry of Defence, advised the Cabinet Office, and provided testimony to UK Parliament. Thanks to her experience at Stanford University and Silicon Valley, she co-founded a multi-national defense technology startup, where she currently serves as CEO and board chair.