Kessel Run Post-Mortem

Zach led the Defense Innovation Unit’s Texas office from 2017-2020 and has over two decades of national security experience with service in the Army, Air Force, NSA, CIA, and at the Pentagon. He co-founded ATX Defense to help national security organizations integrate revolutionary technology, scalable processes, and long-term viability into operations. Zach retired from military service in 2025.

Chee Gansberger was a computer programmer in the IndyCar series and the Silicon Valley who decided one day in September, 2001, that he’d rather jump out of airplanes and blow things up. After years as a special operations forward air controller including numerous deployments as a front-line operator, he ended up first in traditional acquisitions and then in the innovation scene. After helping usher in modern software reform while part of DIUx as their first "Warfighter in Residence," he then moved to AFWERX, as a software evangelist trying to bring innovative use of software to the warfighter. He's now a program manager at Second Front obsessed with bringing America's greatest economic asset - capitalist driven software development - to augment his love - warfighters in the Department of Defense.

Enrique Oti is the Chief Strategy Officer of Second Front Systems (2F), where he fast-tracks government access to disruptive, commercially-proven software applications for national security missions, with an emphasis on international expansion and coalition operations. Prior to joining 2F, Enrique had a 23-year career in the United States Air Force, during which he served in multiple assignments as a cyber warfare officer and China Foreign Area Officer. Enrique commanded an intelligence support squadron in Korea, and was a co-founder of the Defense Innovation Unit in Silicon Valley. He co-founded the Kessel Run software development program, and in his final assignment served as the Kessel Run commander, retiring as a Colonel. Enrique earned a BS in History from the U.S. Air Force Academy, an MS in Strategic Intelligence from the Joint Military Intelligence College, and an MA in International Relations from Zhejiang University in China, where he studied as an Olmsted Scholar.

Colonel Richard Lopez is the Senior Materiel Leader for Kessel Run, Department of the Air Force Program Executive Office for Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management (DAF PEO C3BM), Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass. His division is modernizing the worldwide Air Operations Center enterprise, Targeting and Geospatial Intelligence systems, and a range of unit-level systems for maintenance, command and control, and intelligence. His division also maintains the All Domain Common Platform, where the Kessel Run-developed applications and services reside. Col. Lopez received his commission through the Reserve Officer Training Corps and entered the Air Force as a Developmental Engineer in 2000. He has served in a variety of engineering and program management positions and was selected for career broadening as an Intelligence Officer leading ISR Collection Planning and Targeteering teams and as a Political-Military Affairs Strategist supporting international relations with the United Kingdom. Prior to his position at Kessel Run, Col Lopez was a student at the United States Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. Col. Lopez holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering. Colonel Lopez is a top distinguished graduate of the U.S. Air Force Intelligence Officer Course and the recipient of the 2020 Defense Acquisition Workforce Software Innovation Team Award and the 2020 David Packard Excellence in Acquisition Team Award.

Bryon Kroger is the Founder and CEO of Rise8, spearheading initiatives to deliver software solutions 25x faster than traditional methods. A former US Air Force targeteer with firsthand experience of the devastating impact inadequate software has on mission success, Bryon co-founded Kessel Run, the DoD’s first software factory, where he served as COO leading acquisitions, development, and operations for the enterprise-scale software lab that defined DoD DevOps. While there, he pioneered the first continuous Authority to Operate (cATO). Frustrated with the lack of industry partners capable of leading defense digital transformation, Bryon founded Rise8 to fill that gap. Today he is the leading expert on cATO and the bureaucracy hacking necessary to continuously deliver valuable software users love.

Brian Beachkofski is Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of Rithmm, a Boston-based sports analytics company that leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to democratize advanced predictive modeling for sports bettors. He brings a unique blend of military leadership, technology innovation, and entrepreneurial experience to the sports technology sector. Beachkofski recently concluded a distinguished career as an officer in the United States Air Force, where he most notably served as Commander of Kessel Run from 2020 to 2022. Under his leadership, Kessel Run developed and delivered critical warfighting software capabilities, including the rapid scaling of mission planning applications that supported the evacuation of over 123,000 people from Afghanistan. He holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management and a PhD in Probabilistic Analysis Methods, an MS in Engineering from Georgia Tech, and is a Distinguished Graduate of the Air Force Academy. His research background includes probabilistic analysis and turbine engine modeling, with over 470 academic citations. Prior to founding Rithmm, Beachkofski also served as Managing Director at Third Sector Capital Partners in Boston, focusing on outcomes-based financing and social impact measurement. Rithmm, launched in September 2023, is backed by investors including three of DraftKings' original seed investors: Boston Seed Capital, Accomplice, and Counterview Capital.