Vannevar Labs has appointed Shands Pickett as its new Chief Growth Officer, according to the company. In this role, Pickett will lead efforts to expand the deployment of operational AI solutions for national security missions.
Pickett brings extensive experience in defense technology and strategy, having previously served as Senior Vice President of Defense Technology and Strategy at Booz Allen Hamilton, and leading the national security business practice at Scale AI. He also has direct operational experience, having deployed twice in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army Human Terrain System.
According to Vannevar Labs, Pickett will focus on growing mission impact, establishing strategic partnerships, and scaling new initiatives aligned with U.S. national security priorities, with particular attention to maintaining deterrence in contested regions such as the Indo-Pacific.
Nini Hamrick, President of Vannevar Labs, emphasized Pickett’s ability to work closely with operators, understand mission challenges, and translate emerging technologies into practical solutions. Hamrick described his leadership as key to advancing Vannevar’s mission to deliver actionable AI capabilities.
Vannevar Labs develops agentic AI tools that support adversarial modeling, scenario simulations, and course-of-action recommendations using specialized datasets. The company’s solutions have been deployed in areas such as information operations, physical sensing, counter-narcotics, and economic competition.
