Jim Baker

Expertise

• National Security
• Strategy
• Emerging Technologies
• Defense Innovation
• Geopolitical Risk
• Technology Assessment
• Great Power Rivalry
• War
• Artificial General Intelligence
• State Capacity
• National Decision Making

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  Jim Baker

  Distinguished Visiting Fellow

  Short Bio

  Jim Baker is a distinguished visiting fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution and senior fellow for strategic competition at the Council on Foreign Relations. He advised senior US leaders across five administrations, serving both as director of the Pentagon's Office of Net Assessment and strategist to chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

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  Mid-Length Bio

  Jim Baker is a distinguished visiting fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution and senior fellow for strategic competition at the Council on Foreign Relations. An American strategist with nearly two decades of experience advising the highest levels of the US government across five presidential administrations, Baker brings unique insights into global strategic competition, emerging technologies, and national security challenges.

  As director of the Pentagon's Office of Net Assessment (2015–25), Baker led the Department of Defense's premier strategic analysis organization, personally advising multiple secretaries of defense and other senior leaders on emerging threats, technological competition, and future security environments. His assessments on artificial intelligence, space systems, cyber warfare, and great-power competition directly shaped national security strategy and investment decisions.

  Previously, as strategist to successive chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (2007–15), Baker provided counsel during presidential and cabinet-level deliberations on matters of national strategy, military operations, and international affairs. He established strategic dialogues with allied nations and developed assessment methodologies now adopted by foreign governments.

  Earlier in his career, Baker directed multi-billion-dollar advanced technology programs, leading organizations of up to 1,500 professionals developing complex military systems. This technical foundation enables him to bridge the gap between emerging technologies and their strategic implications.

  Baker has briefed Fortune 500 CEOs, foreign prime ministers, defense ministers across Europe and the Asia-Pacific, congressional leadership, and intelligence community officials. He is frequently invited to speak at prestigious institutions including Harvard University, Yale University, and the Council on Foreign Relations.

  He holds master's degrees in national security studies, military operational art, electrical engineering, and systems engineering, and completed Harvard Business School's Executive Management Program. Baker maintains a Top Secret/ Sensitive Compartmented Information clearance.

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