The Department of Defense Joint Artificial Intelligence Center welcomed its first foreign exchange officer in September hailing from the Netherlands. Dr. Merel Ekelhof joins the JAIC team after serving in the Netherlands Ministry of Defense as an AI innovation manager at the Defence Materiel Organization Joint IV Commando. She also served as a Dutch government adviser on issues related to autonomous weapons.
As a member of the JAIC’s strategy and policy team, Ekelhof will focus on issues related to AI governance, policy and ethics, and international partnerships.
“We are pleased to welcome Merel to the JAIC team and we look forward to leveraging her knowledge and expertise in artificial intelligence and autonomy,” said Lt. General Michael Groen, JAIC Director. “Having an foreign exchange officer on our JAIC team will strengthen our collaboration in the international space and allow us to share intellectual capital and knowledge to promote safe, ethical, and responsible applications of AI for military use.”