Jen Easterly joins Huntress Strategic Advisory Board for AI focus

Huntress has appointed former CISA Director Jen Easterly to its Strategic Advisory Board, marking her first private-sector position since leaving government.

Easterly previously led the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), where she initiated programs such as Secure by Design and the Joint Cyber Defence Collaborative (JCDC). Prior to CISA, her career has included positions at Morgan Stanley, the US Army, the White House, and the National Security Agency (NSA). In joining Huntress, Easterly will provide advisory leadership as the company expands into AI-driven cybersecurity amid increased media scrutiny surrounding her recent career moves.

Huntress, now valued at USD $1.5 billion, has recently grown its operations and capabilities, including embarking on a partnership with Microsoft and investing in further developing its cybersecurity platform. The company's focus remains on using technology to support under-resourced organisations confronting advanced cyber threats.

Huntress Chief Executive Officer Kyle Hanslovan said the appointment came at a significant moment for the organisation.

"It's an honor to welcome Jen to our Strategic Advisory Board. She's arguably the single most transformative US government cybersecurity leader of our time, and her work at CISA set the gold standard for making critical resources accessible to the masses, not just the big players. She's joining Huntress at a time of hyper-growth, hot off the heels of a major collaboration with Microsoft and a bold expansion of our cybersecurity platform, and I'm hyped up over the passion she brings to our mission. Expect to see us leveraging her expertise to experiment with exciting new ways to harness our threat intelligence, augment our SOC experts with AI, and strengthen our partnerships throughout the industry," said Kyle Hanslovan, CEO of Huntress. 

Easterly's new role will involve bridging the gap for businesses that do not have the time, technical resources, or expertise to manage cybersecurity risk. She will work directly with Huntress to transform unique threat data from its extensive client base into practical intelligence, aiming to support the broader cybersecurity sector with actionable insights and regular reporting. Easterly is also expected to use her expertise and relationships to improve outreach to underrepresented communities and to develop new partnerships aligned with the company's mission to broaden accessibility in cybersecurity.

Describing her decision to join Huntress, Easterly said the company's mission and technical abilities were differentiating factors.

"I've worked with countless organisations over the years, but Huntress stood out for its exceptional leadership, technical prowess, and unwavering commitment to a mission that truly matters. The challenges we face today are stark. Cybercrime is outpacing the growth of most U.S. businesses, state-sponsored actors are relentlessly targeting critical infrastructure, and threat actors are continually evolving their tactics. Keeping pace with these threats will require dedicated efforts to build strong community partnerships and elevate collective knowledge. That's why I'm excited to join Huntress to disrupt threat actors in bold, innovative ways and make a real, measurable impact on our community," said Jen Easterly, Advisory Board member.

Easterly's move to Huntress follows attention around her withdrawal from a West Point post, with her choice of a private-sector security firm drawing industry and media attention. The role will see her focus on shaping how Huntress integrates artificial intelligence into its security operations centre (SOC) activities and its approach to industry threat intelligence.

Her experience at the intersection of government, defence, and private sector cybersecurity will play a direct role in the company's growth strategy, especially as it seeks to support smaller organisations facing the same level of cyber risk as larger enterprises. Huntress expects Easterly's guidance to reinforce its goal to make security resources more accessible and to drive the use of new technology to improve defences across the board.