Former Mossad chief David Barnea has joined US-based defense technology company Ondas Inc. as global president and chairman, the company announced on Monday.
According to Ondas, Barnea will support the company’s global expansion, development of strategic technology, and defense and government relationships.
The defense company credited Barnea with strengthening the Mossad’s intelligence, technological, and operational capabilities during his tenure there, citing his leadership as the driving factor behind this new appointment.
According to Ondas, he will support the company’s strategy to build unified defense technology platforms with AI-enabled software aimed at integrating intelligence, communications, and decision-making into operational execution.
Ondas stated that Barnea will work with entities in the Middle East, Europe, and Asia, where investments in autonomous defense systems are increasing.
Ondas expanding with autonomous strike, counter-drone technologies
The appointment comes as the company is in a period of expansion, having recently secured millions of dollars of orders for unmanned ground systems, autonomous precision-strike technologies, and counter-drone measures, it noted.
“The nature of warfare is changing rapidly, as demonstrated by the conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine,” Barnea said. “Operational advantage increasingly depends on the ability to combine intelligence, artificial intelligence, resilient communications, autonomous platforms and precision capabilities into one coordinated operational environment.
Barnea added that he looks forward to working with Ondas “to support the Company’s global expansion and help develop the next generation of AI-enabled, multi-domain defense systems.”