Bartlett Russell Deputy Director, Defense Sciences Office DARPA

Dr. Bartlett Russell became DSO’s deputy director in August of 2022 and joined DARPA as a program manager in April of 2019. Her career has focused on the human domain and human effectiveness in military contexts. This includes understanding the variability of human cognitive and social behavior to enable the decision-maker, to improve analytics, and developing autonomous and AI-enabled systems that extend and enable human adaptability, ingenuity, and virtue. Prior to joining DARPA, Russell led the human systems and autonomy research area in Lockheed Martin’s Advanced Technology Laboratories. Her academic work included field and lab research on the effect of stress on attention, memory, and other cognitive functions in student and military populations. Before receiving her doctorate, she spent more than 10 years as contract support examining the implications of biotechnological developments on military competitions for various offices in the Department of Defense, including the Office of Net Assessment. Russell received her doctorate in neuroscience and cognitive science from the University of Maryland, College Park; her master’s degree in security studies from Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service; and her bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University.

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