Creating a Knowledge Sharing Platform

Former CIA Director Petraeus: U.S. success in the Persian Gulf is a source of pride, but not a reason for complacency. Ukraine offers the key lessons: modern warfare involves drones, AI, and precision-strike capabilities. That is where the real challenges and the future of warfare lie. The battlefield in Ukraine is far more complex than the Persian Gulf. Drones are jammed, intercepted, and quickly replaced. This is a war on an industrial scale, where mass, resilience, and innovation are decisive. Without a conventional navy, Ukraine was able to use maritime drones to disable a significant portion of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and force it to retreat. Cheap unmanned systems can break traditional naval power. U.S. and Israeli operations in the Persian Gulf took place under much easier conditions, with control over communications and navigation. The enemy is unable to operate on a massive scale across all domains. Unlike in Ukraine, where a constant, large-scale, and adaptive war is underway. Lesson #1 — Volume is key. Ukraine produces them by the millions, up to 7 million a year. The U.S. doesn’t even come close to that scale. Lesson #2 — Speed of adaptation. The advantage goes to whoever learns faster. In Ukraine, drones are updated weekly, hardware every few weeks, and tactics change just as quickly. Lesson #3 — Resilience. Systems must operate under electronic warfare and without communication. This leads to autonomous drones and swarms capable of penetrating air defense systems. Even modern systems are already struggling; autonomous ones will pose an even greater challenge. The U.S. Army needs rapid and radical changes. New approaches must transform everything: from training to procurement. The U.S. demonstrated its strength in the Gulf; Ukraine is facing a real war under pressure. This should not lull us into complacency but rather heighten the sense of urgency. General David H. Petraeus, US Army (Ret.)

I started by asking AI to do everything. Six months later, 65% of my agent’s workflow nodes run as non-AI code. The first version was fully agentic : every task went to an LLM. LLMs would confidently progress through tasks, though not always accurately. So I added tools to constrain what the LLM could call. Limited its ability to deviate. I added a Discovery tool to help the AI find those tools. Better, but not enough. Then I found Stripe’s minion architecture. Their insight : deterministic code handles the predictable ; LLMs tackle the ambiguous. I implemented blueprints, workflow charts written in code. Each blueprint specifies nodes, transitions between them, trigger conditions for matching tasks, & explicit error handling. This differs from skills or prompts. A skill tells the LLM what to do. A blueprint tells the system when to involve the LLM at all. Each blueprint is a directed graph of nodes. Nodes come in two types : deterministic (code) & agentic (LLM). Transitions between nodes can branch based on conditions. Deal pipeline updates, chat messages, & email routing account for 29% of workflows, all without a single LLM call. Company research, newsletter processing, & person research need the LLM for extraction & synthesis only. Another 36%. The workflow runs 67-91% as code. The LLM sees only what it needs : a chunk of text to summarize, a list to categorize, processed in one to three turns with constrained tools. Blog posts, document analysis, bug fixes are genuinely hybrid. 21% of workflows. Multiple LLM calls iterate toward quality. Only 14% remain fully agentic. Data transforms & error investigations. These tend to be coding tasks rather than evaluating a decision point in a workflow. The LLM needs freedom to explore. AI started doing everything. Now it handles routing, exceptions, research, planning, & coding. The rest runs without it. Is AI doing less? Yes. Is the system doing more? Also yes. The blueprints, the tools, the skills might be temporary scaffolding. With each new model release, capabilities expand. Tasks that required deterministic code six months ago might not tomorrow.

I hear you: "Why offer free insights? Won't I give away the game?" Hold that thought! In today's knowledge-fueled economy, generosity, not secrecy, is the key to unlocking explosive growth. Here's why: 1. @Seth Godin Drops Wisdom Bombs: "People do not buy products or services. They buy relationships, stories, and magic." Sharing knowledge builds trust, strengthens connections, and positions you as the go-to expert, weaving that irresistible marketing magic. 2. Gary Vaynerchuk's Jab-Jab-Jab-Right Hook: Giving away valuable content educates, informs, and earns attention. It's the jab that sets up the powerful right hook of your unique offerings. The more you educate, the more qualified leads you attract, ready to convert when the time is right. 3. Data Speaks Louder Than Doubts: 🔷 84% of B2B decision-makers research a company online before making a purchase. 🔷60% of consumers are more likely to buy from a brand they follow on social media. 🔷72% of marketers see increased brand awareness from content marketing. The numbers sing loud and clear: Openness and valuable insights pave the way for brand recognition, trust, and ultimately, sales. 4. From Hoarder to Hero: Imagine being the brand that demystifies complex topics, simplifies processes, and empowers others with actionable knowledge. You become the trusted guide, the industry torchbearer, the hero of the client's journey. That's brand loyalty built on generosity and expertise. So, fellow knowledge keepers, shed the secrecy! Embrace the power of sharing: 🔶 Post informative articles, host insightful webinars, share valuable tips on social media. 🔶Engage in authentic conversations, answer questions openly, and build genuine connections. Remember, you're not giving away everything, you're building a bridge to something even better: *******long-term success and loyal clients.******* Ready to ditch the scarcity mindset and embrace the power of open generosity? Drop a comment below and share your opinion about giving away insights! Let's turn them into opportunities together. Let's spread the word! #sharingisgrowing #contentmarketing #thoughtleadership #brandbuilding #successmindset

Hey everyone, I’m excited to share my new report: "Does Ukraine Already Have Functional CJADC2 Technology?" It’s all about how Ukraine’s Delta system has evolved on the fly—shaped by what’s really happening on the battlefield—and what that means for the future of command-and-control systems like CJADC2. What makes this story stand out? Instead of building some grand, perfect solution behind closed doors, the team behind Delta started small, kept improving step by step, and baked in new tech (including AI) based on real-world feedback. The result? A system that’s flexible, connected, and quick to adapt to the ever-changing demands of modern warfare. For Western militaries and anyone keen on next-gen command-and-control approaches, there’s something to learn here. It’s not about chasing the latest shiny tools—it’s about how you bring everything together, respond to feedback fast, and work with allies. If you’re curious about the details and the bigger lessons, check out the full report. And let me know what you think—this is just the start of a conversation about what it means to build smarter, more responsive systems in today’s complex battle spaces. Read online here: https://lnkd.in/eCghneAb #defense #military #CJADC2 #commandandcontrol #Deltasystem #innovation #AI #interoperability #defensetech #modernwarfare #Ukraine #militarytechnology

Currently thinking through social network theory and the strategic value of the U.S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command 38G program... Beyond individual expertise, the distinct value of U.S. Army Civil Affairs 38G Program can be best understood through social capital theory, which holds that trust-based relationships and professional networks function as real, mobilizable resources in moments of uncertainty and crisis (Bourdieu 1986; Putnam 2000). In wartime or rapid-onset emergencies, information, legitimacy, and cooperation move fastest through pre-existing, trusted networks, not formal bureaucratic channels. Embedded 38G officers convert social and professional capital into operational advantage by acting as brokers between military command structures and high-level civilian sectors across academia, industry, NGOs, and international institutions. Drawing on Mark Granovetter’s concept of the “strength of weak ties,” 38Gs enable commanders to rapidly access specialized knowledge and external capacity that would otherwise be unreachable or too slow to mobilize (Granovetter 1973). In this sense, the program enhances warfighting not merely by embedding expertise, but by embedding trust networks, expanding the Army’s reach, legitimacy, and freedom of maneuver at the speed modern conflict demands (FM 3-57; ADP 6-0). This isn’t a distraction from lethality. It is how commanders reduce strategic risk and win when firepower alone is not decisive. Image Credit: New York, N.Y. – Cultural Property Protection training at the Metropolitan Art Museum, June 3, 2023. (U.S. Army photo By Sgt 1st Class Gregory Williams/Released)

The "Speed of War" isn't a buzzword—it's a requirement. Recent Warfighter Exercises (WFX) prove it: Our headquarters are drowning in data but starving for actionable insights. We are still trying to win modern battles with "digitized analog" processes—manual slides, fragmented chats, and disconnected trackers. Onebrief is changing the game. It’s not just another tool; it’s an AI-powered Operating System for Commanders to drive the planning process. ✅ Sync at Scale: One update to a "Card" (task/risk) flows instantly from Corps to Division. ✅ Kill the Drudgery: Automated workflows replace 20+ hours of manual slide deck maintenance per week. ✅ Unified Truth: Real-time data integration across NIPR, SIPR, and JWICS. ✅ Decide Faster: Transform complex data into actionable insights before the enemy can react. From the single services to Joint Staff, the shift toward data-centric C2 is here. Stop managing slides and start mastering the domain. The future of the battlefield belongs to those who can synthesize information the fastest. Are you ready? #DefenseTech #JADC2 #Onebrief #WFX #ModernWarfare #CommandAndControl #Innovation

Ukraine is gathering unique, combat-tested knowledge on the battlefield. This war is already being fought with new technologies and new rules – especially with drones. Future conflicts will be impossible without them. Many countries are already updating their military strategies based on Ukraine’s experience. The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine understands this. That’s why we launched training courses for service members in the Army+ app. Out of eleven courses, the most popular ones focus on UAV operations and cyber resilience – two areas at the heart of modern warfare. Importantly, Ukraine is ready to share its knowledge with allies. No other country has the kind of real-world battlefield experience Ukraine is gaining right now – as highlighted by Larisa Braun in this timely and insightful piece for The Times: 🔗https://bit.ly/45oOhmT Grateful to see continued recognition of Ukraine’s expertise — and the value of learning from one another.

Europe just showed what “learning from the front line” actually looks like. Two weeks after raising €180M at a €3B valuation, Germany’s Quantum Systems announced a joint venture with Frontline Robotics—a Ukrainian company we’ve backed at UA1 vc—to mass-produce battlefield-proven technology for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Not R&D. Not pilots. Industrial-scale production of systems already winning on the front line. This is a big deal. Ukraine has rewritten modern warfare through speed, iteration, and cost discipline. Germany is now pairing that battlefield innovation with industrial muscle—factories, automation, capital, and political will. This is what real defense cooperation looks like. And here’s the part the U.S. should be paying attention to: 🇺🇸 Our companies—and our Department of War —are still too slow to adopt systems that are already combat-validated. While Europe is scaling Ukrainian tech today, the U.S. risks being locked into decade-long procurement cycles built for a different war. Frontline’s drones are already used by 60+ Ukrainian units. Now they’ll be produced at scale, to NATO standards, with full lifecycle support. This isn’t charity. It’s deterrence—and a blueprint. The takeaway: • What we see today in Ukraine is the future of modern warfare • Allied industrial bases must integrate Ukrainian tech now • Speed matters more than perfection • Those who adapt fastest will define the next era of deterrence At UA1, this is exactly why we invest where the war is being fought—and why we focus on bridging Ukrainian innovation into allied production and procurement pathways. Re-industrialization is underway—but failure to integrate battlefield-proven Ukrainian tech risks eroding U.S. readiness for the next war. Mykyta Rozhkov Sven Kruck William McNulty Alexander Kamyshin

Updated Lessons Learned from Technological Change in the War in Ukraine. In February 2024, in an article published in the Belgian magazine Knack, I argued that the war in Ukraine would become the first true data-conflict of the modern era. Nearly two years later, that prediction has clearly materialised. Data, how it is collected, processed, shared, protected, and acted upon, has become a central determinant of military effectiveness. What the war now demonstrates is not just rapid technological adaptation, but a deeper shift in how modern warfare is organised, sustained, and learned. Several early lessons turned into structural realities. 1. Warfare Has Become Iterative Modern war no longer follows fixed capability cycles. Advantage comes from continuous adjustment under combat conditions. Ukraine has connected frontline feedback directly to software updates, production changes, and redeployment. Learning speed now matters more than initial technological advantage. 2. Attrition Is the Baseline High loss rates of drones, sensors, and digital systems are now normal. Operational effectiveness depends on the ability to replace and regenerate capabilities, not on preserving individual platforms. 3. Data, Software, and Connectivity Drive Combat Power Operational advantage increasingly comes from fast sensor-to-shooter loops and resilient digital infrastructure. Ukraine’s use of cloud services has enabled battlefield data to be stored, processed, and shared across dispersed units. At the same time, Starlink has provided critical connectivity when terrestrial networks were disrupted, allowing command, targeting, and logistics functions to continue under fire. 4. Civil-Military Boundaries Are Structurally Blurred Commercial providers of cloud services, satellite communications, and software have become permanent contributors to military effectiveness. This is no longer ad hoc wartime improvisation. 5. Industrial Capacity Is a Warfighting Variable Ukraine’s ability to localise production, adjust designs, and scale output has had direct battlefield impact. Industrial agility has compensated for material and numerical disadvantages. 6. Tactical Innovation Shapes Strategy Frontline units are driving innovation faster than doctrine can absorb it. Strategic and doctrinal adaptation increasingly follows battlefield experimentation. 7. Autonomy Advances Out of Necessity Autonomy has expanded due to communications disruption, time pressure, and manpower limits. Human-machine teaming, rather than full autonomy, has emerged as the dominant model. The war in Ukraine confirms that technological change in warfare is continuous. The defining feature of this conflict is not a single system, but the central role of data. For NATO, the principal risk is no longer technological surprise, but institutional rigidity in a war defined by constant adaptation.

Q: “Why do you post about PR on LinkedIn every day? Don’t you have an actual PR job?” 🤨 I get snippy DMs like this occasionally. I get it. I do. Usually it’s from other PR types who resent the crazy engagement I enjoy here because of convos with awesome readers like you. My answer is pretty simple tbh. I *ungate my brain* about the PR industry on this platform to: 1. Educate folks about what PR is — and especially what it isn’t! — and to share the good, the bad, the ugly about an industry constantly in flux 2. To enable the marketers/biz leaders who may one day hire Crackle PR to *ambiently vet me/my agency before they even have a need.* 💥 That last point is key. By the time a CMO/head of comms reaches out to me, they *already know* my PR philosophy. ✔️They *already know* my ethics. ✔️They *already know* I’m no bullshitter. ✔️They *already see* how I value my team and lead with empathy. And they almost always say some variation of: “I feel like I already know you” before we ever even meet. What I’m really doing here is what I think is, directionally, the future of PR, sales & marketing: Social selling. To wit: Always adding value until the timing and needs align for my firm and our audiences. I do zero outbound. Zero hard selling to anyone, ever. No pressure tactics, no arm-twisting, no pitch-slapping. I just drop knowledge & insights every damn day with *nothing* expected in return. This isn’t how PR agencies are typically built. This isn’t a comms playbook chronicled in college text books. But this also isn’t 2005 anymore, guys. The game has changed. So change we must. Stay thirsty, my friends. This is the way ✊ #publicrelations #marketing