Adam Arellano Host

Adam Arellano

Adam Arellano is the Field Chief Technology Officer at Harness where he advises customers and the broader industry on API and application security strategy and the intersections of software development and security teams. He brings over 15 years of experience elevating enterprise cloud, AI, and cybersecurity capabilities, having led strategic initiatives across government, non-profits, education, and large financial services organizations. Before Harness, his career has included modernizing compliance programs at Salesforce, supporting PayPal Ventures portfolio companies, and evolving product security architecture at Binti. Adam began his career as a fighter jet technician in the Marines and went on to become the Global Head of Security for the Marine Corps Recruiting Command and a trained Social Worker. Adam is based in Charlotte, NC, and is a father of six.

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Appears in 1 Episode

Why the U.S. Locked Down Fable and Mythos: AI, National Security, and the Workforce Squeeze
S5 #1

Why the U.S. Locked Down Fable and Mythos: AI, National Security, and the Workforce Squeeze

The U.S. just barred foreign nationals from accessing two advanced AI models — Fable and Mythos — citing national security. Around the same time, the Five Eyes intelligence alliance warned that AI-enabled cyberattacks are "months, not years" away. In Season 5 of ShipTalk, host Adam and co-host Martin dig into whether that warning is already overdue — and what it means for the people actually defending software.They're joined by Assaf, a longtime security leader (and Adam's former boss) and author of Lessons from the Front Line: Insights from a Cybersecurity Career. The conversation moves from the headlines to the harder truth underneath them: AI adoption is climbing, yet more than half of security and IT workers are considering leaving their jobs — burned out, under-resourced, and worried AI is coming for their roles. Assaf's take is contrarian and sharp: the real failure isn't AI, it's leadership translation and a training pipeline we're quietly demolishing. As Adam puts it, "this is not a security problem, it's an engineering problem."A candid, news-driven look at AI, national security, and the security workforce squeeze — and a surprisingly optimistic read on where it all goes next.Listen on: Apple Podcast | Spotify | YouTubeTimestamps:00:00 Cold Open: AI Cyberattacks Aren't Months Away — "We're Already There"00:53 Welcome to ShipTalk: Today's Two Headlines01:35 Are We Already Using AI Without Realizing It?02:41 Five Eyes Warns AI Cyberattacks Are "Months, Not Years" Away04:31 Harness by the Numbers: Half of Security Pros Want to Quit05:25 Meet the Guest: Assaf Keren (ex-PayPal & Qualtrics CSO)06:14 "Secure by Design, But For Real This Time"08:46 The ISSA Survey: Why Security Jobs Keep Getting Harder10:01 The "Triple Whammy" Burning Out Security Teams11:49 Have We Been Here Before? Cloud & the Changing SOC Role13:32 The Contrarian Take: AI Could Make Security Better15:41 The Real Failure: We're Demolishing the Training Pipeline18:41 Weak Leadership, or a Security Translation Problem?22:05 Trust: The CISO's Real Business Function23:20 What Teams Get Wrong About AI + Software Delivery24:37 Debrief: Adam & Martin's Takeaways26:31 Wrap-Up: Stop Talking, Start Shipping