Known as Alamo ACE, the event has run for 13 years in San Antonio, the city with the largest number of cyber professionals outside the D.C. region. Attendance was up from more than 3,000 a year ago.
The conference’s theme, “Enabling the High-End Fight,” hinted at the dangerous realities of the world today. With an explosion of misinformation and disinformation from both foreign and domestic entities, it made clear that the protection and use of data is a growing priority for the military.
The growing conference — featuring sessions with titles such as “Data for the next fight,” “(National Security Agency’s) role in cybersecurity and collaboration” and “How the (Department of Defense) benefits from AI” — was a reminder of the city’s increasing role in such issues.
Securing the nation’s data and information is a center of gravity for the military today — and one in which San Antonio’s growing cybersecurity industry plays a key role.
“We’re a nexus for the country here, and it’s important because we have a growing cyber economy,” said Chris Kinne, president of the Alamo chapter of the association. “There are many, many businesses ranging from big, well-known, national defense firms to entrepreneurial startups that are one or two people working in their garages.”
Outside of private businesses, thousands more government employees work in the cyber field across the area at NSA Texas and various organizations on Joint Base San Antonio, including the 16th Air Force and U.S. Army North. There’s also a growing cyber focus in local universities and schools.
Ultimately, Kinne said, Alamo ACE “is an opportunity for government, academia and industry to exchange ideas.” His organization “exists to create environments like this where people can participate in an ethical dialogue about national security issues.”
“San Antonio’s cyber roots go as far back as 1948 with military intelligence operations at Lackland Air Force Base,” Mayor Ron Nirenberg said in opening remarks for the conference. The city’s “relationship with the military is a point of local pride, and is one that we protect vigorously."
