Full Schedule
Summit Agenda
Keynotes, closed briefings, panels, and high-access dialogue with senior leaders from the intelligence, defense, and policy communities.
01
Opening Day
Thursday, April 2, 2026
Early Morning
6:30 – 7:45 AM
Activity
Morning PT with a Navy SEAL Commander
A mountain trail hike above Whitefish, led by Eric “Olly” Oehlerich. Shuttle pick-up across from the Performing Arts Center.
Morning
9:00 – 9:50 AM
VIP Session
VIP Speaker Reception VIP Only
Private gathering for VIP ticket holders with General Stanley McChrystal and Summit speakers.
Larch House
10:00 – 10:15 AM
Opening
Welcome & Opening Remarks
Jeffrey Caruso
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
10:15 – 11:15 AM
Keynote Address
Character as Strategy: Leadership for America’s Critical Frontiers
General Stanley McChrystal, US Army (Ret.)
Introduced by Anthony DeMario
Thirty-minute presentation followed by a fireside chat with Anthony DeMario and Q&A with attendees.
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
11:15 – 11:55 AM
Fireside Chat
From Langley to Cupertino to the Front Lines of Geopolitics
Anthony DeMario
Jeffrey Caruso — Moderator
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
11:55 AM – 12:35 PM
Panel
Wise Women, Hard Targets: Story, Strategy, and the Future of U.S. Security
Laura Thomas
Rachel Grunspan
Carmen Medina — Moderator
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
Afternoon
12:35 – 1:30 PM
Lunch Break
Lunch — Attendee’s Choice · Downtown Whitefish
1:30 – 2:10 PM
Presentation
Action Films and the Intersection of U.S. Intelligence
J. Mills Goodloe
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
2:10 – 2:50 PM
Fireside Chat
Secrets and Stories: Intelligence, Influence, and the Battle for Relevance
Rodney Faraon
Teresa Smetzer — Moderator
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
2:50 – 3:30 PM
Panel
The Next 48 Hours: Iran, the Strait, and the Edge of What Comes Next
A real-time assessment of the past 24 hours and what the next 48 may bring — with veterans of America’s defense and intelligence community cutting through the noise on the war, the Strait, and the endgames in play.
Michael “Mick” P. Mulroy — ABC News
Eric “Olly” Oehlerich
Anthony DeMario — Former CIA Chief of Operations, Iran & Counterterrorism
Colby Connelly — Energy Intelligence
Nancy Youssef — The Atlantic — Moderator
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
3:30 – 3:40 PM
Break
10-Minute Break
3:40 – 4:20 PM
Presentation
Reel v. Real: The Melding of Espionage and Entertainment
Darrell M. Blocker
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
4:20 – 5:00 PM
Panel
The Consequences of Portrayal: When Authenticity Matters — and When It Doesn’t
RJ Casey
Matt Westbrook
Susan Barrows Libby — Moderator
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
Evening
5:00 – 7:00 PM
Dinner Break
Dinner — Attendee’s Choice · Downtown Whitefish
7:00 – 7:45 PM
Social
A Sip To Remember: Notes, Conversations, and a Pour
Presented by Four Branches Bourbon
Mike Trott
RJ Casey
Great Northern Bar & Grill
8:00 – 8:40 PM
Panel
Service Beyond the Mission: From National Security to Community Impact
Dexter Ingram — IN Network
Jeremy Bowling — The Longest Climb Foundation
Kris Coleman — Moderator
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
8:35 – 9:15 PM
Documentary
Film: “My Star in the Sky”
Follows the survival, friendship, and love of Anthony and Florence Opoka, two children abducted and forced to fight for the Lord’s Resistance Army. Post-screening discussion with filmmakers, advisors, and Lobo Institute co-founders on the responsibility of telling real stories of conflict on screen.
Michael “Mick” P. Mulroy
Eric “Olly” Oehlerich
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
02
Intelligence & Entertainment
Friday, April 3, 2026
Early Morning
6:30 – 7:45 AM
Activity — Ed’s Swim
Morning PT with a Navy SEAL Commander
Cold water swim in Whitefish Lake led by Eric “Olly” Oehlerich. Win an “I Survived” certificate. Wetsuit, hood, and swim goggles encouraged. No fins. Shuttle pick-up across from the Performing Arts Center.
Morning
9:00 – 9:50 AM
VIP Closed Briefing
The 2025 National Security Strategy, 2026 National Defense Strategy and how it impacts US foreign policy globally VIP Only
An exclusive briefing on Operation Epic Fury — where things stand, how we got here, and where this is going.
Mick Mulroy — ABC News
Darrell M. Blocker — ABC News
John Nash — Acorn Capital Management
Amb. Cameron Hume — Moderator
Amb. Hume is Executive Director of the Maritime Humanitarian Aid Foundation and a retired U.S. Ambassador.
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
10:00 – 10:40 AM
Presentation
Scripted Crisis: Turning Real-World Threats into Drama — and Drama into Understanding
Howard Gordon
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
10:40 – 11:20 AM
Presentation
AI Cubed — Artificial Intelligence, Artistic Infringement, Anarchist Impact
Bianca Goodloe
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
11:20 AM – 12:00 PM
Fireside Chat
“Imagined Worlds, Real Moral Consequence”
Elizabeth Heider, PhD
I.S. Berry
Cambria Gordon
Jeffrey Caruso — Moderator
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
Afternoon
12:00 – 1:00 PM
Lunch Break
Lunch — Attendee’s Choice · Downtown Whitefish
1:00 – 1:40 PM
Presentation
Permission to Film: Navigating Governments, Military, and the World’s Most Guarded Places
Becky Brake
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
1:40 – 2:20 PM
Presentation
Playing the Problem: Games, Simulation, and the Future of Intelligence Insight
Rachel Grunspan
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
2:20 – 3:00 PM
Presentation
So You Want to Build a Defense Startup
Lance Cottrell
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
3:00 – 3:10 PM
Break
10-Minute Break
3:10 – 3:50 PM
Presentation
“How Power Shapes the Story: Inside Hollywood’s Influence Machinery”
Tatiana Siegel
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
3:50 – 4:30 PM
Panel
When Stories Become Signals: Intelligence, the Paranormal, and the Rise of Conspiracy Thinking
Carmen Medina
Julia Mossbridge
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
4:30 – 5:10 PM
Panel
One Mission. Two Cultures: CIA – DoD Collaboration in Practice
Andrew Hartsog
Eric “Olly” Oehlerich
Michael “Mick” P. Mulroy — Moderator
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
Evening
5:10 – 6:45 PM
Dinner Break
Dinner — Attendee’s Choice · Downtown Whitefish
6:45 – 8:30 PM
Documentary Screening
Film: “The Power We Hold: Stories from Women Spies”
A feature documentary about the women of the U.S. intelligence community — their stories, their impact, and the history they shaped from behind the scenes. Following the screening, filmmakers and documentary subjects join for a conversation about the film, the mission, and what it means to finally tell these stories.
Megan Jaffer — Filmmaker
Cadie Naquin Hopkins — Filmmaker
Carmen Medina
Laura Thomas
Whitefish Performing Arts Center
03
Send-Off Day
Saturday, April 4, 2026
Morning
9:00 – 11:00 AM
Activity
The Lobo Treasure Hunt
A send-off activity around Whitefish Lake, co-ordinated by Mick Mulroy and Olly Oehlerich.
Michael “Mick” P. Mulroy
Eric “Olly” Oehlerich
Somewhere around Whitefish Lake