--- title: 'Mission Lead - Cyber (Clearance Required) at Vannevar' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/mission-lead-cyber-clearance-required-vannevar-washington-district-of-columbia-g4vr9246am4r' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-09-09' --- # Mission Lead - Cyber (Clearance Required) at Vannevar - **Company:** Vannevar - **Location:** Washington District of Columbia, United States - **Posted:** 2026-06-18 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-09 - **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/vannevarlabs/jobs/5166384007 ## Job description Vannevar is a defense technology company building AI to deter our adversaries. In the 21st century, conflict moves at algorithmic speed and foresight equals firepower. Our agentic AI is purpose-built to compete with China—from cross-Strait conflict to gray zone coercion. Trained on the most mission-relevant datasets in defense, our technology models adversary behavior, simulates campaigns, and recommends the best course of action to decision makers. Our AI systems are some of the most trusted in the industry and actively used on the front lines of the Indo-Pacific to keep the peace and save lives. Exceptional technology starts with exceptional people. Vannevar is a small agile team combining world-class engineers with veteran strategists who bring deep expertise in defense and tradecraft. We’re building a company defined by mission impact, user empathy, and disciplined growth. In just three years, we grew from $3M to $80M in ARR, achieved early profitability, and reached unicorn status—proving that disruption doesn’t require an ego, and staying power doesn’t mean standing still. ## About the role Mission Leads are customer-facing owners of mission outcomes. You will lead engagements with government stakeholders to identify high-value mission problems, shape pilots and deployments, and turn demonstrated mission value into durable, funded programs. This role blends mission credibility with strong execution and technical intuition. You will operate with high autonomy in ambiguous environments, translate mission needs into clear technical narratives, and coordinate across functional teams (Product, Engineering, Mission, Security, and Operations) to deliver and scale. This is a customer-facing role required to be based in Washington D.C. Candidates should have experience in the Cyber community. U.S. Persons status with at least a current Top Secret clearance in required. This is a customer-facing role required to be based in Washington D.C. Work will require time in secure or classified environments and periodic travel. ## What you'll do - Lead cyber mission engagements. Build trusted relationships with operators, analysts, planners, technical teams, and senior leaders across the cyber mission community to understand operational priorities, mission objectives, and capability gaps. - Translate mission needs into actionable plans. Turn operational challenges into clear problem statements, requirements, success metrics, and execution roadmaps aligned to mission outcomes. - Map technology to cyber workflows. Identify where AI-enabled capabilities can improve cyber mission planning, targeting, intelligence production, defensive operations, vulnerability analysis, or command decision-making. - Shape pilots and pathways to operational adoption. Define objectives, timelines, evaluation criteria, and transition plans that move capabilities from initial deployment to sustained operational use. - Communicate technical value in mission terms. Build compelling narratives that connect our technology to real cyber mission workflows, demonstrating measurable impact and differentiation. - Drive mission execution. Lead customer engagements, working groups, operational reviews, executive updates, action-item tracking, and risk mitigation efforts across multiple stakeholders. - Coordinate cross-functional delivery. Partner closely with Product and Engineering teams to ensure mission requirements, operational realities, and user feedback directly inform product development. - Navigate the cyber enterprise. Help stakeholders work through requirements development, capability integration, acquisition processes, budgeting cycles, security considerations, and organizational coordination. - Enable operational success. Support onboarding, training, workflow integration, and change management efforts to ensure users can effectively employ and sustain the capability. - Maintain mission awareness. Develop and maintain deep knowledge of customer organizations, operational priorities, stakeholders, mission sets, and evolving cyber challenges. - Support growth and expansion. Identify adjacent mission opportunities, emerging requirements, and pathways to broaden impact across the cyber mission enterprise. ## What we're looking for - 5+ years of experience working within or alongside the U.S. cyber mission community in cyber operations, cyber defense, vulnerability analysis, mission planning, intelligence, or related operational cyber functions. - Direct experience supporting or working with U.S. Cyber Command and strong understanding of the cyber mission landscape. - Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functionally without consistent guidance - Strong written and verbal communication; able to synthesize ambiguity into clear plans and execution - Ability to scope and articulate a solution credibly: connect mission problems to software capabilities and measurable outcomes - Sufficient technical fluency to partner effectively with Product and Engineering and translate complex concepts into mission-relevant narratives - Strong operational skills: planning, prioritization, stakeholder management, and follow-through ## Nice to have - Experience with CYBERCOM staff, a Cyber Service Component, NSA, Joint Staff, or other cyber-focused organizations. - Familiarity with AI-enabled mission workflows, cyber mission planning, intelligence analysis, or operational decision support platforms. Vannevar is an equal opportunity employer, and qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender perception or identity, national origin, age, marital status, protected veteran status, or disability status. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply, even if you don't feel like you're a perfect fit. If you're passionate about contributing to our mission, we'd love to hear from you! ## IMPORTANT NOTICE We are committed to protecting the privacy of all applicants. Official emails from the company will come from an @vannevarlabs.com domain. Under no circumstances will a legitimate representative from our company contact you to request passwords, financial information, or other sensitive personal data. Please be vigilant of potential scams. ## About Vannevar ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Vannevar Labs builds next-generation AI-powered defense software for information dominance and decision advantage across the U.S. military and homeland security missions. - **Entity Type**: Private (Series B, total funding $91.5M) - **Headquarters**: Palo Alto, California, USA - **Founded**: 2019 - **Founders**: Brett Granberg (CEO) and Nini Hamrick (President) ## Core Business - **Primary industry**: Defense and Space Manufacturing; National Security Software - **Target customers**: U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), Intelligence Community, Homeland Security – including combatant commands (INDOPACOM, SOCOM, AFSOC, etc.) and federal agencies. - **Mission**: Build 21st-century software that operates at the speed of modern conflict to give the U.S. and its allies battlefield information dominance and decision advantage. ## Products & Services - **[Decrypt](https://www.vannevarlabs.com/)** – Flagship product: a foreign text workflow platform that processes vast amounts of open-source intelligence (OSINT), translates languages (Mandarin, Russian, etc.), and surfaces critical patterns and insights for intelligence officers. SaaS deployed at the tactical edge. - **[Curator](https://research.contrary.com/report/vannevar-labs)** – (Beta) A translation and search-and-discovery tool built on top of Decrypt’s data pipeline. - **Unreleased Products** – At least two additional tools in beta (as of Nov 2024) focused on computer vision and/or NLP for battlefield applications. - **Forward Deployed Engineering** – Custom integration and mission support for specific units, often requiring security clearances. ## Market Standing - **Valuation**: Not disclosed (last known post-Series B in 2023) - **Total Funding**: $91.5M - Seed (Apr 2019): $4.5M - Seed (Jan 2021): undisclosed amount, led by Costanoa Ventures and General Catalyst - Series A (Aug 2021): $12M, led by Costanoa Ventures and Point72 Ventures - Series B (Jan 2023): $75M, led by Felicis (with 7 investors) - **Annual Revenue**: Conflicting reports – [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/vannevar-labs) lists $25M; [Contrary Research](https://research.contrary.com/report/vannevar-labs) states revenue grew from $3.5M in 2021 to $80M in 2024, achieving profitability within three years. - **Key Customers & Partners**: U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Air Force Special Operations Command, U.S. Special Operations Command, National Air and Space Intelligence Center; partner with Databricks (announced Oct 2024). - **Notable Investors**: Costanoa Ventures, General Catalyst, Point72 Ventures, Felicis. - **Growth Signals**: Featured on Forbes AI 50 (2024 & 2025); headcount reportedly over 200 as of Dec 2025 (per Contrary); active in major joint exercises (Balikatan 2025, Talisman Sabre 2025); secured a $99M production contract from the Defense Innovation Unit in late 2024. ## Competitive Advantages - **Rare Proprietary Data** – Over one petabyte of adversarial, hard-to-access data that powers fine-tuned AI models not available to commercial firms. - **Tactical Edge Deployment** – AI systems designed to run at the edge, on low-bandwidth battlefield environments, ensuring real-time decision superiority. - **Rapid DoD Adoption** – Uses flexible Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreements and DIU partnerships to bypass traditional procurement timelines. - **Cross-Domain Expertise** – Combines talent from elite military units (SEALs, Marines, Intelligence) with top tech companies (Google, Palantir, Scale AI, Amazon, Apple). - **Profitability at Scale** – Achieved profitability within three years – a rare achievement in defense tech. ## Strategic Focus - **Expand International & Homeland Security** – Growing footprint beyond all‑military to include Homeland Security, border security, and diplomatic economic security tools. - **Agentic AI Platform** – Building “armies of agents” that can autonomously steer fleets, detect threats, and keep missiles from flying, with human-in-the-loop oversight. - **Indo‑Pacific Deterrence** – Deepening capabilities for theater‑specific deterrence and partner‑nation data sharing. - **Talent Heavy‑Up** – Actively hiring for 28+ roles (as of mid‑2026) across engineering, mission, and operations, especially those requiring TS/SCI clearances. ## Why Work Here - **Mission‑Driven Culture** – Described as “a workplace like no other” where ex‑Googlers work alongside ex‑SEALs to build AI that protects American lives. Employees focus on “real‑world difference” rather than incremental consumer apps. - **Work Environment** – Hybrid / remote‑friendly, though many roles require on‑site presence in D.C., Honolulu, or other cleared facilities. Remote positions exist for those with existing clearances. - **Engineering Philosophy** – Emphasis on building agent‑based systems, working with rare datasets, and pushing AI to the tactical edge. Employees cite high compensation but note work‑life balance challenges (rating 2.7/5 on Glassdoor). - **Career Growth** – Rapidly growing organization with direct exposure to defense decision‑makers, opportunities to lead mission‑critical deployments, and a strong alumni network feeding into top defense tech (Palantir, Anduril, Scale AI). - **Security Clearance Required** – Most engineering and mission roles require (or sponsor) U.S. government security clearances (TS/SCI). This is a strong signal of deep‑end work. ## Sources 1. [vannevarlabs.com](https://www.vannevarlabs.com/) – Company website 2. [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/vannevar-labs) – LinkedIn Company Page (financials, headcount, reviews) 3. [research.contrary.com](https://research.contrary.com/report/vannevar-labs) – Contrary Research Report (funding details, revenue, products, headcount, customers) 4. [job-boards.greenhouse.io](http://job-boards.greenhouse.io/vannevarlabs) – Greenhouse careers page (open roles, job descriptions) 5. [vannevarlabs.com/careers/open-roles](https://www.vannevarlabs.com/careers/open-roles/) – Official open roles listing ## Other roles at Vannevar - [Government Contracts Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/government-contracts-manager-vannevar-remote-a4ncnwmaa3mb) - [Application Security Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/application-security-engineer-vannevar-remote-kqtbd3px6f06) - [Senior Software Engineer, Search](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-software-engineer-search-vannevar-remote-w2scbtqsq6wy) - [Engineering Manager, AI Platform](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-manager-ai-platform-vannevar-remote-20ns4yn7q0q5) - [Senior Software Engineer, Full-Stack - Security Platform](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-software-engineer-full-stack-security-platform-vannevar-remote-1re81zetr7a8) - [Mission Lead - San Diego (Clearance Required)](https://feeny.ai/job/mission-lead-san-diego-clearance-required-vannevar-san-diego-s36svykxp8xx) — San Diego, CA - [Mission Lead, Tampa (Clearance Required)](https://feeny.ai/job/mission-lead-tampa-clearance-required-vannevar-tampa-florida-5e4erszmr6dv) — Tampa Florida, United States - [Forward Deployed Engineer - Software Modernization (TS/SCI Clearance Required)](https://feeny.ai/job/forward-deployed-engineer-software-modernization-ts-sci-clearance-required-dtz44p6f0na3) — Washington District of Columbia, United States - [Senior Mission Manager - International (Clearance Required)](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-mission-manager-international-clearance-required-vannevar-washington-gma749m0sf2b) — Washington District of Columbia, United States - [Engineering Manager, Security Platform](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-manager-security-platform-vannevar-remote-batag39zk9jb)