Decision Dominance, Team Culture, and Smack Technologies with Andy Markoff

Andy Markoff joins Callye to unpack why he left uniformed service to build Smack Technologies—and how his team is pursuing “decision dominance”: fusing multi‑modal data and using reinforcement learning to turn analysis into actions faster than adversaries. Andy explains where Smack sits in the modern “kill web,” why teaming beats rip‑and‑replace, and the biggest mistake he sees new defense founders make (hint: losing touch with the end user). The conversation closes with an honest look at culture—how to let scientists and engineers coexist under a shared mission without blowing deadlines or technical rigor. 

Key Takeaways

• Mission → Company: Andy’s service in Iraq and Afghanistan—and the pain of running the “kill chain in Office 365”—pushed him to build technology outside the wire and bring it back in.
• Where Smack fits: Not a data‑integration shop. Smack focuses on the model/reasoning layer (reinforcement learning) and the application layer that surfaces decisions—designed to plug into others’ data layers and UI/briefing tools (think Palantir for integration, OneBrief for CONOPS visualization).
• Teaming > Turf: Modern defense delivery splits across four components: data integration, model/reasoning, application, and an operating layer. No single vendor wins everywhere—learn to team or walk away.
• Don’t forget the user: The pendulum swung from “only talk to end users” to “only sell to program offices/Congress.” You must work all three—user, program office, and appropriators—or you’ll ship tech that gets funded but never used.
• Iterate in the field: Replace “perfect‑then‑procure” with rapid fielding, frequent touchpoints, and continuous deployment—even for HW/SW systems supporting AI at the edge.
• Comms in contested environments: A future fight breaks our assumption of fat pipes. Andy highlights secure 5G efforts (e.g., Cape) and calls for autonomous communications relay as an under‑served, solvable gap.
• Power is a feature: Edge systems die without expeditionary power—solve it early, not after the ruck weighs 200 lbs in batteries.
• Culture that ships: Balance “what’s right” (scientists minimizing tech debt) with “ship it” (engineers hitting milestones). Mission alignment is the glue.

Chapters & Timestamps

• 00:00 — Cold open & intro
• 00:23 — What Andy’s passionate about now: service, purpose, and the national‑defense mission
• 01:14 — Marine Corps to Marine Raider: finding purpose, then deciding to build from the outside
• 03:22 — 2016 Iraq: running the kill chain in Office 365 & the moment of founder clarity
• 05:56 — From PowerPoint and whiteboards to decision dominance
• 07:41 — The “four components” of defense decision tech & where Smack sits
• 10:46 — Teaming with Palantir/Anduril/OneBrief vs. competing with them
• 12:23 — What new entrants get wrong: forgetting end users (or only courting PMOs)
• 14:38 — Rapid fielding mindset: iterate with real users, not just SBIR slides
• 16:22 — Hardware as the house where AI lives; why iteration matters
• 18:18 — Startups to watch & the comms relay gap; secure 5G in the mix
• 20:32 — Moving data ≈ asking better questions; legacy links won’t carry modern fusion
• 22:19 — Power at the edge & unsexy problems that win fights
• 24:37 — Golden nugget: build cultures where scientists and engineers both thrive

About Andy Markoff

Andrew brings more than a decade of leadership in the U.S. Marine Corps, including roles as a Marine Special Operations Officer, Fires Instructor at MAWTS-1, and Special Operations Forces J3 during the Battle of Mosul. His experience spans four combat deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as leading operations and strategy at Palantir. Andrew holds a BA in Political Science from Princeton University.