Johns Hopkins APL Experts Named to Department of War’s First Science, Technology and Innovation Board

Milan (Mitch) Nikolich and James Gosler, two national security experts from the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, have been named to the Department of War’s (DoW) first Science, Technology and Innovation Board (STIB).

Nikolich, a senior researcher in the Laboratory’s National Security Analysis Department and former Director of Defense Research and Engineering for Research and Technology, has been named as the inaugural chair of the STIB. He is joined on the board by Gosler, a Senior Fellow at APL with more than five decades of technical leadership in national security, cybersecurity, nuclear weapon security, and counterterrorism. Both will retain their APL roles while serving on the board.

The STIB consists of 18 highly experienced science and technology experts from government, industry, and the research community. The board, established by Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering (USW(R&E)) Emil Michael, is charged with solving complex national security problems for the Secretary of War, the Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other senior Department officials. The STIB unites two previous boards — the Defense Science Board (DSB) and the Defense Innovation Board (DIB) — into a single group that can more quickly and easily deliver rigorous scientific and technical assessments teamed with private‑sector responsiveness.

“The deep expertise and sustained impact demonstrated throughout Mitch’s and Jim’s national security careers will be valuable assets for this new advisory board, and Mitch will be an outstanding board chair,” said APL Director Dave Van Wie, who served on the DSB from 2022 to 2025. “By bringing together highly technical researchers and industry partners focused on rapid innovation, the board will ensure the nation’s leaders have an effective new resource to maintain our country’s leadership in critical technologies.”

“It’s a distinct honor for two members of the Laboratory to be part of this new organization,” said Nikolich. “We are proud that the Department of War values APL for our trusted technical analysis as senior leaders shape their decisions, and we look forward to further contributing to these efforts that ensure our nation’s security.”

Prior to joining APL, Nikolich served as the Director of Defense Research and Engineering for Research and Technology from 2018 to 2020. In this role, he led the Department’s science and technology enterprise and was pivotal in the creation and strategy of the newly established Under Secretariat for Research and Engineering. He served as the principal adviser to the USW(R&E), ensuring the nation maintains its technological advantage through strategic research and technology investment. Nikolich has also held senior positions with numerous national security-focused industry firms and served in the Physics Division of Los Alamos National Laboratory. He was a technical contributor to the Strategic Defense Initiative, the establishment of the DoW Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction program, and the advancement of the U.S. nuclear weapons program. Additionally, Nikolich has served as a member of U.S. arms control delegations and on the Congressional Commission to Assess the Threat to the U.S. from Electromagnetic Pulse Attack.

“The threats to our nation are rapidly evolving and formidable,” Gosler said. “This new board will combine the technical rigor of the Defense Science Board with the agility and speed of the Defense Innovation Board. In this new threat landscape, the external and independent mindset of this board can help the DoW by challenging the rigidity of the status quo and ensure our nation continues to deter our opponents and, if necessary, prevail in conflict,” Gosler said.

Gosler served for more than 30 years in cyber and nuclear weapon positions at Sandia National Laboratories, where he created and led the Vulnerability Assessments Program and became Sandia’s sixth Fellow. He was the first director of the Central Intelligence Agency’s Clandestine Information Technology Office (CITO), which established information operations as a core CIA discipline. He served on the DSB from 2010 to 2021, has led or participated in more than 30 DSB studies, and is a member of the National Academy of Engineering. His honors include the DoW’s Eugene G. Fubini Award, the Lockheed Martin NOVA Award, the CIA’s William J. Donovan Award, the CIA Director’s Award, and the Navy Legion of Merit. Gosler’s previous committee service includes the National Security Agency Advisory Board (2007-2014), the Naval Studies Board (2011-2016), the Navy Science and Technology Board (2023-2025), and the DSB Permanent Subcommittee on Threat Reduction (2023-2025). Gosler served as a naval officer from 1975 to 2003.