2025 GSF: The Evolution of America’s Defense Industrial Base: From Freedom’s Forge to the Last Supper to the First Breakfast

During World War II, the private sector rapidly mobilized to transform the U.S. into a wartime manufacturing powerhouse, certifying an allied victory and cementing the U.S.’s global leadership. In the years to follow, public-private cooperation in defense would become the gold standard, opening up an evolving defense-industrial base that would enable the future success of U.S. operations across the globe. From the consolidation of defense companies in the post-Cold War era to the manufacturing challenges presented in the modern day, this panel will examine the evolution of the U.S. industrial base in the context of a rapidly-changing world—one where our industrial might is challenged like never before. Panelists Dr. Author Herman, Senior Fellow and Director, Quantum Alliance Initiative, Hudson Institute; Dr. Seth Jones, President, Defense and Security Department, and Harold Brown Chair, CSIS; Jen Stewart, Executive Vice President for Strategy and Policy, National Defense Industrial Association and Senior Advisor (Non-resident), Defense and Security Department, will join moderator Eric D. Chewning, Executive Vice President of Strategy & Development, HII, for a panel discussion on how the history of public-private partnerships in defense can inform, support, and enable the future of the defense-industrial base.

To view the full forum, please visit: 2025 Global Security Forum, Strength Through the Storm: Industry, Innovation, and the Future of U.S. Military Power | CSIS Events.

This event is made possible by the generous support of Leonardo DRS.