I/ITSEC 2026 Beyond the Battlefield: Training Readiness and Lethality for All-Domain Dominance!

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Date

November 30

Format

In-Person

Location

Orlando, FL

Manufacturing
Technology
AI
Policy
Aerospace & Defense · Robotics & Automation · Space

Importance:

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About

The 2026 conference marks NTSA’s 60th anniversary and centers on the U.S. Army lead-service theme, “Beyond the Battlefield: Training Readiness and Lethality for All-Domain Dominance!” The program combines executive presentations, technical papers, tutorials, professional development workshops, special events, and Next Big Thing talks focused on modeling, simulation, training, education, AI, autonomous systems, synthetic environments, operational test and evaluation, acquisition modernization, digital engineering, digital twins, cyber and information warfare, and the defense industrial base. Featured content includes an Industry Keynote by Brandon Tseng, President & Co-Founder, Shield AI; a Featured Government Keynote by Amy Henninger, SES, Ph.D., Director, Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E), DoW; and senior-leader discussions involving LTGEN Austin, USMC; MAJ GEN Cropsey, USAF; and MAJ GEN Smith, USSF. Special events include the Congressional M&S Caucus; Digital First discussions on defense acquisition through AI, digital engineering, simulation, and digital twins; Building an AI Ready Military Force; a Naval Aviation Flag Officer Panel; NATO mission-space digital twins; Air Force maintenance training; cyber, electromagnetic, wargaming, and information warfare; and program briefs on training acquisition and the All-Domain Marine. The program also includes perspectives from government, industry, academia, and international partners.

Schedule

Times are local to the event.

8:30 AM – 5:30 PM11 sessions at the same time

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 1 - From M&S to Digital Engineering

Workshop · 310G

2:30 PM – 3:30 PM

Certified Modeling and Simulation Professional - Now 4.0!

Focus Event

331A

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 2 - Building Live, Virtual, Constructive Environments

Workshop · 320H

3:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Space Readiness and Education Roundtable

Focus Event

Roundtable

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 3 - Human Accessibility and Experimentation

Workshop · 330A

4:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Medical Simulation Interoperability

Community of Interest

331A

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 4 - Best of M&S

Workshop · 330B

4:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Fireside Chat: Dr. Will Roper / Hon Carlos Del Toro

NBT

222 - Destination Lounge

Will Roper, Hon Carlos Del Toro

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 5 - From Packets to Federations: Mastering DIS, Securing HLA 4, and Supercharging DDM

Workshop · 330C

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 6 - Forging the Future Warfighter

Workshop · 330D

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 7 - Mind, Body, Simulation

Workshop · 330E

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 8 - Ready for the Future?

Workshop · 330F

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials 9 - AI: Value to Vision

Workshop · 331A

8:30 AM – 2:15 PM

Tutorials BT - Best Tutorial

Workshop · 320C

10:30 AM – 12:00 PM

Congressional M&S Caucus

Signature Event

Roundtable · 320F

2:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Army Special Keynote

Signature Event

Keynote · 320F

4:00 PM – 5:30 PM

Forging the Future: Rebuilding America’s Skilled Trades Workforce for National Security

Signature Event

Panel · 320F

Speakers(27)

Brandon Tseng

President & Co-Founder, Shield AI

Amy Henninger, SES, Ph.D.

Director, Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E), DoW

Fred Fleury

Conference Chair, 4 SimVision, LLC

Michael O’Connor

Program Chair, Trideum Corporation

VADM Sean S. Buck, USN (Ret.)

President, National Training and Simulation Association

Hon. David L. Norquist

President and Chief Executive Officer, National Defense Industrial Association

Will Roper, Ph.D.

Chief Executive Officer, Istari Digital

Rocio Bauer

Director for Data, Engineering, and Software, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology

Jason Echols

Senior Fellow, Rotary & Mission Systems, Lockheed Martin

James Ruocco, SES

Performing Duties of Assistant Secretary of War for Acquisition (ASW(A))

Summer Rebensky, Ph.D.

Principal Research Scientist, Portfolio Lead, Aptima, Inc.

Svitlana Volkova, Ph.D.

Chief of AI, Aptima, Inc.

Will Dupree, Ph.D.

Deputy Division Director, Intelligent Performance Analytics, Aptima, Inc.

Anders Gronstedt, Ph.D.

President, Gronstedt Group

Nathan Klose

VP, Davidson Labs, Davidson Technologies

Patrick Gemperline, Ph.D.

Lead Quantum Computing Engineer, Davidson Technologies

Sarah J. Stager, Ph.D.

Associate Teaching Professor, College of Information Sciences and Technology, The Pennsylvania State University

Marco Barbesta

Principal AI Designer and Systems Architect, Project Logos

Frank Ritter

Professor, College of Information Sciences and Technology, The Pennsylvania State University

John Duda

CEO, SummitET

Meghan Hutchison, MS, CEM

Senior REP Subject Matter Expert, SummitET

Peter Grossman

Staff Principal Engineer SME, Astrion

Funding programs

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