Radha Iyengar Plumb was the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Officer (CDAO) of the United States Department of Defense from April 9, 2024 to January 14, 2025, the fifth holder of the post since the office's predecessor was created in 2018. She is no longer in the role; after an interval in which Andrew Mapes served as acting CDAO, Cameron Stanley took the position on January 12, 2026 (Source: en.wikipedia.org; defensescoop.com).
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Role | Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Officer (CDAO), Department of Defense |
| Tenure | April 9, 2024 – January 14, 2025 |
| Predecessor | Craig H. Martell (June 2022 – March 2024) |
| Successor | Cameron Stanley (from January 12, 2026), after Andrew Mapes as acting CDAO |
| Service | US Senior Executive Service |
Tenure as CDAO
As CDAO, Plumb headed the Chief Digital and AI Office, the official responsible for department-wide AI adoption strategy, joint AI capability development, and AI and machine-learning common services. Her tenure covers the transition of the department's generative-AI effort from an exploratory task force to a funded acquisition vehicle: Task Force Lima, which had run from August 2023 and catalogued 15 use-case areas across warfighting and enterprise functions, was sunset on December 11, 2024 and its mandate folded into the AI Rapid Capabilities Cell with $100 million in initial FY24/25 funding, of which $35 million was earmarked for four frontier-AI pilots (CSET + DOJ + CSIS — US-China AI National-Security Axis (composite source summary)). The same month the office awarded roughly $40 million in SBIR contracts to non-traditional vendors.
The frontier-AI procurement decisions the office is most often cited for — the May 2026 selection of seven companies for IL5/IL6/IL7 classified-network deployment, the GenAI.mil platform, and the dispute over Anthropic's exclusion — postdate her departure and fall under the acting and Stanley periods.
Succession and the renamed department
The role sits within a department that has since been renamed: CDAO materials published from 2026 describe the office as the Department of War's Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (Source: ai.mil). Cameron Stanley, a defense technology executive and Project Maven alumnus, was reported on January 7, 2026 as the frontrunner for the post and took it days later (Source: defensescoop.com).
Relationships
- related: Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) — the office she led from 2024 to 2025
- related: AI and National Security — primary concept page covering DoD AI adoption
- related: CSET + DOJ + CSIS — US-China AI National-Security Axis (composite source summary) — records the Task Force Lima sunset and the AI RCC funding during her tenure