Speakers

Brigadier General Guillaume “Will” Beaurpere assumes duties as the Commanding General of the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, the Special Operations Center of Excellence. He most recently served as the Deputy Commanding General for Operations at Army Space and Missile Defense Command; and before that as Commanding General for Special Operations Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve.

Brigadier General Beaurpere was commissioned as an infantry officer from Boston College through the Army ROTC program. His initial infantry assignments were with the 1st Infantry Division at Fort Riley, Kansas, and 2nd Infantry Division, at Camp Casey, Korea.

He has had the honor of commanding Nation’s best Soldiers at every level of Army Special Operations from Special Forces Operational Detachment-Alpha to SF Group. His command and staff assignments included tours with 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) and 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne), engaging with allies and partners from Asia, Africa, Europe and the Middle East. He has also deployed in support of multiple named operations.

Brigadier General Beaurpere’s other key assignments include serving as the Deputy Commander of Support for the 4th Infantry Division; Executive Officer to the Commanding General, U.S. Special Operations Command; Deputy Commander, Special Operations Joint Task Force-Iraq; and Military Assistant to the Secretary of the Army.

Brigadier General Beaurpere holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston College and a master’s degree from Al Akhawayn University, Morocco, where he and his family spent two years through the Olmsted Scholar Program. He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, as well as a graduate of the Army War College Fellows Program at the Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. Brigadier General Beaurpere has earned several Army, Joint and foreign awards, decorations, and badges over the course of his career.

He and his wife recently celebrated 26 years of marriage. They are blessed with four wonderful children, two of which have also chosen to serve in the Army.

MG Christopher L. Eubank is a native of Roanoke, Virginia. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant from the Virginia Military Institute. MG Eubank began his Army career in 1991 as an Armor Officer where he served as a Platoon Leader in the 1st Infantry Division (Mechanized), Fort Riley, Kansas. In 1993, he branch-transferred to the Signal Corps and was assigned to the 121st Signal Battalion where he served as a Signal Platoon Leader.

Later, he was reassigned as the Battalion Signal Officer for 1st Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. As a Captain, he was assigned to United States Army Europe and Seventh Army, Germany, where he served as a Brigade Signal Officer, Brigade Logistics officer, and Commander of the 324th Signal Company, 72nd Signal Battalion.

In 1999 he was assigned to the United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command, Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he served as a Communications Officer and later project officer. As a Major, he was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina where he served as a Brigade Signal Officer, Battalion Operations Officer, Communications planner for the Joint Special Operations Command. As a Lieutenant Colonel, he served as Commander, 82nd Airborne Division Special Troops Battalion. After battalion command, he was assigned as the Deputy Director for Communications – J65 Programs Division, United States Special Operations Command, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida and later Director J6, Special Operations Joint Task Force Afghanistan. As COL Eubank, from 2013 to 2014, he commanded the Area Support Group-Kuwait. He then was assigned as the Deputy Chief of Staff, G6, for the United States Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In 2016, he became the fifth Director of the J6 for the United States Africa Command at Kelley Barracks in Stuttgart Germany. MG Eubank has deployed eight times in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. MG Eubank’s assignment from 2018 to 2020, was as the 39th Chief of Signal and Signal School Commandant. MG Eubank's previous assignment from June 2020 until September 2021 was as the Commanding General for 7th Signal Command and Deputy Commanding General, United States Army Network Enterprise Technology Command at Fort Gordon, Georgia. His current assignment is the Commanding General to the United States Army Network Enterprise Technology Command, Fort Huachuca, AZ.

MG Eubank is a graduate of the Armor Officer Basic Course, the Signal Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and the U.S. Army War College. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Virginia Military Institute, a Master of Arts in Computer Resource and Information from Webster University and a Master of Science in Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College, Carlisle, PA.

MG Eubank’s military awards and decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, GWOT Expeditionary and Service Medals, NATO Medal, Combat Action Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, and Polish Jump Wings.

A native of Oakland, California, Captain Jon D. Gruen graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1997 with a bachelor’s degree in Physics (Oceanography). Captain Gruen’s active duty assignments include SEAL TEAM ONE, NAVAL SPECIAL WARFARE UNIT TWO, and SEAL TEAM THREE where he served in increasing SEAL Platoon and Task Unit leadership roles in Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

In March 2007, he transitioned to the Navy Reserve, where he served as the Executive Officer of both SEAL TEAM SEVENTEEN SEAL Unit and Undersea Mobility Unit. He then completed back-to-back Commanding Officer tours of Naval Reserve Unmanned Air Systems Unit, before being promoted and taking command of NAVAL SPECIAL WARFARE GROUP ELEVEN Headquarters Unit. His Reserve Mobilizations include Operations Officer (J3) at Joint Special Operations Task Force – Arabian Peninsula, as Special Operations Forces Liaison Element (SOFLE) to the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Amphibious Ready Group-3, and as Naval Special Warfare Branch Head on the Navy Staff (OPNAV N951).

In his civilian career, Captain Gruen started as a Business Development Principal at Lockheed Martin where he won over $10B in program value, to include the Dry Combat Submersible and the Prime Contractor role for USSOCOM PEO-SOFSA. He is currently the co-founder and Chief Financial Officer of an emergency management and consultancy firm, specializing in providing new technologies for disaster, security, and relief operations. He is also the Executive Chairman for a technology company focusing on remote sensing and unmanned capabilities.

Captain Gruen holds the 1135 Naval Special Warfare designator, and his personal awards include the Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medals, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Naval and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, and multiple unit and service awards. He holds a Master of Business Administration from the Haas School of Business at the University of California - Berkeley.

Patrick Tucker is science and technology editor for Defense One. He’s also the author of The Naked Future: What Happens in a World That Anticipates Your Every Move? (Current, 2014). Previously, Tucker was deputy editor for The Futurist for nine years. Tucker has written about emerging technology in Slate, The Sun, MIT Technology Review, Wilson Quarterly, The American Legion Magazine, BBC News Magazine, Utne Reader, and elsewhere.